New Faces Struggling in New Places to Start 2025

A month’s worth of MLB games is hardly enough time to make any grand judgments about most player performances. But don’t tell that to baseball fans.

Instant gratification is the name of the game these days. That goes for all sports but right now it’s applying to baseball fans who want to see their favorite teams’ players start the season off on the right foot.

It goes extra for the newbies on the team. Fans want to know that the investments that their team made in the offseason are going to deliver results, and the preference is that they happen sooner rather than later. Otherwise, why pay big in the first place?

Much to the chagrin of some fans, a handful of big name acquisitions are struggling with their new teams as the calendar nears the month of May. That includes the following group of subpar performers.

Cody Bellinger – OF, New York Yankees

26 G, .194/.262/.312, .574 OPS, 62 wRC+, -0.2 fWAR

Bellinger’s yearly performance since winning the 2019 NL MVP has been a bit of a rollercoaster and he once again seems to be on the downswing. He is the only Yankee with at least 10 games played and an OPS under .600 and is pulling the ball at a way lower rate than his career (28.8% vs 42.6%).

Christian Walker – 1B, Houston Astros

27 G, .192/.273/.354, .627 OPS, 83 wRC+, -0.1 fWAR

After eight seasons in Arizona, Walker finally earned his big payday last offseason. He’ll have plenty of time to live up to that contract, but early returns are soft as he has his highest strikeout rate (32.1%) and lowest walk rate (7.5%) since 2018.

Charlie Morton – SP, Baltimore Orioles

0-6, 24.1 IP, 10.36 ERA, 6.87 FIP, 2.22 WHIP, -0.4 fWAR

As one of the longest tenured pitchers in baseball having pitched for the better part of two decades, Father Time may have finally caught up with Morton. The 41-year-old currently leads all of MLB in losses (6), earned runs (28), and walks (20).

Jake Burger – 3B, Texas Rangers

27 G, .180/.211/.326, .537 OPS, 48 wRC+, -0.5 fWAR

After a statistical decline in 2024, the Rangers traded for Burger hoping he’d return to his 2023 form. Instead, he’s gone the other direction to start the year with a whopping 28 strikeouts to just two walks. However, his BABIP is 74 points below his career average and his hard hit stats are among the league leaders, so there is hope for a rebound.

Joc Pederson – DH, Texas Rangers

25 G, .100/.203/.171, .374 OPS, 11 wRC+, -0.8 fWAR

Another offseason pickup by Texas, the traditionally offensively reliable Pederson has been dreadful to start the season. Of the 239 batters with at least 70 plate appearances, his seven hits on the season rank dead last in MLB.

Willy Adames – SS, San Francisco Giants

29 G, .202/.279/.263, .542 OPS, 58 wRC+, -0.6 fWAR

Adames was one of the offseason’s marquee free agent targets after putting up a 32-homer, 112-RBI season in 2024. Unfortunately, his advanced offensive metrics are down almost across the board while on the field, he ranks last among qualified shortstops in both defensive runs saved (-7) and outs above average (-5).

Anthony Santander – OF, Toronto Blue Jays

27 G, .179/.261/.302, .563 OPS, 65 wRC+, -0.4 fWAR

Not one to hit for average, Santander slugged his way to a big free agent contract with 105 homers and 286 RBI over the last three years for the Orioles. Unfortunately, with just seven extra-base hits so far, the slugging hasn’t quite been there yet, which severely reduces his overall offensive value.

Jonathan India – 2B, Kansas City Royals

26 G, .213/.324/.266, .590 OPS, 75 wRC+, -0.2 fWAR

When the Royals acquired India from the Reds via trade this offseason, they hoped that he could recapture the magic that helped him win NL Rookie of the Year in 2021. Five doubles, no homers, and five RBI later, batting entirely leadoff no less, he’d currently be happy recapturing the magic of any season but this one.

Jordan Romano – RP, Philadelphia Phillies

0-1, 10.1 IP, 12.19 ERA, 6.92 FIP, 2.03 WHIP, -0.3 fWAR

Prior to a 2024 season that was mostly lost to elbow inflammation, Romano was a stellar closer for the Blue Jays, compiling 72 saves and a pair of All-Star bids in the two years before that. As the new Phillies closer, he has given up 14 earned runs in 10.1 innings while blowing two of four save opportunities, though a recent revelation that he was likely tipping pitches may solve things going forward.

Paul Sewald – RP, Cleveland Guardians

1-1, 11.0 IP, 6.55 ERA, 4.60 FIP, 1.36 WHIP, 0.0 fWAR

Though Sewald had his highest ERA (4.31) since the 2020 season last year, underlying stats insinuated that things may not have been as bad as they looked on the surface. A similar thing may be happening in 2025 as hard contact is helping overshadow above average walk, strikeout, whiff, and hard hit rates.

Devin Williams – RP, New York Yankees

0-2, 9.0 IP, 10.00 ERA, 3.73 FIP, 2.11 WHIP, 0.1 fWAR

It has not been a great transition to the Big Apple for Williams, a two-time All-Star, two-time NL Reliever of the Year, and former NL Rookie of the year with the Brewers. Things have gotten so bad that manager Aaron Boone has already removed him from the closer’s role for the time being.