MLB’s surprise teams so far in the 2021 season are off to a hot start. It has been nice to have fans back in the stands and a full baseball schedule after last year. The Cincinnati Reds, Tampa Bay Rays, and San Diego Padres are teams to keep an eye on.
Here are some surprise teams to watch in the 2021 season. They have impactful offensives, effective pitching, and overall look like the best teams in the league. Also, they are all from small markets which makes even more impressive what they have done as surprise teams.
Three Surprise Teams
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds have been the hottest team in the last two weeks. There is no team in MLB since May 29th that has a better record than Reds with their 11-3 mark. They have been beating up on teams with their offense and stellar pitching. The rotation and bullpen pitched well keeping them in games.
For instance, Joey Votto has three home runs since coming off the injured list and that was last week. He has been a dangerous hitter for the Reds along with Nick Castellanos and Jesse Winker. The Reds have an offense that knows to be patient and scratch out runs. They are gritty and aggressive hitters but it has been a big part of their success.
Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays have gone 23-5 since May 1st and are holding first place in AL East. They have outscored opponents 174-88 and have pitched well. Tyler Glasnow has turned himself into a frontline starter to go along with the rest of this good rotation. Tampa Bay has some offensive weapons with Austin Meadows, Brandon Lowe, and Mike Zunino who are all slugging at the plate. They are playing well this season.
Another factor to their surprising success is their continued use of the openers instead of a starting pitcher. It has seemed to work this far because they are seeing some success. Though it is tough to see if it will work in the long term.
More Surprise Teams
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres have been one of the hottest and most surprising teams in 2021. After a busy off-season where they had blockbuster deals that landed Yu Darvish, Blake Snell, and Joe Musgrove. It has paid for their rotation to have all three of those players who have been a nightmare for their fans.
Entering this week, the Padres were 37-25 holding onto second place in the NL West. Their offense behind Fernado Tatis Jr. has been their biggest strength and has helped them win. Tatis has been one of the top hitters in MLB so far this season. It will be interesting to see if the Padres can keep it up the whole season.
The 2021 MLB season has been full of surprises and plenty of drama. These surprise teams have had hot starts so far so keep an eye on them.
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