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Looking at the Astros Struggles and Dodgers’ Dominance in the MLB Top 3, Bottom 3

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At what point does a hot start become a good season? When does a sluggish start become a worrisome slump?

We are nearing the one-tenth point of the MLB season … which really is nothing. Even if a team or two was undefeated at 16–0 in the MLB – that is like an NFL team starting 2-0. It is an extremely small sample size relative to the season.


While we can’t go around handing out trophies in late April, these games certainly don’t mean nothing. Check out the NL West, for example. These teams are giving themselves an amazing leg up in the Wild Card race by winning loads of early games.

A hot start is much more favorable to a poor one and will pay dividends in a tight division race come September.

While leading the league in runs scored per game or strikes thrown in April does not guarantee you a spot in the postseason it is often fun to look in and see which teams excel in certain areas and which are deficient.

Welcome to Wagerbop’s MLB Top 3, Bottom 3 of April 2022.

Red Reporter

MLB Team Wins Leaders (and Losers)

Mets 11

At 11 – the New York Mets have jumped out of the gates as the hottest team of 2022. New York has yet to lose a series in the young season.

 

The Mets began the season by taking 3 of 4 from Washington before taking 2 of 3 against both Philadelphia and Arizona – finally taking 3 of 4 against last season’s wins leader – the San Francisco Giants.

Dodgers 10

The Los Angeles Dodgers were wire-to-wire World Series favorites last year and enter play in 2022 as Las Vegas’ top team once again.

The season got off on a sour note against the Rockies as the Dodgers dropped 2 of 3. LA quickly corrected the ship – winning their next 6 games against the Twins and Reds.

 

Since, the Dodgers have beaten the Braves 2 of 3 and won the first game of their weekend series against the Padres.

Blue Jays 9

At 9–5, the Toronto Blue Jays have the 3rd-most wins in baseball. Toronto is yet to lose a series in 2022.

The Blue Jays took 2 of 3 from Texas in their opening series before splitting a 4-game set with the New York Yankees.

Following that battle, Toronto took 2 of 3 from both Oakland and Boston – right before winning their first game in a weekend series against Houston.

Reds 12 Losses

Things are bleak in Cincinnati – one of the blue bloods of Major League Baseball. The team is mired in a 10-game losing streak in front of tiny crowds with low morale.

We’re not talking Oakland A’s sparse in the stands, but this is one of the worst starts to a season in Cincinnati Reds history. The team has not lost this many consecutive games since an 11-game losing streak in May 2016.

Cincinnati kicked off the 2022 season with a 4-game set against the defending champion Atlanta Braves. Cincinnati won on Opening Night and earned a split in the series – beginning the season 2–2.

Little did we know that would be the team’s peak. The Reds have since been stymied by the Guardians, Dodgers, Padres, and Cardinals.

Ace starting pitcher Luis Castillo is on the shelf with an injury and last year’s best Reds hitter Nick Castellanos is now in Philadelphia. Flame-throwing rookie pitcher Hunter Greene is a bright spot, but one pitcher alone cannot will a team out of futility.

 

Unsurprisingly, we will find the Reds near the bottom of many of the league’s team statistics.

Nationals 10 Losses

For the second consecutive season, the Washington Nationals are near the bottom of the league – starting this season 6–10.

Washington began 2022 by losing 3 of 4 against the Mets before winning 2 of 3 against the Atlanta Braves – their only series win of the young season.

 

The Nationals then went on to drop 3 of 4 against Pittsburgh and split a 4-game set with the Diamondbacks. They have lost the first game of the weekend Giants series.

3-Tied at 9 Losses

The Diamondbacks, Orioles, and Rangers are all tied for the 3rd-most losses in the MLB this year. This should be no surprise. Each of these 3 teams were mainstays at the bottom of the standings last year.

The Rangers added boatloads of free agent talent in the off-season but it is yet to make a difference in the wins – loss column.

The Orioles have been unlucky offensively and have wasted tremendous pitching performances early in the year.

MLB Runs Per Game Leaders (and Losers)

Dodgers 5.38

You got to score to win, and the Los Angeles Dodgers do that better than anyone.

