5 Early Themes of the 2015 MLB Season
As the balls of twine have started to unravel over the first two-plus weeks of this season, we are seeing certain themes become clear.
Some of these might not have deep staying power, meaning they are results of small sample sizes or can be classified as things that will soon be forgotten. Nevertheless, they have become themes. Others have the chance to last all season as statistics show they might not be so fluky.
They range from the good, the bad to the baffling and archaic. Whatever the case, they’ve shown enough of themselves that they are five of the early themes of the 2015 MLB season.
Royal Tussles
1 of 5
The defending American League champion Kansas City Royals had three incidents that have caused the benches and/or bullpens to clear out this season. Three. Through 14 games.
That is the kind of rare stat that gets people’s attention.
The first incident happened April 12 when Royals right-hander Yordano Ventura stared down and exchanged words with Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout, for what seemed to be no particular reason. Benches cleared. Order was restored.
“I don’t think I did anything wrong,” Trout told reporters, according to Pedro Moura of the Orange County Register. “When I touched the plate, I told [Matt] Joyce, ‘Let’s go,’ and then [Ventura] got in my face. I’m just trying to play my game. I’m not trying to get into any fights or anything.”
It was an overreaction by Ventura, and the Royals were involved in more scrappiness the following weekend against the Oakland A’s. It started with a late slide by Oakland’s Brett Lawrie that caused Royals shortstop Alcides Escobar to suffer a bruised knee. Lawrie apparently tried to apologize to Escobar via text message, but Escobar said he did not get the message, and all kinds of confusion ensued.
The next day, Ventura drilled Lawrie with a 99 mph fastball. Lawrie walked to first base without ever looking at Ventrura, but Ventura ventured toward the first-base line and had some words for him before he was ejected, then continued staring down Lawrie as he walked off the field. Benches cleared again, but nothing serious followed.
But in the final game of the series, Scott Kazmir threw a fastball at Lorenzo Cain’s feet, hitting him. It could have been malicious, but a ball placed in that location makes it difficult to say for sure.
The Royals did not need to know for sure. They appeared to go at Lawrie again, this time with a 100 mph fastball from Kelvin Herrera that ended up behind the hitter’s back. Herrera was rightfully suspended (five games), but as he walked off the field, he pointed to his head as if to tell Lawrie that’s where the location could be next time he faces him, though he later claimed it was a "think about it" gesture. Benches cleared again, and while no punches were thrown, the bad blood was brought to a steamy boil.
“That’s what got me mad,” Lawrie told reporters, according to Joe Stiglich of CSNBayArea.com. “You don’t throw behind someone and then walk away when you throw 100 miles per hour, and say, ‘The next time I face you, I’m gonna hit you in the head.’ That’s s--t.
“That’s some b------t, and he needs to pay for that. That ain’t OK. This is a game. This isn’t going up there and trying to hurt people. This guy doesn’t throw 85 mph. He throws 100.”
Clearly this is not over, and the Royals, Ventura in particular, have shown an early season propensity for overreacting. If it continues, they ought to expect more suspensions, and if Herrera makes good on his headhunting promise, there should not be a place for him in Major League Baseball.
Beltway Boys as MVP Candidates
2 of 5
Bryce Harper and Adam Jones have been good players in recent years, but there were questions about when either would blossom into true superstar form.
The answer might be this year, simultaneously.
Harper, the Washington Nationals’ 22-year-old right fielder, is off to a blazing start. He entered Wednesday with a .410 OBP, .531 slugging percentage and .940 OPS with four home runs and 12 walks, giving him a 19.7 percent walk rate, by far the highest of his career if it holds.
Harper already has three full big league seasons under his belt, and he has posted OPS-pluses of 118, 133 and 111 before this year (157), according to Baseball-Reference. At 22 and holding down the No. 3 or 4 spot in the order for a team with World Series expectations, Harper has plenty of his own expectations to carry around. And this might be the season he finally lifts them over his head.
As for Jones, the Baltimore Orioles’ 29-year-old center fielder has made four All-Star teams and won four Gold Gloves in his six previous seasons. However, only once has he has an OPS-plus higher than 118, according to Baseball-Reference.
