Patience or Panic on All 30 MLB Teams' Worst Early Slumps

It's typically not a good idea to put too much stock into the first month of a new Major League Baseball season—let alone the first couple of weeks.

But when it comes to slumping players, at least some stock is warranted.

Today's objective is to play "Patience or Panic" with each MLB team's worst slumping player. These aren't necessarily the players who have the ugliest numbers but rather the ones with the ugliest numbers relative to expectations.

In each case, we'll use metrics to discern who's been genuinely bad and who's been just plain unlucky. The latter deserve patience. The former, panic.

We'll go in alphabetical order by city.

The Ugly Numbers: 3 GS, 15.2 IP, 5.74 ERA

The Arizona Diamondbacks can find comfort in how Robbie Ray is at least carrying on as an elite bat-misser.

He's struck out 32.4 percent of the batters he's faced and permitted contact on just 66.0 percent of swings. The latter figure ranks fourth among National League starters, just behind Max Scherzer.

Decidedly less awesome, however, is how Ray's already bad walk habit has gotten worse with a 15.5 walk percentage. Ditto for his hard contact problem, as his average exit velocity allowed is a career-worst 91.1 mph.

And while his bat-missing prowess hasn't been affected, the decline of Ray's average fastball velocity from 94.3 mph in 2017 to 92.4 mph can't be shrugged off. That's hindering his ability to overpower hitters within the strike zone. That, in turn, is a root cause of his exit velo spike.

In short, he doesn't look like the same pitcher who was an All-Star and a Cy Young Award contender last year.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 4 GS, 20.0 IP, 5.40 ERA

Though Ender Inciarte has had trouble getting started at the plate, the Atlanta Braves lineup doesn't need his bat as much as their rotation needs Julio Teheran's arm.

The 27-year-old took a step toward a breakout with six one-run innings against the Philadelphia Phillies on April 16. But he still owns an elevated has already given up five home runs.

Teheran's walk rate should come back down at some point. He's usually not terrible with free passes, and his early release points don't set off any sirens.

What does set off sirens is Teheran's fastball velocity, which is down from 91.4 mph to 89.3 mph. This is short of even where he was last April (90.1 mph), and it's having predictable effects: He's missing fewer bats within the zone and getting roughed up on in-zone contact.

Basically, picture Ray but with a smaller margin for error.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 15 G, 60 PA, .441 OPS, 1 HR

Chris Davis is a 6'3", 230-pound behemoth who hit more home runs (223) than all but one other player from 2012 to 2017.

Knowing that, it's alarming that his early struggles are rooted in a lack of good contact. He's been hitting balls at an average of 83.3 mph, which is tied for 15th-worst among qualified hitters.

It's to Davis' credit, however, that he's at least going up to the plate with the right approach. The 32-year-old is passing on balls at his usual rate while swinging at strikes at a higher rate than last year. That's earning him a par-for-the-course 10.0 percent walk rate and a 30.0 percent strikeout rate that, while high, is better than last year's 37.2 percent.

That leaves hard contact as really the only thing he's been missing. His age inspires some doubt that it will come. But as long as he keeps swinging at good pitches and doesn't shrink into a regular-size human, there's room for optimism.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 13 G, 54 PA, .552 OPS, 0 HR

The Boston Red Sox wouldn't be 13-2 without a shortage of weak spots. And even among the ones they do have, Jackie Bradley Jr.'s slump only kinda-sorta resembles a real problem.

Spoiler alert: It's not actually a real problem.

The Red Sox don't really need Bradley to hit. They'll be just fine if he continues to play an excellent center field while the many great hitters around him carry the offense.

Plus, Bradley hasn't been as helpless as his numbers suggest.

His walk (9.3 percent) and strikeout (13.0) rates confirm he's at least giving Boston good at-bats. And while too many of those have been wasted on the ground, his 90.0 mph exit velocity will inevitably bear fruit if he keeps it up.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 12 G, 48 PA, .671 OPS, 2 HR

Ian Happ hit seven homers in spring training and promptly sent the very first pitch of the season over the wall.

But since Opening Day, he's hit just one homer and put up a .629 OPS. And it's no secret he's had a major problem with strikeouts, as his 45.8 percent strikeout rate leads the NL.

