There are several rule changes in the 2023 season. A main reason for some changes is that the MLB would like to see more stolen bases. After nearly a month of the new season, do MLB players run more this year?
By far this season, Ronald Acuna Jr. has 13 steals in 26 games. Acuna had 29 stolen bases in 119 games last season. Back in 2019, he stole 37 bases. Staying healthy is surely important for him. If so, it will be very interesting to see whether Acuna will reach 30 swipes again. Or maybe even more?
At the same time, there are 6 other players who have 10 steals. In particular, Cedric Mullins and Esteury Ruiz haven’t been caught yet. Mullins had 30+ steals in each of the last 2 seasons. If he stays healthy, it will be worth watching whether he will reach 40 swipes this season. Meanwhile, Esteury Ruiz made it into the big leagues last year and he played 17 games. He had only 1 steal and was caught twice in 2022. Now, he’s pretty good at running without being caught yet.
So, do MLB players run much more this season? Let’s take a look at last season. Last April, Julio Rodriguez had 9 steals in 20 games. Thus, no players had 10+ steals in April 2022. In the meantime, Jorge Mateo had 7 stolen bases last April and Harrison Bader had 6 swipes. Moreover, 3 other players each stole 5 bases.
Finally, let’s see which teams love to run in the 2023 season. The Pittsburgh Pirates are leading in the NL Central. Speed is surely a weapon of the Pirates. Now, they have already stolen 37 bases. Meanwhile, the Guardians have 31 steals, leading the AL. Moreover, the Baltimore Orioles have 29 swipes in 25 games. Additionally, the Oakland A’s already lost 21 games, but they now have 27 steals. Furthermore, the Cubs now have 25 stolen bases in 24 games. Also, 5 other teams each have 20+ steals so far. In the 2022 season, the Cardinals were the only team with 20+ stolen bases in the first month. They had 22 stolen bases in 20 games last April. In the beginning of the 2023 season, it’s quite clear that there’s an increase in stolen bases. By far, each team has played 20+ games and we have seen that there are more teams with 20+ steals. In the 2022 season, there were 8 teams that had 100+ steals. It will be very interesting to see how many teams will have 100+ steals this season. Furthermore, to date, there are 7 players who have at least 10 steals. Last season, Jon Berti led the majors with 41 steals and he was the only player with 40+ steals. In total, only 6 players had at least 30 SBs last year. In the 2023 season, it will be worth watching how many players will reach 30 stolen bases or even more. In the meantime, is it possible to see a player finish the season with 40 home runs and 40 steals?
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