Baseball's Four Most Surprising Teams So Far

It's time to talk about the Texas Rangers, I fear.

Nate Eovaldi reacts to being the second-best pitcher in the American League. (Photo by Ben Ludeman/Texas Rangers/Getty Images)

Hi friends-

First of all, thank you so much to those of you who have reached out to me about the loss of my dog, George. It’s been a trying 10 days, for sure, especially as my other dog, Canelo, recovers from the long-planned major leg surgery he needed after being hit by a car before I began fostering him in January. We’re on day 10 of Canelo wearing the cone of shame 24/7 so he doesn’t rip out the staples that are holding his leg together. He’s annoyed and in pain, but he’s healing from the events of the last two weeks faster than I am, and he’s a happy and healthy boy who gives me hundreds of kisses every day.

Someday I will write about George—his special needs from birth, his wildness, how beautiful and also excruciating it was to be his mom. Today is not that day. But to those of you who have sent me love and extended grace and patience as I fumble my way through yet another loss, I’m eternally thankful.

I’m especially grateful to a longtime reader and supporter named Jose who gifted me and a friend with tickets to see the National at the Greek Theater on Tuesday night. Jose could not have known this, but Tuesday was the day I got George’s paw and nose prints back from the vet, and I did not want to get out of bed. But I did drag myself out of bed to go to the show, and our seats were so close that Matt Berninger touched me twice (consensually, obvs).

This band will never know how badly I needed to be around people that night, and experience joy and hope in the midst of pain. I am so grateful for their music, and for every artist who is brave enough to put their work out into the world to make others feel less alone.

I took this with my iPhone!

Now, some programming updates! The Friday MLB round-up will return tomorrow. The Lab Creativity Zoom will be back on Saturday at noon PT/3 PM ET. We will have live chats during all three Dodgers vs. Yankees games on Friday at 7 PM PT/10 PM ET, Saturday at 4 PM PT/7 PM ET, and Sunday at 4 PM ET/ 7 PM ET. The Saturday game is on Fox nationally, and the Sunday game is on Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN.

The Friday post will go to the free list. Everything else is for paid subscribers. This has been an excruciating month for me emotionally and financially, and if you’ve been on the fence about supporting me and my work, there is no better time to do it than right now. Click here to upgrade to paid subscription now, and I’ll be eternally yours: <3

OK, now on to the baseball!

This has been an extremely weird season. Top pitchers are getting hurt at a clip I can’t remember happening. The Texas Rangers are better than the Houston Astros. Jose Siri has 10 home runs. The Diamondbacks may be in first place in the NL West after this weekend. The messy Padres are a game better than the lowly Nationals.. The vibes are…. off.

I don’t know if it’s the pitch clock, or just baseball being baseball, but it sure feels like everything is up in the air right now, which is both exhilarating and terrifying. Will we see a Rangers vs. Diamondbacks World Series? Probably not. Is that once-unthinkable scenario impossible? Not at all. It’s June 1st and I’m shook!

So without further ado, here are the four most surprising teams through this season’s first two months.

1. The Texas Rangers

   I was half right in my bold offseason prediction that the Astros were vulnerable this year due to the fact that they inexplicably fired the GM who won them their first legitimate World Series, then spent the offseason dithering away without a replacement, which made adding free agents, uh, difficult! The word on the street is that owner Jim Crane is done with numbers and prefers to let Jeff Bagwell and Reggie Jackson run the team on vibes. If that’s true, Houston will be back to 2012 levels of humiliation in no time.

   But while I was right about Houston maybe not winning the division, I was wrong (so far) that the Mariners would Tom Wambsgans them while they were down. We are 55 games into this season, and the Rangers are 15 games over .500 with a three-game lead over their in-state rivals. How are they doing this?