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With Memorial Day arriving Monday, May 25, MLB will reach its traditional early-season checkpoint — a moment teams use to evaluate form, health and whether slow starts are temporary or warning signs. For several high-profile players, results through the first month-plus suggest deeper concerns that could affect lineups, payrolls and postseason hopes.
Big names, small numbers in San Diego
The San Diego Padres remain in the National League West conversation, but two cornerstone hitters who were supposed to carry the offense have produced underwhelming numbers. That mismatch between expectations and output raises questions about lineup protection, long-term contracts and how quickly the club can rebound if struggles persist.
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Short version: neither veteran presence has been close to the production the team paid for. That matters not only for the Padres’ run chase but also because both players are tied to lengthy deals that reduce roster flexibility.
- Manny Machado: batting .178 with all seven of the club’s homers among the mentioned duo; a low average that ranks among the poorest for qualified hitters this season. Machado hasn’t reached an .800 OPS since 2022 and remains under a contract that extends into 2033.
- Fernando Tatis Jr.: posting an OPS near .590, far below his best years. His numbers since returning from suspension sit well under the elite work he produced earlier in his career, and his contract runs through 2034.
Young stars in a different trouble: plate discipline
Across the league, two shortstops who have been central to their teams’ offensive plans are showing the same basic flaw: they’re putting the ball in play, but not in ways that help their teammates score. That issue is less about raw power and more about on-base skills — a trait that often separates contenders from pretenders as the season progresses.
Gunnar Henderson has supplied power (10 home runs early), yet his walk total is modest and strikeouts are high, reversing some of the tidy plate control he showed before this season. Trea Turner, the defending National League batting champion, has not found the contact rate that won him the title; his current batting average would be the lowest full-season mark of his career outside a brief 2015 cameo.
- At-bats leaders: Henderson (209) and Turner (201) — both carrying an on-base percentage below .300 so far, a troubling sign for players who bat near the top of the order.
- Henderson: 10 home runs, 24 RBIs, but a growing strikeout total (63) and only 14 walks.
- Turner: .236 average to date and historically low walk rates — he has topped 45 walks only once in nine full seasons.
What’s at stake is clear: players who don’t reach base regularly diminish lineup efficiency and force managers to rethink batting orders and defensive alignments. For clubs with championship aspirations, extended slumps can translate into pressure to adjust roles, pursue trades, or lean more heavily on pitching to compensate.
Where teams go from here
Early-May form is not destiny — baseball’s long season produces plenty of reversals — but Memorial Day is a practical inflection point. Teams will use the coming days to decide whether poor starts merit short-term fixes or longer-term concern. Front offices, particularly those carrying heavy payroll commitments, must weigh patience against urgency.
Expect roster experiments, lineup tinkering and, in some cases, scouting for outside help. For fans and fantasy managers, the immediate assignment is the same: watch whether these players correct course quickly or continue patterns that could shape the rest of the summer.
