The MLB season is already in its fourth week and there are teams that have put up crazy records in both a good or bad way. With the month of April coming to an end and with five months left of the season to go, teams are either looking to continue that start or turn their torrid start around. A team going on a winning streak is great but there are also players who are on a streak which is even more impressive. Here is what happened this week in the big leagues.
Streaks (and I don't mean Snapchat streaks)
Most teams can usually go three or four games without losing a game but every year there is one team that goes on a crazy long winning streak.
Last year, the Indians went on a 22-game win streak which surpassed the modern-day winning streak which was 20 games set by the 2001 Athletics. Four weeks into the 2018 season, teams are already on winning streaks, with one team even currently on a losing streak.
Until yesterday's loss to the Red Sox, the Rays were on an eight-game winning streak. The win streak started on April 18 when they beat the Rangers. During the win streak, they swept the Twins and Orioles and won the series against the Red Sox. The Rays' eight-game win streak was a surprise to many as the Rays aren't a strong team. The Rays are currently 12-14 and are seven and a half games back of the division-leading Red Sox.
Another team in the AL East is also on a win streak as the Yankees have won nine straight games.
The last time they lost was on April 20 where they lost to the Jays. They swept the Twins in four games and the Angels in three. The Yankees are looking to extend their win streak to 10 games tonight as they face the reigning World Series champions -- the Houston Astros -- on the road. The Yankees are currently 18-9 and are two games back of the Red Sox for the lead in the AL East.
The Diamondbacks lost their game yesterday but they are on some sort of different streak, a streak that we haven't seen in 111 years. The Diamondbacks have won all their series to start the season. They've won series against all teams in their division including the Dodgers and Giants twice and also won the series against the Cardinals, Phillies and Nationals.
The last time this kind of streak was accomplished was by the 1907 Cubs who ended up winning the World Series. The Diamondbacks currently have 19 wins and eight losses and are looking for another series win -- they have four games against the Dodgers at home.
Win streaks are great but losing streaks do happen and the Twins found that out the hard way. Until Saturday's win, they had lost eight games in a row. Once they returned home from their extra innings win in Puerto Rico, they didn't win a game until they played the Reds on Saturday and won by two runs. They got swept by both the Rays and Yankees who were both on win streaks -- with the Yankees still rolling. The Twins currently have nine wins and 14 loses but are only three and a half games back from the Indians who lead the AL Central.
HR streaks
The Yankees have won nine straight and they'll have to thank Didi Gregorius as he is a big reason why the Yankees are doing so well right now. Gregorius hit a HR in four consecutive games from April 22-25. On April 27, he hit HR number 10 and received a curtain call even though he was playing on the road in Los Angeles. Gregorius finished the week with 4 HR's, 10 RBIs and batted .357.
In the NL, another player hit a HR in four consecutive games as well. Joey Votto hit a HR in each game from April 24-27. Votto currently has 4 HR's on the season which all came this week as he didn't a hit a HR in the first three weeks of the season. Votto finished the week with a very similar stat line, as he batted .357 with 4 HR's and 8 RBIs.
To no one's surprise, both Gregorius and Votto won player of the week.
The future
On April 24, the Braves called up Ronald Acuna Jr. and he made his MLB debut the following day. He got his first MLB hit in his first game and has impressed everyone since his call-up. So far in 19 AB, he has eight hits with four of those hits being doubles. He also already has a HR and 4 RBIs. He also made a spectacular diving catch in LF this week that was praised by the baseball word. Acuna is only 20 years old.
While Acuna was just called up this week, he isn't the only young gun on the Braves' roster. The Braves have Ozzie Albies at 2B who was called up last year and is only 21 years old. Albies already has nine HR's this season and currently has an average of .293.
Albies and Acuna are expected to be big contributors for the Braves this season and in future seasons.
Speaking of young players, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (24) hit his first career HR on Saturday against Bartolo Colon who is 44 years old.
Other things that happened in the fourth week of the MLB season
- Peraza batted .441 this week and had the first muti-HR game of his career
- Panik out six to eight weeks with thumb injury