That could change this season. Through Tuesday’s games, Jones is tied for third in the American League in runs (12), is the leader in hits (21), RBI (16), OPS (1.294) and OPS-plus (253). He also has five home runs and only five strikeouts.
If this continues for another five months, both MVP awards could reside in the Beltway.
Contending Cubs Wasting No Time
3 of 5
When the Chicago Cubs went after and landed Jon Lester last offseason, it was an unmistakable signal that the team planned to contend in 2015. Then, they held back Kris Bryant for the first dozen days of the season to gain another year of control over his contract, even though he was clearly their best option at third base and maybe already their best hitter. Their commitment to wining this year was questioned briefly, but no more.
Four days after calling up Bryant, one of the game’s other top prospects, shortstop Addison Russell, was summoned to the Cubs. He will play second base for now since Starlin Castro is the incumbent shortstop. While he went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts in his major league debut Tuesday, Russell projects to be an above-average hitting infielder, possibly even a great one.
So far, the Cubs’ youth movement, particularly in the batting order, is working. While the average age of Tuesday’s starting nine was 26 years old, the Cubs have managed an 8-5 record entering Wednesday.
Many figured because of their youth, it would take the Cubs until 2016 to truly contend because teams like the St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates were still better as a whole within the division. As Rob Neyer wrote at FoxSports.com:
"In the short term, adding Lester ... makes the Cubs maybe two or three games better than they were last year. Or maybe I'm WAY OFF ... and it's four or five games. Now tack on another four or five to account for the mystical powers of Joe Maddon. That still leaves them well short of scaring the Cardinals."
"
But young players like Anthony Rizzo, Jorge Soler, Bryant, Castro and possibly Russell are contributing at a high level thus far. If that continues, this is a Cubs roster that can surprise its critics.
.png?w=256)
A Brew Tank and a Hot Seat
4 of 5
It turns out the 3-16 stretch the Milwaukee Brewers went through last August and September was more indicative of their 2015 chances than the 159 days, including off days, they spent in first place in 2014.
The Brewers have started the season 2-12. Their OBP, slugging percentage, OPS and total home runs are all good for last in the majors. And to top it all off, their two best players over the previous two seasons—Jonathan Lucroy and Carlos Gomez—just landed on the disabled list.
"It’s nice when you have guys on base so you can be driving in a lot of runs, but yeah, I didn’t expect us to struggle like this," manager Ron Roenicke told reporters. "You’re going to struggle at times, no question. But I didn’t think we would come out like this."
Their rotation’s 6.12 ERA and .309 opponents’ average are the worst in the league as well.
The Brewers are already seven games back in the National League Central, and that puts Roenicke on a sizzling seat. The Brewers announced during spring training they had picked up the manager’s 2016 option, but that is hardly an assurance that he will be there to manage through it.
It’s not entirely Roenicke’s fault, though, if at all. The Brewers jumped into this season with an inferior rotation, and their lineup was iffy at best, considering recent injury histories and the decline of 36-year-old Aramis Ramirez, who is likely to retire after the season.
If this season ends up costing Roenicke his job, blame also has to fall evenly on the front office for its failure to give the manager a competitive roster.
Adrian Gonzalez, Joey Votto Return to Relevance
5 of 5
Ever since Adrian Gonzalez was traded to the Boston Red Sox and Joey Votto won his National League MVP Award in 2010, both players have become somewhat undervalued as offensive weapons.
While that was not necessarily an accurate assessment of either player, they are both reinforcing their worth this year.
Gonzalez has made the Los Angeles Dodgers forget they no longer have Matt Kemp and Hanley Ramirez. He leads the majors with a .442 average, an .885 slugging percentage, a 1.393 OPS and eight doubles, and he had at least one hit in each of the team’s first 11 games this season.
Votto, the Cincinnati Reds’ best offensive player for virtually his entire career, has been equally as impressive. He is second in the NL in slugging (.792), OPS (1.285) and is third in OBP (.492). He also leads the league with six home runs.
Neither guy has ever had a seriously down season in terms of the league, but it could be argued they’ve recently had subpar years by their own standards. This year, they are primed to have their best seasons in recent memory. And based on their track records, it would not be a shock if they continued this pace for most of the summer.
.png?w=480)