In Happ's defense, Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon told Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune: "He struck out a lot last year. That's part of his gig. But he'll figure it out and get away from it."

That is true, as Happ put up a 31.2 percent strikeout rate as a rookie in 2017. But 45.8 is obviously a bigger number, and contained within it is a big red flag. Pitchers have force-fed Happ more fastballs and, in so doing, revealed a hole in his swing. His penance is the lowest in-zone contact rate (65.1 percent) of any qualified NL hitter.

For Happ, fixing this will require a difficult adjustment.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 13 G, 61 PA, .608 OPS, 1 HR

Of all the Chicago White Sox's many slumping players, what separates Yoan Moncada is that his slump is threatening to derail what might have been a breakout year.

Like with Happ, there's a strikeout problem at play in Moncada's struggles. His 42.6 percent strikeout rate ranks second in the American League.

One thing that makes that easier to swallow, however, is Moncada's 13.1 percent walk rate. And in general, he's had the right approach of taking bad pitches and swinging at good pitches.

Then there's the thing that should be making Moncada's strikeout rate easier to swallow: His batted balls are averaging 97.4 mph in exit velocity. That's way better than Happ's 84.3 mph and, oh yeah, the best of any qualified AL hitter.

That's a hint of the raw power the 22-year-old has to play with. Sooner or later, it should show and make the White Sox very happy.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 15 G, 65 PA, .559 OPS, 0 HR

Look, the Cincinnati Reds are a bad team that's filled with bad players. The only real surprise is that Joey Votto is caught up in the badness.

The weirdest thing about Votto's slow start is that his trademark patience seems to have disappeared. He owns just a 4.6 percent walk rate compared to a career mark of 16.1.

It's not because he's gotten less disciplined, though. His 15.7 out-of-zone swing percentage is tied for the lowest in the NL. It just won't be good for much until pitchers stop pounding the zone against him at an unusually high rate (50.9 percent).

The seeds for that to stop have already been planted. Votto's contact rate (85.4 percent) and exit velocity (88.7 mph) are fine. The same goes for his launch angle (11.5 degrees) and all-fields hitting ability.

Translation: Votto still mostly looks like one of the best hitters of his generation.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 14 G, 60 PA, .470 OPS, 0 HR

The entire Cleveland Indians offense is slumping, but go figure that the worst slump belongs to the guy who clobbered six dingers with a 1.193 OPS in spring training.

That was a nice tease, but it seems as if Jason Kipnis is back to being the past-his-prime star he was in 2017. Beyond his results, his career-worst 23.3 percent strikeout rate helps drive the point home.

There's nothing wrong with the 31-year-old's approach, however. He's also hitting the ball 88.2 mph when he does make contact, and that comes with a higher-than-ever rate of hard contact.

Nor is the bulk of Kipnis' contact being wasted on the ground. His ground-ball percentage is up but still well below the MLB average.

Not surprisingly, there's a massive difference between Kipnis' slugging percentage (.236) and what it should be (.402). Time should fix that.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 17 G, 64 PA, .597 OPS, 4 HR

Ian Desmond's four home runs are nice, but the Colorado Rockies are still on track to get even less offense out of him than they did in 2017.

The 32-year-old seems to be trying to swing his way back into relevance, as he's hacking at anything that comes his way. So far, that's bought him an an ugly 29.7 K% and an even uglier 3.1 BB%.

Desmond's average exit velocity is 89.4 mph. That's fine on the surface, but he's undermining it with a grossly high 69.8 ground-ball percentage. In theory, that's fixable. In reality, it fits with a longstanding trend of Desmond's ground-ball rate climbing ever higher.

There's still a talented player somewhere inside Desmond. But at this point, he's buried deep beneath an increasingly large pile of flaws.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 11 G, 44 PA, .358 OPS, 0 HR

The Detroit Tigers only need Jose Iglesias to hit enough to justify their keeping his glove in the lineup every day. He's not even doing that.

It should be a bright side that Iglesias' exit velocity is up, but an average of 84.3 mph is impressive only by his standards. He simply doesn't have the power to do damage, so he must get by on making frequent contact and hitting it where they ain't.

