Lots of positive surprises so far. Buxton’s health and performance. His scheduled off days drive a lot of people crazy, but he’s on pace to play 120 games. I think everyone would have been thrilled to hear that in the winter. Luis Arraez batting so well that he’s forced the issue to play every day. Sonny Gray has been a fantastic trade acquisition. Chris Archer has also held things together better than I ever expected. Finally, Carlos Correa has been worth the money with his production and leadership.
It’s not all sunshine and roses though. My disappointing surprises is seeing how feast or famine the lineup is. The lack of progression in the pitching pipeline is also disappointing. All winter we heard the phrase “if you want 2 good MLB pitchers, you need 10 prospects.” Yet we’re still relying on veterans to patch the bullpen and back end of the rotation.