A stretch of good or bad baseball for any team can be covered up if it’s buried in the middle of a 162-game season, but when the season is still young, those stretches can be easier to notice.

We’re just over a month into the 2025 season, and there are some teams that are off to good starts after failing to make the playoffs last year. Some teams may not pass the eye test, some haven’t hit the worst part of their schedule yet, and for others, it may be too early to tell how good they will be.

I’ll be the judge of this on these five teams:

Given they were only five games back of a playoff spot last year and the offseason they had, Boston is an obvious contender.

For a lineup that already had a decent amount of power, Alex Bregman has done nothing but expand that area for Boston. He’s already logged four games with at least three hits, including a 5-for-5 effort on April 15th against the Rays. Rafael Devers appears to have shaken off his 0-for-21 start to the season, hitting .395 with three homers and four doubles since April 26th.

The Red Sox rank within the top 10 in the majors in several hitting categories, including second in doubles (70), sixth in RBIs (170), and seventh in OPS (.752). As long as they have Bregman, Devers, and Jarren Duran spearheading their batting order, those ranks are safe to stay the same, if not be exceeded.

Unfortunately, Boston lost Triston Casas for the entirety of the season to a knee injury, and for now, they’re keeping Devers as the full-time DH. The Red Sox are also not adjusting their timelines for top prospects Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer in the wake of Casas’ injury. Despite Casas getting off to a slow start this season, the Red Sox will still put more of an onus on the likes of Wilyer Abreu, Rob Refsnyder, and Romy Gonzalez to contribute at the plate, barring an outside acquisition.

Casas joins Walker Buehler (shoulder) as Red Sox roster players who have hit the IL, but Buehler’s spot in the pitching rotation has been recently filled in by Lucas Giolito and Brayan Bello, both of whom were recently activated off the IL.

Boston’s biggest impediment is its defense, as they entered Monday leading all of baseball with 29 total errors. Abreu’s misplay in right field on a Bo Bichette fly ball last Thursday night was the latest example of how defensive incompetence can cost them a game. While that aspect of their game needs improvement, this is the kind of team that can outslug defensive woes.

Are there flaws? Absolutely. But the Red Sox are still one of the more talented teams in the relatively weaker American League.

The verdict: Contender

I’m getting “2023 Blue Jays vibes” from this Giants team, and how ironic is it that Matt Chapman is San Francisco’s third baseman?

Starting pitchers Logan Webb (2.61 ERA, 5 QS through 8 starts) and Robbie Ray (3.05 ERA, 3 QS, through 7 starts) lead a veteran-laden rotation that has kept the same five in place since the start of the season. While their staff has been solid, San Francisco’s bullpen is where their money is made. The Giants feature four relievers who have made at least 13 appearances and own an ERA under 2.00. That doesn’t include closer Ryan Walker, who has pitched to a 5.40 ERA through 13 outings this season. In this case, a resurgence from previous closer Camilo Doval is becoming quite the luxury for San Francisco. If San Francisco is leading the game after the sixth inning, they are putting the outcome into capable hands.

The Giants have various ranks amongst their batting numbers, sitting around the middle of the pack in OPS and home runs, but they sit at 24th in batting average (.231). Jung-Hoo Lee is their best pure hitter, slashing .305/.362/.492 with 11 doubles and 20 RBIs. Chapman and Wilmer Flores lead the team with seven homers apiece, and they’ve been waiting for newly-acquired Willy Adames to join them at the top of that leaderboard. Adames doubled his home run total yesterday with a pair of home runs against the Rockies. I’d like to see how much the offense can carry the team if/when the pitching staff hits a rut.

Unfortunately for the Giants, they play in arguably the toughest division in the majors. Their 22-13 record would be first or tied for first in all five other divisions, but in the NL West, that earns you third place right now. To this point in the season, the only team they’ve played in their division aside from Colorado is San Diego, and the Padres won a mini two-game set against San Francisco last week.

I’ve gone back and forth on how I view the Giants, but I need to see how they fare against the Padres, Diamondbacks, and Dodgers before I put too much stock in them. On the other hand, I’m a big fan of their pitching staff, and I wouldn’t want to face Webb and Ray in a best-of-3 series. They’re a bat short, but I think I’ll bite the “contender” bait for now.

The verdict: Contender

Despite making some moves that made them competent in recent years, the Cubs still sat in the shadow of the Brewers in the NL Central. This year, however, the Cubs are off to a great start and are becoming one of the most fun teams to watch in baseball. They’ve also been tested out of the gate, posting an 11-9 record against NL West clubs so far.

Chicago is coming off a series win in Milwaukee this weekend, with their fanbase turning American Family Field into Wrigley North. Simply put, this team just slugs, and they put that on display against the Brewers with six home runs and 16 total runs scored in their two victories.