The Dodgers lineup reads like an All-Star team: Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, Max Muncy, Freddie Freeman, Cody Bellinger.

Keep reading to see that the Dodgers are faring pretty well in the pitching department, as well.

Guardians/Rangers 5.31

No team scores in spurts better than the Cleveland Guardians who scored double-digit runs in 3-straight games last week.

Cleveland has gone off for double-digit runs 4 separate times this season and is narrowly behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for the highest-scoring offense of 2022.

 

The Guardians have not received pitching to match their excellent offense and are stuck at 7–7 on the season. Luckily for Cleveland, they play in the weak AL Central and actually lead the division with a .500 record.

The Texas Rangers are one of the worst teams in the league as we’ve documented, but it is not the fault of their offense. Corey Seger and Marcus Semien pace this new-look lineup along with Adolis Garcia, Nick Solak, and Mitch Garver.

Texas has only made it into double digits twice this year but has put up at least 8 runs in 5 of their 13 games.

Orioles 2.36 (Lowest)

The Orioles struggles to get hits to fall have been well documented.

The sad thing about the Orioles offense slumping is that their pitching has been lights out – ranking 5th in the MLB in team ERA. This is more than enough pitching to get Baltimore out of the basement.

Unfortunately, these efforts from the mound have been wasted as the hitters are getting very unlucky at the plate … plus they are not a great offensive team to begin with.

Royals 2.67 (2nd-Lowest)

You know when you’re trying to avoid saying a girl is ugly so you say she has a great personality? The baseball equivalent of that is saying a team has a lot of potential.

The Kansas City Royals have a lot of potential.

Reds 2.79 (3rd-Lowest)

I told you that the Reds will appear at the bottom of a lot of these lists. You don’t lose 10 consecutive games because you’re outscoring your opponents.

MLB Team ERA Leaders (and Losers)

Dodgers 2.27

Well, now you can begin to see why the Los Angeles Dodgers are quickly becoming the overpowered Yankees of modern Major League baseball. They’re good at everything!

With the league’s best batting average and the league’s lowest team ERA, the only surprising thing is that the Mets have managed to grab more wins than Los Angeles.

Yankees 2.47

Despite the well-documented struggles of Gerrit Cole, the New York Yankees boast the lowest ERA in the American League.

Keeping the ball inside of Yankee stadium is no small feat – making it all the more impressive that New York is so capable of stifling opposing offenses.

The AL East has some very good offenses from Toronto to Boston to Tampa who play in some hitter-friendly parks.

New York boasts an impressive roster. Do they have what it takes to rise to the top of a competitive division?

Giants 2.51

The Giants won 107 games last year with good pitching and hitting – and then they added Carlos Rodon to the rotation.

So far this year the Giants have picked up where they left off, right up near the top of the ultra-competitive NL West.

The pitching has been the Giant’s strength so far in 2022, as it was last season.

Reds 5.85 (worst)

Ahh yes. I thought we’d find the Cincinnati Reds here. What do you get when you combine the league’s highest ERA with a horrible offense? 10 losses in a row.

Cincinnati really only has 3 pitchers anyone’s ever heard of. Luis Castillo is hurt. Tyler Mahle is decent. Hunter Greene throws hard – that’s about it.

Rangers 5.68 (2nd-worst)

As we saw earlier, the Rangers offense is percolating to begin 2022 thanks to the new additions of Marcus Semien and Corey Seager.

A lot of doors would open for Texas in the AL West if they could get some decent pitching.

Nationals 5.01 (3rd-worst)

The Nationals were not newsworthy last season and don’t appear to be in contention for anything this year either.

Washington’s offense is mediocre and their pitching leaves much to be desired.

MLB Team Batting Average Leaders (and Losers)

Rockies .284

Of course, the Colorado Rockies are often near the top of team hitting statistics thanks to the thin air above Coors field.

Much of the Rockies production is thanks to incoming journeyman C.J. Cron – who is right there was Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for the hottest start in the MLB – and splashy free agent signing Kris Bryant.

Guardians .279

We documented how the Guardians have scored a lot of runs, and it’s very hard to do that without getting a lot of hits.

