- Three players hit for the cycle: Padres 1B Wil Myers, Nationals SS Trea Turner, and Rangers OF Carlos Gomez.
- One of the league leaders in home runs did not play in a Major League Baseball age since 2012 (Brewers 1B Eric Thames). The other leader, who also leads the league in batting average and RBI's, is 4 HR's and 27 RBI's shy of matching his totals from last year in Nats 1B Ryan Zimmerman.
- If the season ended today, Zimmerman = 👑👑👑
- The league leader in saves, who set a new franchise record for the most saves in the month of April with 11, missed all of last season due to Tommy John surgery (Rockies RP Greg Holland)
- Twins veteran SP Ervin Santana, who is in his 12th season, currently leads the league in ERA. He has only given up 3 earned runs in 35 innings pitched. Santana owns hitters, who only have a .116 average against him this season (best in MLB).
- On June 29th, 2016, reigning AL Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel of the Houston Astros recorded his 5th win of the season. On April 30th, 2017, Dallas Keuchel of the Houston Astros recorded his 5th win of the season.
- The Washington Nationals recorded 170 runs in April, including 23 runs yesterday against the injury-prone Mets. this is 107 more runs than the Kansas City Royals, who are last in runs with 63.
- Not only is Ryan Zimmerman 4 HR's shy of matching his 2016 total, but he is also the same amount shy of sharing HR totals with the Boston Red Sox.
- No one on the Orioles has a triple
- Orioles back-up C Caleb Joesph hit a 2 run home run on Saturday vs the Yankees. That was his first RBI(s) in 596 days.
- None of the standings are too shocking, except the Rockies atop of the NL West. The tightest race is in the NL Central, where the last-place Pirates are only 2 games back of the first-place Cubs
- Justin Turner of the Dodgers has the highest hitting streak of the season at 16 games (snapped last night).
- Probably the most staggering stat of the month of April" There have been 21 grand slams. TWENTY-ONE! Papa Johns has been INSANELY busy this month (40% off pizza if GS is hit).Players with #PapaSlams this season:
- Trevor Story
- Mark Trumbo
- Matt Carpenter
- Joc Pederson
- Andrelton Simmons
- Andrew Romine
- Jacoby Ellsbury
- Maikel Franco (twice)
- Ryan Zimmerman
- Bryce Harper
- Adam Duvall
- Logan Morrison
- Lonnie Chisenhall
- Marcell Ozuna
- Nomar Mazara
- Brandon Belt
- Kendrys Morales
- Francisco Lindor
- Taylor Motter
- Ryan Rua
If May can live up to the hype April did, we are in for a treat- literally, more pizza! With that being said, here's what I think is in store for the month of May:
- Rockies CF Charlie Blackmon is currently riding a 14 game hitting streak. He will extend his streak as far as 33 games. During the month of May, he will hit 10 home runs, knock in 25 RBI's, and steal 10 bases, earning the NL Player of the Month Award.
- Ivan Nova will win 5 games in the month of May and will be the NL Pitcher of the Month. He has only given up 6 earned in 36 innings, and since joining the Pirates at the trade deadline last year, he hasn't allowed more than 4 runs in a game (16 starts). In the same span, he has thrown 4 complete games.
- Orioles Chris Davis will slug 4 home runs and 8 RBI's in a game in the series vs the Royals. He is due to break out and I think this month he will get hot.
- Oakland A's SP Kendall Graveman "May" throw the first no-hitter in 2017. He came close in a start last year and this year. All 5 of his starts this year have been quality starts. Just a random guess that I-don't-know-but-May-be will happen.
- Ervin Santana will stay hot and win 4 games in May.
- The St. Louis Cardinals will be the hottest team in the month of May, winning 17 of their 27 games in the month, including an 8 game winning streak. I feel the Cardinals have a decent schedule in May. Matt Carpenter is starting to pick up the pace.
- The longest game inning-wise will come between the Braves and the Marlins, and it will go 15 innings. It's fun to watch these two teams play. Let's see some free baseball from them!
- The Nationals offense stays hot and will lead the league in runs once again for May. I do not see Harper, Murphy, Turner, or Zimmerman slowing down now!
- No player will hit for the cycle this month (3 in April). I'd say each season averages 2-4 cycles, so to have 3 in the first month is very rare.
- Only 7 players will hit grand slams in May. I haven't found out if 21 grand slams are the most grand slams hit in a month in Major League Baseball, but I feel like it's at least top three. No way will this month repeat that odd statistic, unless perhaps it's the year of the hitter👀?
I hope that Maybe this month will be in your (team's) favor.
