MLB wake-up call: 10 hitters who’ve shaken off their spring ghosts
The first two months of the MLB season have flown by for fans, but for some players, the start of 2026 has felt endless. Stuck in early-season slumps from Opening Day, these 10 hitters have finally found some life. With Memorial Day approaching, they’re now among the most dangerous producers in all of Major League Baseball.
The American League elite are back on top
For the A’s, 2025 Rookie of the Year Nick Kurtz is turning heads across the MLB with a historic 48-game on-base streak, while posting the American League’s best wRC+ (191) in May. In Kansas City, Bobby Witt Jr. has rediscovered his power stroke too, belting 8 homers over his last 27 games and leading the MLB with 3.3 WAR.
Out in Seattle, it’s a familiar script: star man Julio Rodríguez, who’s no stranger to slow starts, has almost doubled his slugging percentage (.529) since mid-April. In New York, with the Yankees’ offense sputtering, Jazz Chisholm Jr. has carried the load with 5 homers and a .303 average since opening his account on April 23. For the Tigers in Detroit, Riley Greene is practically holding the team together, batting .353 in May and standing as their only real offensive bright spot in a side that’s falling apart.
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The National League catches fire: Mattingly’s wake-up call and the rookie surge
The most dramatic turnaround belongs to Alec Bohm. Barely a factor in April with a .151 average, the Phillies third baseman was benched for two days by interim manager Don Mattingly. The message landed loud and clear: since returning, Bohm has been destroying MLB pitching to the tune of .346/.393/.654 with 8 extra-base hits in 14 games.
In San Francisco, Rafael Devers has lifted his hard-contact rate by 13% in May, capping his revival with a thunderous grand slam last weekend. In Chicago, Michael Busch has climbed to the top of the Cubs’ power rankings in May after a sleepy April. And on the West Coast, Gavin Sheets is enjoying life after turning 30, cracking a key homer for the Padres and sparking a run of 7 blasts in 25 games. Among the young guns in the MLB, Orioles rookie Samuel Basallo has seen his season take off after a four-hit game against Boston, and he’s now batting .316 since that breakthrough.
Credit: Ron Jenkins / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP
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