What stands out a month into the season? Let's break down the biggest early trends -- and what they mean for the rest of 2024.
This time last year, the pitch clock had fundamentally changed baseball, and its effects were wide-ranging. This year, the game has fallen into relatively familiar patterns. The teams that were supposed to be better than everyone -- theStill, every April brings surprises: teams better or worse than expected, breakout stars or faltering veterans.
In the meantime, umpires should showcase their collective improvement at the most difficult part of their current job instead of making #UmpShow trend on social media. A great place to start would be a May when their only noteworthy contribution is a bump in correct-call percentage -- putting them on pace for a 16th straight year of success.At this point last year, players were still getting used to the new rules, and their effect on the future of the game was the biggest storyline in the sport.
From 2005-2020, the strikeout rate rose every year. The new rules were, in part, in response to the three true outcomes taking over the sport -- especially since strikeouts represented a disproportionate amount of those outcomes . From the 2020 peak of 23.4%, the annual numbers have been 23.2%, 22.4%, 22.7% last year and now 22.5%.
What does every team on this list have in common? A very good bullpen, so far. That's new for Kansas City, newish in Detroit and returning to normal in New York. While everyone is waiting for Paul Skenes to arrive, the Pirates already have perhaps the closest facsimile to his stuff in the big leagues. The 22-year-old Jones, a second-round pick in the 2020 draft, is flashing an absurd array of pitches. His four-seam fastball? Best in the big leagues, as judged by the Stuff+ metric that calculates a pitch's raw qualities. His changeup? Third best. Slider? It's elite too. Curve? Well above average.
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