Stock Up, Stock Down: Red Sox, Cardinals, Blue Jays and Astros

Seven weeks into the MLB season, some players and teams are exceeding expectations, while some are not. In the almost first two months, it has been a struggle for some teams, while some other teams that started out hot have cooled off.

Throughout a whole Major League Baseball season there are going to be ups and downs for every team, while teams will raise their stock and see their stock fall. Here are some teams that saw their stock rise up and drop over the last week.

Stock Down: Alek Manoah

If the Toronto Blue Jays are going to survive the monster that is the American League East, they are going to need Manoah to be the ace they need him to be. It has not happened yet this season and his last start against the New York Yankees on May 15 perfectly sums up his season so far.

In Toronto’s 7-4 loss, he worked four innings, he gave up five earned runs on six hits, and seven walks, and allowed two home runs. His ERA ballooned to 5.40 following the game, not something that the Blue Jays were hoping for.

It just is not a short sample size for Manoah, it’s been a struggle all season. In nine starts, he is 1-4 in 45 innings pitched, and just 35 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.800. Last season in 31 starts, the right-hander walked 51 batters. This season, he’s already walked 32, and control issues hit rock bottom against the Yankees.

Toronto’s staff as a whole has been shaky and their offense was recently shut down by the Yankees, who three of the four games in this week’s series. Manoah’s struggles need to be figured out sooner rather than later.

Stock Down: Boston Red Sox

No team has had more ups and downs early in the season than the Red Sox, but the downs hit an all-time low in the last seven days. They hosted the struggling St. Louis Cardinals and were promptly swept at home, marking the second time this season they’ve been swept at home by an NL Central team after the Pittsburgh Pirates did in the first week in April.

To compound the matters, one night after being swept on Sunday night baseball, the Seattle Mariners put up 10 runs on them in a 10-1 win. Boston rebounded to win the final two games against the Mariners, but their losing streak did not stop them from sliding back into the AL East basement.

Nick Pivetta was given a 4-0 first-inning lead in the second game of the Seattle series Tuesday night, only to give it back in the fourth with four Mariners’ runs. Boston went on to win the game 9-4, but Pivetta’s struggles were enough for Alex Cora, who moved him to the bullpen following the game. After dropping four of six at home, they now hit the road for a nine-game West Coast trip against the San Diego Padres, Los Angeles Angels, and Arizona Diamondbacks.

Last place in the AL East is not like being in last place in any other division as all five teams are over .500 and all have a plus-run differential this season. However, as the Red Sox found out, a losing streak can bury you in the standings and make it difficult to work your way out. This trip out West will be a big test for Cora’s team.

Stock Up: St. Louis Cardinals

Apparently, all the Cardinals needed was a trip to Boston. Go figure.

Looking to turn their disappointing start to the season around, the Redbirds went into Fenway and sent a message to the rest of the league that they’re not going to go quietly in 2023 despite sitting in last place in the NL Central. In three games at Fenway, they scored 21 runs and included a three-run ninth inning on May 13 in which Kenley Jansen melted down and allowed three runs on three walks, one intentional, a double, and a fielder’s choice. When things are rolling for a team, they win games like that and when things are a struggle like the Red Sox are, they lose games like that.

After they left Boston late Sunday night, they put up 18 runs on the Milwaukee Brewers the following night at home, then got a combined seven-hit shutout Wednesday night to take two out of three. The NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers got a first-hand up-close view of the Cardinals’ recent surge on Thursday after St. Louis put up 16 runs on them and battered Julio Urias for six earned runs in three innings.

St. Louis has time on their hands to turn things around this season and getting Adam Wainwright back on the mound is certainly going to help them. With the calendar still in May, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Cardinals turn things around this season.