The 2015 season is less than a month old but already there's been no shortage of surprises and storylines. Here's 15 of the most intriguing stats through the first three weeks.
The Good
- Cincinnati Reds outfielder Billy Hamilton has more steals (12) than 22 teams. He has two games this season in which he's swiped three bags.
- Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez has thrown out seven of nine potential base stealers (79 percent).
- Twenty-nine-year-old Royals rookie Paulo Orlando leads the league in triples with five. He appeared in 1,017 minor-league games before finally making his major-league debut this month.
- Typically a slow starter, New York Yankees slugger Mark Teixeira already has seven home runs in 55 at-bats, setting a new career high for April. The 13-year veteran entered the season with 36 home runs in 854 career April at-bats.
- New York Mets right-hander Matt Harvey leads the league with a 24:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His teammate Bartolo Colon is right behind him at 23:1. The pair have allowed just two walks in 44 innings.
The Bad
- Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Cole Hamels gave up 14 home runs in 204 2/3 innings last season. He's allowed seven in 24 innings this year.
- Baltimore Orioles first baseman Chris Davis has struck out in 46 percent of his 59 at-bats.
- After leading the league in grounding into double plays with 31 last season, San Francisco Giants third baseman Casey McGehee tops the list so far again with seven.
- The Houston Astros agreed to a two-year, $12.5-million deal with reliever Pat Neshek in December to help improve the bullpen. After allowing four home runs in 67 1/3 innings last season, he's allowed three in 7 2/3 this year.
- Phil Hughes, Mat Latos, CC Sabathia, R.A. Dickey and Hamels are a combined 0-14 with a 4.86 ERA. The five will make a combined $77.1 million this season.
Team performances
- The Toronto Blue Jays lead the league in home runs (24) and home runs allowed (25).
- The Milwaukee Brewers were 16-6 at this point last season. They're 3-14 in 2015.
- The Oakland Athletics' rotation is allowing the opposition to hit just .205 despite parting ways with both Jon Lester and Jeff Samardzija in the offseason. The best mark over a full season in the last 20 years comes from the 2011 Tampa Bay Rays, who held opponents to a .235 average.
- The Washington Nationals have been caught stealing on six of nine attempts, while the Athletics are a perfect 11 for 11 and the Reds have been successful on 20 of 21 occasions.
- The Kansas City Royals are hitting .300 as a team to lead the league, while the Texas Rangers sit last at .210.