MLB April 2022 Review

Hard to believe that earlier this year, there was a possibility that we wouldn't have baseball in April. A lockout had enveloped the sport for over three months until things ended up settled, leading to the season starting only a week later than originally planned. The return also brought new wrinkles to the sport: the permanent universal DH, the "ghost runner" extra inning rule ending after this season, nine-inning doubleheader games, and an expanded playoff format that features 12 teams (six in each league) and the best of three Wild Card Series opening the postseason.

So here we are, the first month is over and done with, and it was quite an amazing month, to say the least. Here's a look back at April's key moments.

The Yankees' Great Start

First off, I have a confession to make. September 2021 was, IMO, my worst month as a Yankees fan. It wasn't just because of how the Yankees were playing that month, it was also due to my inability to deal with it. After the Yankees were swept by the Blue Jays during that month, I admittedly lashed out at a Jays fan on social media and I paid for it. It reached a point where I refused to watch Yankees games because I was so emotionally and mentally exhausted, and honestly, when the Yankees lost that Wild Card Game to the Boston Red Sox, I felt some semblance of relief.

But in the months that passed, I was in a better place and back on social media, and I found myself looking forward to seeing the Yankees again. I changed my approach: I lowered my expectations. I actually didn't have the Yankees winning the American League East. And it makes what's happening with the team that much more fun for me to witness. The start of the Yankees' 2022 campaign has been interesting; the team was winning games despite not scoring a lot of runs, but then the team started scoring a lot of runs. The Yankees ended the month of April on an eight game winning streak, and it has included Gerrit Cole finding his form again. After very shaky starts, Cole ended the month of April pitching back-to-back shutouts, and picking up his first two wins of this season in games against the Cleveland Guardians and the Kansas City Royals.

The 1st No-Hitter of 2022

We've seen teams flirt with pitching no-hitters quite a bit in this young season, but there's been controversy regarding how some of the starters have been used. Clayton Kershaw and Sean Manaea had their shots at no-nos, only to be pulled by their respective managers after about 6-7 innings. In each case, the no-hitter was lost. The first team to pitch nine no-hit innings was the Tampa Bay Rays on April 23, but it was 0-0 after regulation. It was on April 29 that we finally saw the season's first no-hitter, and it was a combined one thrown by the New York Mets against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Tylor Megill started the game, pitching five no-hit innings before the remaining four innings were left up to the bullpen. Drew Smith entered for 1 1/3 innings, Joely Rodriguez pitched an inning, Seth Lugo pitched 2/3, and closer Edwin Diaz finished it off in the ninth. This was the Mets' second no-hitter in franchise history, with only Johan Santana's no-no in 2012 being on the short list.

What Happened to the Reds?!

Cincinnati has been hard luck in sports for a long time, but just months prior, the Cincinnati Bengals played in Super Bowl LVI and nearly won it. So one has to think that the good fortune would transcend into baseball, right? Not even close. It looked good at first. The Reds started 2-2 after splitting their opening four game set against the defending champion Atlanta Braves on the road. Since then, however, they've lost 16 of their last 17 games, and have fallen to 3-18, which matches their worst start in franchise history.

Regarding team stats, the Reds ended the month of April with a batting average of .204, which is next to last in all of baseball--only the Arizona Diamondbacks have a lower batting average (.181). They've only hit 14 total home runs (Anthony Rizzo and Aaron Judge have more than that between the two of them), and they've scored 66 runs, which is dead last in the National League. Their pitching is even worse; their ERA of 5.97 is the highest in baseball. It's an absolute recipe for disaster.

This has been a fun opening month, even after the lockout. In other notables, April 2022 kicked off Cleveland's first year as the Guardians, and they went 9-12 to start the season. The Los Angeles Angels ended April atop the American League West, with the Seattle Mariners close behind them. We also saw our first 20-run performance; the Chicago Cubs beating the Pittsburgh Pirates, 21-0, on April 23. The way I see it, we are in for a very thrilling season, and the extended playoff field makes it even more exciting!

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