The former typically hasn't been an issue for Iglesias, but his 18.2 percent strikeout rate is his latest step toward a merely MLB-average figure. Meanwhile, his already high ground-ball rate has gotten higher, and he's been overly pull-happy.

The Tigers are in the early stages of a rebuild, so it's not important for Iglesias to get going so they can win games. The bigger concern is his trade value, which will only get lower as he continues to struggle.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 6 G, 5.0 IP, 3.60 ERA

The Houston Astros don't offer many major problems to analyze, so we're going to analyze the curious case of Ken Giles instead.

He's faced 21 batters in 2018, and he's struck out only two of them. That's a 9.5 percent strikeout rate that's nowhere near up to the standard of his career mark (33.2 percent). And there's no trickery at play, as his contact rate is way up.

His fastball velocity isn't the problem, as it's holding strong at an average of 97.5 mph. The real culprit is his slider, which is diminishing as a swing-and-miss weapon. Perhaps not so coincidentally, it's also losing some spin.

This wouldn't be a red flag if Giles were leaning into a transformation into a pitch-to-contact type with a specialty in stifling exit velocity. But in light of his 93.2 mph exit velo allowed, it's likely just a matter of time before his lack of strikeout stuff comes back to bite him.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 3 GS, 15.0 IP, 5.40 ERA

The Kansas City Royals have bigger problems than Danny Duffy, particularly on offense. But he's the guy who's supposed to be the ace of their pitching staff as well as a major piece of trade bait.

Duffy's 22.1 percent strikeout rate is more or less where it should be, but that's masking an above-average contact rate. He's also walking batters at an 11.8 percent clip and permitting 91.8 mph in average exit velocity.

Duffy's fastball velocity is down from 92.8 mph to 91.6 mph. That could be because of the cold weather that the Royals have played in. Or, it could have something to do with the elbow surgery he had over the offseason.

Even if warmer weather returns some of Duffy's heat, he may not be out of the woods yet. He's also battling a lower arm slot, which could be the culprit behind the decline of his four-seamer's trademark vertical movement.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 15 G, 67 PA, .561 OPS, 1 HR

The Los Angeles Angels aren't having any trouble hitting the ball, but it would still be nice for them if Kole Calhoun's bat woke up.

Based on his strikeout (26.9 percent) and walk (3.0) rates, it would seem his first order of business should be to start giving the Angels better at-bats. His approach is fine, however, as he's mostly been taking bad pitches and swinging at good ones.

Elsewhere, Calhoun is hitting balls at an average of 88.2 mph. That's the same figure as last year, when he had a decent .725 OPS and 19 homers.

Though his ground-ball rate is up, his average launch angle (12.6 degrees) is right where it should be. And even if he can't stop hitting the ball on the ground, he should collect his share of knocks if he continues to take aim at all fields.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 14 G, 66 PA, .539 OPS, 1 HR

As the Los Angeles Dodgers wait for Justin Turner to return from injury, it would help a lot if Corey Seager did his part to heat up a cold offense.

If his hard-hit rate is to be believed, he's simply not hitting the ball as hard as usual. That's an excuse to worry about his health, which has recently been beset by back and elbow woes.

Seager's hard-hit rate, however, doesn't tell the whole story.

His walk rate is down slightly to 9.1 percent, but his strikeout rate is a career-best 15.2 percent. He's hitting a few too many ground balls for comfort, but his average exit velocity of 90.3 mph should be making up for that.

To wit, there's an 87-point gap between Seager's batting average (.200) and his expected batting average (.287). That's reason enough to believe he'll come around.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 15 G, 66 PA, .316 OPS, 0 HR

Lewis Brinson was supposed to be the biggest prize the Miami Marlins acquired in their offseason fire sale. But so far, he's looked like a guy who needs more minor league seasoning.

Brinson's overall struggle is being driven by struggles to take walks (4.5 percent walk rate), put the ball in play (30.3 percent strikeout rate) and hit the ball hard (84.0 mph exit velocity).

From the 37.4 percent clip at which he's seeing breaking balls, it's clear the book on Brinson says to feed him spin. He's yet to adjust, as he's collected more whiffs on those pitches than anyone.

