Four 2023 MLB Overreactions After The First Series
The first full week of the 2023 MLB season has commenced, and each team has wrapped up its first series. Only three teams remain undefeated, with the Rays, Twins and Rangers sitting at 3-0 after sweeping their opponents.
Everyone loves to overreact after the first series. It’s easy to draw conclusions on how you think the season will go based on a tiny sample size, and that’s precisely what we’re doing today! Here are four MLB overreactions after the first series of action.
Red Sox Lineup Is Elite
The first MLB overreaction comes from Alex Cora‘s lineup for the Boston Red Sox. This group has been elite through three games.
Boston, who defeated the Baltimore Orioles two times out of three, could not be stopped from the plate. The Sox scored at least nine runs in each of their first three games, the first time they’ve done that in franchise history. Only two other squads have ever done that in the history of the sport, and none since 1978.
Rafael Devers, the cornerstone of this lineup and leader of the team, was on a tear this weekend going 7-for-15 with two extra-base hits. New acquisition Adam Duvall is on fire to start this season, going 8-for-14 with two home runs including a walk-off, and three extra-base hits.
We knew the strength of this Boston team was going to be their bats, and they certainly showed that in the first few games. Now, if they could pitch…
Phillies Are In A World Series Hangover
The Philadelphia Phillies were crushed this weekend by the Texas Rangers. They got swept, including a game that finished with a final score of 16-3. Philadelphia was the first team to use a position player on the mound when Josh Harrison pitched in that game.
Philadelphia won the National League last season, but you wouldn’t know that based on this series. It’s clear that in this series they were missing sluggers Bryce Harper and Rhys Hoskins. Kyle Schwarber didn’t have a great series, going only one for 13. Philly only had one home run as a team, thanks to Alec Bohm.
Without starter Ranger Suárez, Philly’s pitching struggled. Eight pitchers on the Phillies gave up two or more runs during the series. Eight! That is simply an unsustainable number for a team that supposedly upgraded their pitching, specifically the bullpen this winter.
The good news for Philadelphia is that they have a ton of time to figure it out, 159 games exactly. For now, I’ll deem them in a World Series hangover.
Twins Are Playoff Bound
The Minnesota Twins knocked around the Kansas City Royals on the road this weekend, sweeping KC and outscoring them 11-4 in the series.
I was most impressed by the Twins’ starting pitching in this series. They mustered two shutouts in the first two games of the season. The Royals’ best hitters were helpless. Each of the Twins’ top three starting pitchers, Pablo López, Sonny Gray and Joe Ryan all went at least five innings for the club.
A great sign for the Twins: Joey Gallo hit two home runs this weekend. Maybe he’s set to find his footing again while out of the bright lights.
I get it’s the Royals, but if the Twins can get good starting pitching along with their lineup staying healthy, they could snag a playoff spot in the American League.
There Will Be More Steals Than Any Season In MLB History
The new MLB pickoff and base size rules have made a major impact on the beginning of the 2023 MLB season, with steals galore. Not to mention that catchers have been hopeless at throwing people out. Baserunners are sitting at an 83.3% success rate in their steal attempts thus far, as opposed to 2022’s rate of 75.4%, which was the highest success rate in MLB history.
Jorge Mateo leads baseball with four stolen bases already. Four! For reference, Mateo has only had seven at-bats and two hits. Four players are tied with three steals. As long as the pitcher disengagement rules continue, and the bigger bases remain, expect this trend to continue.
Is this what MLB wanted? Well, they definitely wanted more steals, but I’m not sure if they wanted this high of a success rate. Maybe the numbers fluctuated. Who knows if this high percentage will last? Will there be a 75+ base stealer this century for the first time since José Reyes stole 77 bags in 2007?
I could totally see the most steals in a single season by the league this year.
Debriefing
MLB has a ton of parity. Especially with these new MLB rules, expect the bad teams to be a little better this year, certainly with the stolen bases uptick. MLB overreactions are easy to come by.
It’s super easy to overanalyze trends, records and scoring during the first series of the season. Overreactions are fun, though. I don’t regret anything.
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