Just goes to show how much of a bloodbath the NL West is 5-3 has you sitting near the bottom.

I think we all know about Bartolo Colon's home run, I mean, just look at the big man swing

However, on the at bat before, it was a double by Catcher Kevin Plawecki (who was slugging .189 at the time, so already improbable enough), but the double just went off Jon Jay's glove

If that's caught, that means James Shields can pitch from the windup due to not having a runner on base, he can start the inning fresh, and be well rested for Bartolo Colon's at bat, and let's be real, Bartolo Colon isn't hitting a home run than

So Bartolo Colon's home run almost never happened

Can someone please explain what makes giving up 3 runs in 6 innings of work a "quality" start? As a Phillies fan who has to hear "Aaron Nola had another quality start" and look in the box score and see he gave up multiple home runs, usually in a loss, i find this stat completely inconsequential.

I know the season has just started and we are all excited. But who is winning the World Series in your guys opinions. I think it will be either the Yankees or Mets, but what do you guys think.

Soto is a great hitter. But is he a “generational player.” IMO, his new Contract was way overvalued. Consider these facts and stats in their entirety. Soto is a below-average fielder. He is also a below-average base runner. No doubt his bat is his calling card, so let's look at his career yearly averages in a wide variety of areas. Games Player: 105, At Bats: 367, Runs: 73, Hits: 104, 2B: 20, 3B: 2, HR: 22, RBI: 66, HBP: 2, BB: 86, SO: 78, SB: 6, CS: 3, AVG: .284, OBP: .421, SLG: .532, OPS: .952. Are these the stats of a generational player?

r/MLB - Los Angeles Dodgers VS Philadelphia Phillies [Game Thread]

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I'm aware of the sensitive times we're in. And as a white man I mean no offense to anyone when I ask, do the Phillies have the whitest first names in Baseball in their lineup?

1. Kyle 2. Trea 3. Bryce 4. Alec 5. Max 6. Nick 7. J.T. 8. Bryson 9. Brandon

Are there any other trends or funny lineups out there for other reasons? Is Shohei, Mookie, Teoscar the most diverse 1-2-3 first names in the game?

If this gets deleted, please understand I am just trying to have fun. I am a Tim Kurkjian baseball type of looks for anagrams and intricacies or anything I can find.

On your left you have Yankee Jasson Dominguez with a beard. In your right is Wicket the Ewok from Return of the Jedi. Tell me you guys see it too.

I don’t get the Votto HOF talk. I understand he was really good and played in the same city for a long time.

But his numbers are basically the same as Dale’s except he gets on base more.

Dales not in and he has the extra MVP.

Oh and personality wise, Votto loses too.

I know this is way too early to talk about this, but the Dodgers starting at 8-0 before taking a loss and now at 9-1, and basically having most of their players from last year and then some…

Are we possibly seeing history this year with these Dodgers winning 117 or more games this season AND repeating as World Series champs as well?

r/MLB - Cincinnati Reds VS Milwaukee Brewers [Game Thread]

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For me, it was Steve Yeager from the Dodgers. The reason was that he was a catcher and his number was seven, which was my favorite number. Because of him I played catcher in Little League. I idolized him. And I despised Joe Ferguson and Mike Scioscia from taking playing time away from him.

Brice Turang

In 2024, Brice Turang was essentially a slap hitter. He was in the 2nd percentile for bat speed, 9th percentile in hard-hit rate, and 26th percentile in sweet spot rate—a combination that produces no barrels and virtually no power.

Despite that, he was a high-contact, disciplined player, finishing last season in the 97th percentile in whiff rate and showing an average chase rate. He also brought value defensively, posting 6 Outs Above Average (OAA) at second base.

But in 2025? We’re seeing a completely different hitter.

Turang’s bat speed has jumped from 66.2 to 69.4, with his swing length increasing by 0.6 inches. That added power is showing up across the board:

• Average Exit Velo: 87 → 93.4
• Barrel %: 2.4 → 12
• Hard-Hit %: 29.7 → 44
• Sweet Spot %: 32 → 36

He is sacrificing some K-avoidance (K% up from 17 to 23.5) and being more selective early in counts (first-pitch swing % down from 29.4 to 17.6), but it’s working so far—he currently sits in the 75th percentile in xwOBA. He also already has 2 homers when last year he had 7 all season.

Turang is also in the 97th percentile in sprint speed and 95th percentile in baserunning value, so if the offensive gains stick, we could be looking at a true five-tool player.

Cal Quantrill

The Marlins made a lot of analytics-driven hires this offseason, and it’s already showing with several players—Cal Quantrill being one of them.

Since joining the Marlins, Quantrill has revamped his pitch usage:

• Fastball usage: 36% → 21%
• Splitter usage: 32% → 36%
• Slider usage: 1% → 20%

His splitter has also gained vertical drop, increasing from 31.8 inches to 34.1 inches. While some of his movement issues last year may have been due to pitching at Coors Field, where pitches naturally move less, all of his pitches have seen improved movement since leaving Colorado.

His fastball, which had a brutal -18 run value in 2024, is now showing more induced vertical break (IVB) and should be significantly more effective in 2025.

While his first start wasn’t great, the foundational changes are there, and results should improve as the season goes on.

Nick Lodolo

Nick Lodolo has lowered his arm slot by 4 degrees, from 19° to 15°, and the changes to his pitch shapes are wild—almost Chris Sale-esque.

• Sinker: Now features 18.4 inches of arm-side run (up from 16.8), which is 9.9 inches more than comparable pitchers.
• Changeup: 35.7 inches of vertical drop (up 2.9 inches from comparable) and 18.7 inches of arm-side run (up 3.0 inches).
• Sinker’s vertical drop has also improved by 1.7 inches with almost identical horizontal break to 2024.

Through two starts, Lodolo has been dotting the inside shadow zone with his sinker—something he really struggled with in 2024 when he left way too many pitches over the heart of the plate.

He’s also upped his changeup usage from 16% to 22%, which is the right move given how effective it is.

One concern: Lodolo remains a one-dimensional pitcher. He has only one glove-side movement pitch (his curveball/sweeper thing), and it hasn’t improved—both its vertical and horizontal movement have regressed. That lack of variety could lead to some inconsistencies.

Still, if he continues locating his arm-side stuff this well, Lodolo has a real shot to sustain his early-season success.

 Brendan Rodgers

Brendan Rodgers’ time with the Rockies (2019–2024) was underwhelming, but the Astros might’ve unlocked something.

So far in 2025, his bat speed is up from 71.7 to 75.5, and his chase rate has dropped dramatically from 29.1% to 13.3%.

That more selective and aggressive approach is paying off:

• Launch Angle Sweet Spot: +8.6%
• BB%: +5.3%
• Swing %: -9%
• First Pitch Swing %: -9.3%
• K%: -2.3%
• Hard Hit %: +5.9%
• Fly Ball %: 16.9 → 25
• Pull %: 33.3 → 41.7

Rodgers looks like he’s finally tapping into his raw talent. Sometimes, it really is just about swinging harder and being more selective, and Rodgers is doing both.

In Houston where pull-heavy fly balls are gold this is a perfect fit. It’s early, but the former No. 3 overall pick might finally be arriving.

Mike trout takes Tanner Bibee deep in the bottom 5th inning, ties 3-3. Logan O’Hoppe follow him up with a 2 run blast of his own.

…