And yet, this may be easier to fix than, say, Happ's fastball bugaboo. Brinson is already swinging inside the zone at a solid rate and making good contact when he connects. If he stops expanding the zone so much, those habits will pay off.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 3 G, 16.0 IP, 6.75 ERA

Zach Davies emerged as the Milwaukee Brewers' most reliable starter in 2016 and 2017 largely because he was good at managing contact.

That hasn't been the case in 2018. His ground-ball habit has disappeared, and his average exit velocity allowed is up to 89.4 mph. That figure jumps to 94.1 mph if the focus is narrowed to pitches in the zone. That's third-worst among NL pitchers.

And yet, it's not all bad.

Davies' average fastball is cracking 90 mph for the first time, and that's helped usher in huge improvements in his contact (73.0 percent) and strikeout (26.1) rates. Meanwhile, he's maintaining a 7.3 percent walk rate.

He's clearly not broken beyond repair and thus should only need small adjustments to improve. Since his stuff is better, a good start would be to stop nibbling and start challenging more hitters.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 10 G, 39 PA, .323 OPS, 0 HR

This isn't what the Minnesota Twins had in mind when they signed Logan Morrison following his 38-homer breakout in 2017.

Alas, he's just not hitting the ball very well. His average exit velocity is a career-low 87.1 mph, and his rate of hard contact has tanked.

Morrison, however, is at least giving the Twins solid at-bats. He's working a 10.3 BB% and a 20.5 K%, the latter of which is an improvement on the 24.8 percent mark he had in 2017.

The 30-year-old is also maintaining perhaps the biggest element of his 2017 breakout: air balls. His ground-ball percentage is up only slightly from 33.3 to 34.6, and his average launch angle has increased from 17.6 degrees to 24.6 degrees.

Since these are pretty good ingredients for power, warm weather may be the only thing Morrison is missing.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 3 G, 15.0 IP, 4.80 ERA

Matt Harvey pitched five one-hit innings in his 2018 debut for the New York Mets. In two starts since, he's allowed eight runs and 17 hits in 10 innings.

There are silver linings in how the 29-year-old's walk (4.5 percent) and strikeout (19.4) rates are marked improvements over what he did in 2017. Throw in his early penchant for pop-ups, and he hasn't been completely helpless.

All the same, he's been hittable. His average exit velocity allowed is up to a career-worst 89.0 mph. His rate of hard contact has followed suit.

At the heart of the matter is the reality that, in the wake of a handful of serious health woes, Harvey's stuff just isn't the same. His once-blazing fastball is down to 92.4 mph, and his average spin rate is tracking toward a third straight year of decline.

As such, discussions about the safety of Harvey's rotation spot are warranted.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 13 G, 56 PA, .640 OPS, 3 HR

Though Giancarlo Stanton has heard the loudest boos, Gary Sanchez has been the New York Yankees' most frustrating slugger in the early going.

On account of how he's drawn only one walk, his big problem would seem to be overaggressiveness. Beyond walks, such a problem would also be costing him good swings at good pitches.

His approach doesn't support this theory, however. Both his in-zone and out-of-zone swing rates are basically unchanged from 2017, when he launched 33 homers with a passable 7.6 percent walk rate.

Elsewhere, Sanchez's strikeout rate is down from 22.9 to 19.6, and he's still crushing what he does get his bat on. His average exit velocity is 91.4 mph overall—and a staggering 98 mph on fly balls and line drives.

So in reality, results are the only thing that hasn't been there for Sanchez so far. Rest assured, they will be.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 4 G, 17.1 IP, 9.87 ERA

Kendall Graveman isn't to be confused for a great pitcher, yet the Oakland Athletics typically get solid innings out of him. Early on, his innings have been anything but.

Graveman's 85.5 contact percentage is high even by his standards, and among the highest of all AL starters. And with his ground-ball rate down and his exit velocity allowed up, his usual safeguards against frequent contact aren't there.

On the plus side, the righty's fastball velocity is a career-best 93.7 mph. The same goes for his average spin rate, which is way up to 2,417 rpm. In plain terms, his stuff has been more electric.

