Just a few seasons back, Kansas City made the playoffs as a wild card team and advanced through the first round. After securing Bobby Witt Jr. with an extended deal, the organization’s prospects appeared promising.
However, Kansas City took a step backward in 2025, though only marginally, finishing with 82 victories. This season’s beginning has raised more serious concerns.
Witt continues performing at an MVP level. He’s actually batting .395 with four home runs in his most recent 10 contests. The issue is that Kansas City dropped seven of those games. Despite the AL Central appearing more competitive than usual, the team cannot gain momentum. They’re currently sharing the division’s bottom spot with Detroit. While that situation creates urgency for the Tigers with Tarik Skubal approaching free agency after this season, Kansas City faces its own challenges.
The primary issue lies with the offense, which currently consists of Witt surrounded by underperforming players. Vinnie Pasquantino is hitting .202. Carter Jensen and Jac Caglianone have shown decent performance, though neither has experienced a significant breakthrough, and questions remain about whether these players — ages 22 and 23 — can deliver what Kansas City requires alongside Witt in coming seasons. Maikel Garcia has managed just three home runs across 200 plate appearances.
Additionally, veteran Salvador Perez is batting .205.
The pitching staff has performed somewhat better, but following more than a month of inconsistent performances, Cole Ragans exited his May 6 appearance with elbow discomfort and was subsequently placed on the injured list.
Kansas City can exercise patience — up to a certain extent. Witt’s deal could potentially extend through 2037 if both parties exercise various options. However, he possesses player options starting with the 2031 season, allowing him to potentially enter free agency at that time.
Currently, Kansas City has just three prospects listed in Baseball Pipeline’s top 100. All three rank outside the top 50 and are currently playing in Class A. Therefore, pressure mounts on players like Caglianone and Jensen to elevate their performance. That represents the most straightforward route for Kansas City’s improvement.
Milwaukee ranks last in major league home runs, yet they place sixth with 4.95 runs per contest. How are they achieving this? Clutch hitting plays a significant role. Milwaukee ranks fourth in baseball for batting average with runners in scoring position at .281. The team also ranks fourth in stolen bases with 49.
Another significant element is walks. Milwaukee places fourth in bases on balls and third in on-base percentage. It’s uncommon for a team displaying such limited power to maintain such a high walk rate, but Milwaukee is accomplishing this. Their 7-1 victory over San Diego on Thursday exemplified this approach. Milwaukee earned seven walks — including four consecutive in the opening inning — without hitting any home runs.
Milwaukee is among five major league teams with more stolen bases (49) than home runs (30). Who are the remaining teams?
Philadelphia’s Christopher Sánchez completed the full game Saturday, recording 13 strikeouts in a 6-0 victory over Pittsburgh. He now maintains a scoreless streak spanning 29 2/3 innings.
Sánchez became the third pitcher to deliver a shutout this season. Minnesota’s Bailey Ober accomplished this earlier in the week, and Miami’s Sandy Alcantara did so on April 1.
New York’s Mets achieved a significant comeback Sunday against the Yankees, but Philadelphia’s Friday performance in Pittsburgh was even more remarkable. The team fell behind 6-0 in the fourth inning and 8-3 in the seventh. They still trailed 8-5 in the ninth when Kyle Schwarber — who had already connected for two home runs — drew a bases-loaded walk with one out. Then Bryce Harper’s hit off the wall’s top tied the contest.
Philadelphia scored three runs in the 10th inning and won 11-9. Pittsburgh’s win probability reached 97.9% in the seventh inning, according to Baseball Savant.
Cleveland (51 steals and 50 homers), Tampa Bay (51-38), Miami (57-36) and Boston (35-33).
