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Memorial Day — arriving this year on Monday, May 25 — has become an informal checkpoint for Major League Baseball teams and players. With the season already underway earlier than usual, teams are using the long weekend to gauge whether slow starters can right the ship before the summer stretch.
This early-season snapshot matters because patterns that persist into June often shape roster moves, playing time and, for some clubs, the trajectory of a playoff chase. Below are four notable hitters whose starts have raised concern and what the implications might be for their teams.
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The San Diego Padres remain competitive in the National League West, but two of their marquee bats have produced unexpectedly little this spring. Together, Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. have struggled to provide the offensive consistency expected of players on lengthy, expensive contracts.
Through the early weeks, the pair have combined for a batting average near .210, with all of the team’s early home runs from this duo coming from Machado. Individually, Machado’s contact rate and production have slipped; he’s batting well under his career norm and has not recorded an .800 OPS in multiple seasons. That decline is notable given the size and duration of his deal.
Tatis’ start is even more stark. His current OPS sits in the low .500s to .600s range, ranking among the league’s lowest for regular players. Since returning from suspension, his offensive output has not come close to the pre-suspension peaks that made him a star, leaving questions about whether his profile can return to its former level. For San Diego, the short-term performance gap has real consequences because both players are signed through the early 2030s — a factor that limits short-term payroll flexibility and raises the stakes for any recovery.
Shortstop trouble: Henderson and Turner’s early plate struggles
Two of the season’s busiest hitters, Gunnar Henderson and Trea Turner, offer a cautionary contrast: heavy usage but diminishing on-base production. Both lead their leagues in at-bats, yet neither has posted an on-base percentage above .300 so far — a warning sign for teams that rely on table-setters and contact-oriented lineups.
Henderson continues to supply power, with double-digit homers, but his walk total is low while strikeouts are high. That swing-tendency was always part of his profile, but the current strikeout-to-walk balance has moved closer to the direction teams hoped to reduce. The result is good counting stats in runs driven and homers, but fewer baserunners and run-creation opportunities than expected.
Trea Turner, last season’s National League batting champion, has not found the consistent contact that defined his recent years. Walk rates have rarely been a core strength for Turner across his career, yet his batting average is slipping toward what would be his lowest true-season mark since his brief cup-of-coffee in 2015. For the Phillies, that drop in batting average and on-base frequency can alter lineup construction and situational strategy.
- Why this matters now: Memorial Day marks the point many front offices use to decide whether to tweak lineups, pursue trades, or give struggling veterans more time to rebound.
- What to watch: changes in walk rate, strikeout percentage, and month-to-month OPS trends — early improvements in those metrics often precede longer-term recoveries.
- Team stakes: the Padres’ payroll commitments to Machado and Tatis limit flexibility; Baltimore and Philadelphia depend on their shortstops to set the table and stabilize the lineup.
It is still early on the calendar, and slumps in April and May do not always predict season-long outcomes. Yet patterns that persist through Memorial Day often force tangible adjustments. For fans and front offices alike, the upcoming weeks will be a clearer barometer of whether these players will rebound or whether teams must alter plans to protect playoff hopes.