But since hitters are making contact against him anyway, whether this alone can save him is a good question. He needs help from the Oakland defense, which, despite Matt Chapman's wizardry at third base, just isn't very good.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 13 G, 46 PA, .448 OPS, 2 HR

Aaron Altherr has hit a couple of homers, including one that aided the Philadelphia Phillies' sixth straight win Sunday. Otherwise, he has just one hit this season.

The 27-year-old has too often come up empty in his plate appearances, as his K% is up from 25.2 to 32.6. He's also hit the ball weakly when he has made contact. His average exit velocity is a career-low 84.7 mph.

But as strange as it may sound, Altherr shouldn't change a thing.

With his 32.6 percent strikeout rate comes a 15.2 percent walk rate that underscores how he's had the right idea with his approach: Take balls; swing at strikes. He's also further entrenching himself in the launch angle craze, which has helped push his ground-ball percentage well below the MLB average.

Even if Altherr can't stop striking out, he should soon have the results to justify doing so.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 8 G, 8.0 IP, 4.50 ERA

The Pittsburgh Pirates may be 11-5, but their bullpen is weighing them down with an NL-high 5.98 ERA. The buck stops with Felipe Vazquez, who hasn't been the overpowering relief ace he was in 2017.

At first glance, it's a major red flag that Vazquez's average fastball is down from 98.5 mph to 96.7 mph. If that sticks, he'll have lost what made him elite in the first place.

But, here's a fun fact: Vazquez's average fastball was 96.7 mph last April, too.

That's reason enough to believe he can regain some of the velocity he's missing. In the meantime, it's a good sign that his contact rate is down and that he's continuing to pound the strike zone.

Meet the new Felipe Vazquez. Same as the old Felipe Rivero.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 3 G, 13.2 IP, 5.27 ERA

Bryan Mitchell's potential was why the San Diego Padres agreed to take Chase Headley off the Yankees' hands this offseason. Clearly, they had better results in mind than what they've gotten.

In Mitchell's defense, he's giving the Padres the hard fastball they coveted. It's averaged 94.2 mph, and it's been effective at stifling good contact. His heat has yielded just 83.7 mph in average exit velocity, which is tied for third among qualified pitchers.

Now, if Mitchell could only reverse these figures:

• K%: 4.6
• BB%: 21.2

While this should be doable, a complete fix isn't necessarily in the cards. Even before Mitchell got to San Diego, he'd had a far-too-even balance between walks (44) and strikeouts (64) in the major leagues.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 14 G, 55 PA, .626 OPS, 2 HR

The San Francisco Giants might have expected that Hunter Pence would slump as badly as he has, but they surely expected more out of Evan Longoria.

It's not a good look that he's walked only once and struck out 18 times. And NL pitchers seem to have found a weakness. He's seen a higher rate (40.6 percent) of breaking balls than any other NL hitter, and he's swung through a lot of them.

Nonetheless, Longoria is maintaining a solid approach. He's also making good contact when he does put the ball in play, as his average exit velocity is 90.0 mph.

As such, it's likely that the only thing standing between him and a slump-busting hot streak is an adjustment to deal with his breaking ball-heavy diet. A veteran like him should be capable of that.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 3 GS, 12.0 IP, 8.25 ERA

With Mike Leake pitching well and Felix Hernandez and James Paxton coming around after early stumbles, Marco Gonzales' struggles are the only thing keeping the Seattle Mariners from a functioning rotation.

As per usual, the lefty is at least keeping himself out of trouble with a 3.6 BB%. As long as he can maintain that, he'll need only to avoid contact or manage contact to usher in positive results.

Too bad he's not particularly good at either.

As you'd expect for a guy whose average fastball doesn't crack 90 mph, Gonzales isn't much of a bat-misser. He's also regressing as a ground-ball artist, and batted balls off him are averaging 92.4 mph.

So at this point, how exactly Gonzales is supposed to get outs and rack up innings is a mystery.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 3 GS, 14.2 IP, 5.52 ERA

Kolten Wong has been about as cold as the weather in, well, practically every major baseball city, but he's not as big a deal to the St. Louis Cardinals as Michael Wacha.

