April has come and gone and warmer weather lies just ahead. That will be a relief for those players whose game tends to heat up with the weather.
But, this post is about other players, those who start the year hot. Over a career, there are some players who consistently play their best in the opening month. But, as this post shows, knowing that may not help you predict the league leaders in any given April.
After the jump, more on April’s heroes.
For this analysis, I’ve compiled a top 10 list for many different batting and pitching statistics for the month of April 2014, and also for the month of April 2013. How many players showed up on the same list for both Aprils? Only this handful:
| Statistic | Player | 2014 Rank | 2013 Rank |
| HR | Justin Upton | 3 | 1 |
| Runs | Matt Carpenter | 6 | 7 |
| RBI | Troy Tulowitzki | 8 | 7 |
| 2B | Josh Donaldson | 6 | 4 |
| RC | Justin Upton | 5 | 3 |
| BB | Joey Votto | 2 | 1 |
| SO | Chris Carter | 3 | 1 |
| SB | Jacoby Ellsbury | 8 | 1 |
| SB | Rajai Davis | 8 | 8 |
| OBP | Joey Votto | 4 | 7 |
| OBP | Shin-Soo Choo | 5 | 1 |
| SLG | Troy Tulowitzki | 1 | 10 |
| SLG | Justin Upton | 3 | 1 |
| OPS | Justin Upton | 3 | 4 |
So, pretty much a wholeale change in the early leaders from one season to the next. Here are those details. You can scroll through the table, statistics by statistics, or type a statistic in the search box to bring it up. You can also search for specific players in the same way.
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What about the pitchers? I was expecting there would be more of the same people than with the batters, but it was only barely so.
| Statistic | Player | 2014 Rank | 2013 Rank |
| IP | Adam Wainwright | 3 | 1 |
| IP | Felix Hernandez | 9 | 3 |
| Wins | Adam Wainwright | 1 | 4 |
| Wins | Jason Hammel | 3 | 4 |
| Wins | Lance Lynn | 3 | 4 |
| SO | Max Scherzer | 3 | 5 |
| SO | Felix Hernandez | 5 | 8 |
| SO/9 | Max Scherzer | 3 | 2 |
| BB/9 | Bartolo Colon | 2 | 1 |
| BB/9 | Cliff Lee | 3 | 8 |
| SO/BB | Cliff Lee | 2 | 9 |
| SO/BB | Bartolo Colon | 4 | 1 |
| SO/BB | Felix Hernandez | 10 | 7 |
| Games | Brad Ziegler | 2 | 1 |
| GF | Addison Reed | 2 | 4 |
| GF | Sergio Romo | 8 | 1 |
| Saves | Craig Kimbrel | 5 | 5 |
| Saves | Sergio Romo | 8 | 1 |
As with the batters, the greater portion, by far, of the top 10 lists are a complete turnover from 2013 to 2014. Here are those lists.
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