Baseball is inherently an unpredictable game, and two weeks into the new season we’ve already seen plenty of offseason narratives flipped on their head.
The Red Sox have been right at the top of the list.
Believed to be a top playoff contender in the American League, the Red Sox struggled early and were the last team in MLB to win three games. Boston steadied itself with a nice series win against the Milwaukee Brewers this past week, but the club still goes into Sunday’s series finale against the St. Louis Cardinals with one of the worst records in baseball.
But look around the league and you’ll find the Red Sox aren’t the only preseason contenders who have stumbled out of the gate.
The Toronto Blue Jays, who came within inches of winning the World Series and were among the favorites to repeat as AL champions, are below .500 and just one game ahead of the Red Sox in the AL East standings. The Seattle Mariners and Detroit Tigers, two other clubs with World Series aspirations, were tied with the worst record in MLB heading into the weekend, and the Mariners remain last in the AL West.
It’s been the same story in the National League, where the Chicago Cubs and San Francisco Giants are both in last place, and the New York Mets are fourth in the NL East.
Two weeks is a small sample size and the best teams will eventually rise to the top, but as bad as things have been for the Red Sox, they certainly aren’t the only ones who have faced some early adversity. Here’s a look around the game at where things stand, both the good, the bad and the downright stunning.
Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages, left, has been among the most productive hitters in MLB through the first two weeks. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Best teams
You’ll be shocked to hear that the Los Angeles Dodgers are good.
The two-time defending World Series champions got off to another excellent start and currently own the best record in MLB. The Dodgers lead the league in runs per game and rank sixth in runs allowed per game, which is usually a pretty reliable recipe for success.
The New York Yankees had been the class of the AL so far, though a four-game losing streak has dropped them back to the rest of the pack. The Cleveland Guardians have also stacked some early wins, overcoming their below-average offensive production thanks to a pitching staff that has been striking out opposing hitters at an incredible rate.
Collectively, the NL dominated the AL through the first two weeks. Entering Sunday the NL was 16 games above .500 and nine of its 15 clubs had winning records, and only three of the AL’s 15 teams were above .500.
Biggest disappointments
Everyone already knows about the Red Sox’s struggles, especially at the plate, but the Mariners and Tigers’ early slumps have been equally puzzling.
The Mariners offense has been a disaster. Entering Friday, the Mariners ranked second-worst in MLB in runs per game and strikeouts, and last in batting average, on-base percentage and total bases. Seattle’s pitching was supposed to be its strength, and the Mariners staff has performed well up to this point, but so far the club hasn’t been able to overcome its anemic offense.
The Tigers woes are harder to pinpoint. Detroit ranks close to league average in both runs scored and runs allowed per game, so it’s not like there’s one area where the Tigers have stood out in a bad way. But one consistent issue has been the Tigers repeatedly playing from behind.
Detroit’s vaunted starting rotation, led by Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez, collectively posted a 4.70 ERA entering the weekend. Skubal has been great, but Valdez, Jack Flaherty and Casey Mize have all gotten off to underwhelming starts, and future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander went on the injured list after only one appearance.
For the Tigers to go anywhere they’ll need their best starters to lead the way.
After a couple of rocky years, Miami Marlins starter Sandy Alcantara once again looks like the ace who won the 2022 NL Cy Young Award. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Biggest surprises
Imagine going back to Opening Day and telling someone that not only would there be just three AL teams with winning records after the first two weeks, but that the Minnesota Twins would be one of them.
Less than a year removed from selling off just about everything that wasn’t nailed down at the trade deadline, the Twins have proven to be surprisingly competent through the early going. Taj Bradley’s emergence as a breakout candidate gives Minnesota a second frontline arm to pair with ace Joe Ryan, and Josh Bell and Royce Lewis have been among the most productive hitters in baseball up to this point.
In the NL, the big surprise has been the Miami Marlins, who jumped out to a hot start and have seen several key players either return to peak form or take a major leap forward.
The biggest development for the Marlins has been the reemergence of former Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara as an elite arm. After a rocky couple of years following Tommy John surgery, Alcantara leads MLB in innings pitched (24 1/3) with a 0.74 ERA through his first three starts, including a complete-game shutout and another outing into the ninth inning. Xavier Edwards, Otto Lopez, Javier Sanoja and Owen Caissie have all been excellent at the plate as well, powering an offense that entered the weekend ranked fifth in MLB in runs scored per game.
Early standouts
For all the great players who make up the Dodgers’ lineup, most people probably wouldn’t circle Andy Pages as the biggest threat. Yet so far the outfielder has been arguably the best hitter in baseball.
Pages, whose game-saving catch in Game 7 of the World Series was among the main reasons the Dodgers repeated as champs, came into Sunday batting .442 with a 1.232 OPS, 17 RBI and 1.6 wins above replacement, which is the highest total in MLB for any position player by a wide margin.
In terms of new faces making a strong first impression, Cleveland Guardians rookie Chase DeLauter has been an absolute force. The rookie hit five home runs through his first 12 games, which was tied for the MLB lead. Chicago White Sox slugger Munetaka Murakami hasn’t been too far behind either, as the Japanese home run champion has already slugged four through his first two weeks.
As far as pitchers go, the all-around best arm to this point has arguably been Jose Soriano. The Los Angeles Angels right-hander posted an 0.45 ERA with 21 strikeouts over 20 innings through his first three outings, a remarkable start for a guy who was more or less a league average starter in 2025.
Alcantara and Bradley have been fantastic too, as has Brewers phenom Jacob Misiorowski, whose 28 strikeouts over 16 1/3 innings lead MLB entering the weekend.
In terms of sheer dominance, however, even Misiorowski can’t match up against San Diego Padres closer Mason Miller. The All-Star right-hander has been totally unhittable through the first two weeks, striking out 19 of the first 24 batters he faced while allowing one hit, one walk and no runs over 7 1/3 innings through his first seven outings.
Pittsburgh Pirates rookie Konnor Griffin is the first teenage position player to appear in an MLB game since Juan Soto in 2019. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Most compelling story
For the past decade — and other than the three-year stretch from 2013-15 — the Pittsburgh Pirates have been a mess. The Pirates have been consistent losers, thanks in large part to their cheapskate owner who hasn’t invested nearly enough into the roster or the club’s player development infrastructure.
Yet now, for the first time in quite a while, the Pirates have become appointment viewing.
Pittsburgh could already lay claim to boasting one of the two best pitchers in the world. Paul Skenes has been otherworldly since his arrival in 2025 and already won both Rookie of the Year and an NL Cy Young Award. Now Pirates fans can also look forward to watching Konnor Griffin, a generational shortstop prospect who is the first teenage position player to play in the majors since Juan Soto.
Griffin has already landed a nine-year, $140 million extension, which is the largest deal in Pirates history and will ensure no matter what happens with Skenes, Pittsburgh can count on at least one of its homegrown superstars sticking around for the next decade. Best of all, the Pirates have finally begun acting with some level of urgency, bringing in proven big leaguers like Brandon Lowe, Ryan O’Hearn and Marcell Ozuna to supplement their roster.
Will that infusion of talent help lift the Pirates back to the playoffs for the first time in 11 years? Time will tell, but at the very least this should be the most interesting season of baseball at PNC Park in a long, long time.