The Cubs are first in the league in runs scored, second in the league in OPS (.794), and third in home runs (52). It’s not just one or two players carrying the load; the Cubs have five different players with at least seven home runs and five players with at least 22 RBIs.

The surge has been led by the breakout of 23-year-old Pete Crow-Armstrong, whose nine home runs almost eclipse the 10 homers he hit in the 136 games he’s played before this season. Furthermore, all nine of his homers have come in the last 18 days. Crow-Armstrong is slashing .272/.308/.559 to begin the season, and if he’s able to keep this pace, he’s putting himself in position to earn a lot more money than he was reportedly offered recently. Speaking of money, the same goes for pending free agent Kyle Tucker, who owns a .975 OPS thus far, and is well on his way to hitting 29+ homers for the fourth time in five years.

Having a hot start like this one can also be due to a pleasant surprise here or there, and that’s what Chicago is getting with catcher Carson Kelly. The 10-year vet is slashing a ridiculous .368/.513/.807 with seven home runs and 22 RBIs to this point, and while his track record would suggest that those numbers will level out, the Cubs are already getting excellent value out of the two-year, $11.5 million deal to which they signed him this past winter.

Chicago lost lefty starter Justin Steele to elbow surgery just a matter of days ago, and Shota Imanaga left Sunday’s start with a hamstring strain. While the severity of Imanaga’s injury is yet to be determined, the Cubs will be leaning on veterans Matthew Boyd and Colin Rea to keep their rotations afloat. So far, they’ve been just what Chicago has needed. Still, they’re definitely in a position to make an addition or two before the deadline that will strengthen them down the stretch and boast solid prospect depth in Owen Caissie, Cade Horton, and Moises Ballesteros, who could contribute down the stretch as well.

The verdict: Contender

Did you know that the Mariners are fourth in the Major Leagues in home runs (49) and ninth in RBIs (160)? Yeah, that’s not where I thought they would be after how they handled their offseason.

The Mariners are on a roll after beating the Rangers in a three-game set this weekend, posting a 17-6 record after starting the year 3-7. Catcher Cal Raleigh, who has always been a home run threat, leads the league in homers with 12, and he’s also hitting for a higher average than he has before. Jorge Polanco is rebounding from a horrible 2024, hitting .380/.419/.785 with nine home runs and 26 RBIs, and Dylan Moore is also tapping into power that he hasn’t shown before this season.

Their pitching has been bitten by the injury bug with George Kirby suffering shoulder inflammation during spring training and Logan Gilbert hitting the 15-day IL with a mild flexor strain. However, Kirby made his first rehab start on Sunday, and Gilbert felt optimistic following his diagnosis. Their replacements haven’t given the Mariners much to write home about, but once the rotation is healthy, this pitching staff has proven that it can be the engine that makes this team go.

Seattle is capable of returning to the postseason for the first time since 2022, but I think the AL West is too volatile at this point in the season. Houston and Texas haven’t hit their stride yet, and the Athletics aren’t a pushover any longer. How will the division look once things inevitably click for Houston?

It’s a trust thing for me with the Mariners. To their credit, they’re hitting the ball better than predicted, and that’s even with Julio Rodriguez playing well below his potential. However, once some of those numbers come down to Earth, will the pitching staff still be able to shoulder a lot of the responsibilities once again?

I’ll be more inclined to call them a contender if they have a strong hold on the division in July or August.

The verdict: Pretender

The Athletics are in a good spot right now. Outside of their clubhouse, they don’t have any expectations hanging over their heads. Several of their top prospects are being brought up to the big league club, and they’re starting to string some wins together. Three games is the furthest they’ve been above .500 since the conclusion of the 2021 season. That’s right – Matt Chapman, Matt Olson, Sean Murphy, and Chris Bassitt (amongst others) were still Oakland A’s during that year.

The Athletics have a solid power duo near the top of their order with 18 home runs combined between Brent Rooker and Tyler Soderstrom. While Rooker has already established himself as a home run threat, the latter may be able to beat the “minor league ballpark” accusations, given that seven of his nine home runs have come away from Sacramento.

Rookie Jacob Wilson is hitting .333 and has struck out only six times in 131 plate appearances, and fellow rookie Gunnar Hoglund looked impressive in his MLB debut last week with six innings of one-run ball against the Marlins. Add flamethrower Mason Miller to the backend of that bullpen, and there’s more to like about the A’s than what they’ve put on the field in the past few seasons.

Their pitching is leaving a lot to be desired, however. The Athletics rank fifth in the MLB in hits allowed (304) and third in walks allowed (134). All told, they’re giving up the sixth-most earned runs (153) and hold a team ERA of 4.42.

Similar to Seattle, I need to see how long this lasts. If the American League remains as limp as it appears, there may be room for the Athletics to make some noise. For now, though, A’s fans should enjoy these days when the kids are playing and expectations are low.

The verdict: Pretender

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