The Cardinals need him to be like the pitcher who gave them a 4.13 ERA over 30 starts in 2017. That's not happening. He's walked (10) nearly as many batters as he's struck out (12), and his average fastball is down from 95.1 mph to 92.9 mph.

Wacha didn't have the same velocity issue last April, when his fastball averaged 94.8 mph. So, it's on him to adjust to be less about overpowering hitters and more about keeping them guessing.

This is where he's giving mixed indications. It's a positive that his average exit velocity is down to 85.8 mph, but it's a negative that his control issues are correlated with a lower arm slot.

All told, there's not much to be optimistic about.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 4 GS, 20.2 IP, 7.84 ERA

Between his status as the team's ace and its biggest piece of trade bait, the last thing the Tampa Bay Rays need is Chris Archer to struggle like this.

As was the case in his good-not-great 2016 and 2017 seasons, Archer is still racking up strikeouts. He's struck out 25.0 percent of the batters he's faced and is maintaining a 94.1 mph average fastball that's getting plenty of whiffs.

The bigger problem concerns the progression of the average exit velocity against Archer's heater:

• 2015: 90.6 mph
• 2016: 90.6 mph
• 2017: 93.2 mph
• 2018: 95.6 mph

Archer's velocity isn't a protection against hard contact anymore. That makes a lot of sense in light of current events. As FiveThirtyEight's Michael Salfino highlighted, hitters have adjusted to good heat as it's become more prevalent.

The best way around that is for power pitchers to do a better job of changing speeds. Since that's not Archer's thing, he may be in trouble.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 3 GS, 12.1 IP, 8.76 ERA

Rather than focus on any of the Texas Rangers' struggling hitters, the focus here is on a guy who isn't any closer to living up to his former status as an elite prospect.

Matt Moore has given up 19 hits in his 12.1 innings, and he's struck out only two more batters (nine) than he's walked (seven). He's also being hit at an average of 89.8 mph—the worst mark of his career.

The lefty's arm appears to be fine, as his release point and average fastball (91.4 mph) are in good shape. The problem thus seems to be a deliberate choice to avoid the strike zone.

An approach like that is workable if a pitcher can make hitters chase outside the zone. But that's rarely been the case with Moore, and now he's getting hitters to go fish even less often. His 24.0 percent out-of-zone swing rate is among the lowest in the AL.

He may be in for a long season.

Verdict: Panic

The Ugly Numbers: 3 GS, 14.2 IP, 7.98 ERA

Marcus Stroman isn't resembling the guy who made a spirited run at the AL Cy Young Award in 2017, and that could threaten to hold the Toronto Blue Jays back.

With a walk rate that's up from 7.4 to 13.9 and exit velocity allowed that's up from 88.5 mph to 92.4 mph, the righty has been beset by wildness and loud contact. His fastball velocity, meanwhile, is down from 93.3 mph to 91.9 mph.

But since Stroman uses a sinker as his go-to heater, velocity isn't quite as important to him as movement. It's therefore a good sign that his spin rate has barely budged and that he's beginning to evolve into an above-average whiff artist.

Another good sign is Stroman's ground-ball percentage, which, amazingly, has gotten even higher to 69.6 percent. That leads everyone in the early goings.

This is enough to have confidence that he'll come around.

Verdict: Patience

The Ugly Numbers: 17 G, 59 PA, .390 OPS, 1 HR

The Washington Nationals are getting plenty out of Bryce Harper but not nearly enough out of the guy who was as hot as all get-out this time last year: Ryan Zimmerman.

Of course, Zimmerman did tail off after his torrid start to 2017. And now he's beginning 2018 with a few too many whiffs, as his strikeout rate is up to a career-worst 27.1 percent.

But just for kicks, let's take a look at the MLB's early exit velocity leaders:

• 1. Ryan Zimmerman: 95.9 mph
• 2. Yoan Moncada: 95.5 mph
• 3: Jose Abreu: 95.4 mph

There's been some awfully loud contact coming off Zimmerman's bat. To boot, it hasn't been wasted on the ground. His ground-ball percentage is the lowest it's ever been.

So, not to worry, Nationals.

Verdict: Patience

Spring stats courtesy of MLB.com. Other stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs, Baseball Savant, Brooks Baseball and Baseball Prospectus.