 

Cleveland has been frustratingly inconsistent to begin 2022, but even on their off–scoring nights they still manage to collect a lot of hits.

This makes it very frustrating for game-total bettors who get their hopes up as Cleveland gets runners on and then watches their dreams be shattered in front of them as Cleveland strands runners in scoring position 3 innings in a row.

Phillies .260

The Philadelphia Phillies are a dark horse team out of the NL East. They had a strong record for most of the 2021 season before running out of steam in September and allowing the Braves to play catch-up.

Nick Castellanos transfers in from Cincinnati and joins an already solid lineup anchored by former-MVP Bryce Harper.

This high batting average doesn’t appear to be a fluke. The Phillies look like a team that could contend for one of the league’s best offenses all season long.

DBacks .180 (worst)

Gun to the head – can you name one Diamondbacks hitter? … Ketel Marte … maybe?

All right, fine. You pass. My point is the Diamondbacks do not have a scary lineup. They are the anti-Murderers Row.

Reds .184 (2nd-worst)

Blah blah blah. Time to say more bad things about the Cincinnati Reds. It’s really getting old at this point.

Astros .200 (3rd-worst)

Now this one is surprising. The Houston Astros have long since been one of the best teams in the American League – always in contention for the pennant and even the World Series.

Let’s look at the facts though: José Altuve is getting old, George Springer has been gone for two seasons now, and Carlos Correa is in Minnesota.

You’ve got the 37-year-old Yuli Guriel at first base and Alex Bregman in the hot corner. Yordan Álvarez is a stud. So that’s good.

I think it’s safe to say that this batting average will definitely improve, but that the Astros are not nearly as scary at the dish as they were during their peak years a few seasons ago.

MLB Team BABIP Leaders (and Losers)

Rockies .338

If any other team led baseball with a BABIP of .338 you would say that this is a fluke that will definitely regress, but let’s keep in mind where the Rockies play.

The thin mountain air in Coors Field leads to a plethora of deep fly balls and gap shots into the massive power alleys in Denver.

While a .338 batting average on balls in play is very hard to sustain, it is not unfathomable to think that the Rockies BABIP will remain higher than most teams for the majority of the year just because their ball travels better in 81 of their games.

Guardians .336

The Guardians were not expected to be good this season and yet they jumped out of the gate with an extremely strong offensive showing.

Whenever this happens, we must analyze the numbers and determine whether the team is more talented than we thought or if they were just getting lucky.

Unfortunately for Cleveland fans, it appears that the 2022 April version of the Cleveland Guardians are getting lucky.

A BABIP of .336 is very high and rather unsustainable for an entire season.

Guys like Myles Straw and Steven Kwan have been on tears to begin the season but are not highly-touted players. It is unlikely that their incredible production will continue.

Angels .322

This is not a good sign for the Los Angeles Angels. They are not doing exceptionally well offensively, and the numbers indicate they are getting a little bit fortunate with their batted ball placement.

Every single year, we look at the Angels roster and surmise that they have a lot of talent but they never seem to quite have what it takes to finish above .500 and grab a playoff spot.

Every year we say, “maybe this is the year”. So … maybe this is the year.

DBacks .219 (worst)

Did you hear that? All of the Diamondbacks fans across the nation just exhaled. An extremely low BABIP of .219 means that the DBacks are getting a little bit unlucky at the dish – having an inordinate amount of their batted balls going straight into the gloves of the opposition.

The good news is that regression will straighten this out a little bit. The bad news is that even if the Diamondbacks were getting extremely lucky they would still be a terrible offense.

Astros .227 (2nd-worst)

This one makes a lot more sense. The Houston Astros as a team are hitting .200 on the season, but this is largely due to the 2nd-lowest BABIP in the league.

While the Astros are not as strong as they’ve been in the past offensively, they are definitely much better than a .200-hitting team.

Look for that number to rise as the weather warms up and regression flattens the curve.

Royals .243 (3rd-worst)

The Royals are getting a tad unlucky at the plate. It doesn’t really matter because just like the Diamondbacks, even if Kansas City was getting extremely lucky they would still not be a good offense nor a legitimate playoff contender.

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