Jun 21, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants designated hitter Rafael Devers (16) follows the flight of his two-run home run against the Boston Red Sox during the third inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images The All-Star Game is often seen as the halfway mark of the Major League Baseball season, but the actual midpoint of the schedule arrives this week. Here are six of the biggest surprises so far:
1. Red Sox Trade Rafael Devers to the Giants
It’s no shock the Red Sox — who never seem to tire of making poor decisions or smearing franchise icons on their way out — decided they didn’t want to build around Rafael Devers barely two years after signing him to a 10-year deal. But dealing him to the Giants in mid-June qualifies as one of the most stunning moves in recent memory.
It’s a no-lose proposition for the Giants, who finally landed the power hitter they could never lure via free agency. It might also work for the Red Sox, who have top prospects Roman Anthony and/or Marcelo Meyer primed to replace Devers as the face of the franchise — at least until Boston sours on them, too.
2. Cal Raleigh’s Historic Power Surge
Jun 20, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) hits a home run against the Chicago Cubs during the first inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images The “Big Dumper” hit at least 30 homers in each of the last two seasons, so it’s no surprise he’s baseball’s most powerful catcher. But Raleigh has already belted 31 homers with a week left in June — putting him on pace to not only obliterate Salvador Perez’s single-season record for catchers (48 in 2021), but possibly to threaten Aaron Judge’s American League record of 62 home runs. And yes, he’s doing this as a catcher.
3. Pete Crow-Armstrong’s 40/40 (or 50/50?) Chase
May 26, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong (4) looks on during a game against the Colorado Rockies at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images Jeremy Peña’s rise into a top-of-the-order star deserves mention, but the most impressive breakout belongs to Pete Crow-Armstrong. Once pegged as a defensive specialist, Crow-Armstrong has smashed 21 homers and swiped 23 bases — the fastest any Cubs player has reached 20/20.
He’s also proof of the long-term impact of trades. The Cubs acquired him from the Mets in 2021 for Javier Báez, who underwhelmed for three-plus seasons before…
4. Javier Báez Is Good Again
May 16, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Detroit Tigers center fielder Javier Baez (28) catches a fly ball hit by Toronto Blue Jays right fielder Nathan Lukes (not pictured) in the second inning at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images Báez looked like one of the biggest free-agent busts in MLB history, hitting just .221 with a 2.1 WAR total over the first three years of his six-year deal with Detroit. But after undergoing hip surgery last summer, Báez has been reborn — flirting with a .300 average and posting an .800 OPS for the first time since 2021 while starring for the best team in baseball.
5. Parity Rules MLB — for Better or Worse
Rob Manfred and his band of salary cap-chasing executives will never admit it, but parity has arrived in baseball. Only one team — the mid-market Tigers — is on a 100-win pace, and 22 clubs are within five games of a playoff berth.
A year ago, there were four teams on a 100-win pace and 23 teams within five games of a playoff spot. Some of this reflects playoff expansion and contenders like the Dodgers realizing October is all that matters. Still, the state of competition is far better than the doom-and-gloom Manfred and company will claim over the next 16 months.
6. Except in Colorado
Jun 18, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Colorado Rockies starting pitcher German Marquez (48) throws to the Washington Nationals during the third inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-Imagn Images The Rockies are famously insular — and they should be bad — but how are they this bad? Colorado is threatening to surpass the 2024 White Sox as the losingest team of the modern era. At 18-60, the Rockies are on pace to finish 37-125, which would “top” the White Sox by four games.
But there’s hope for…slightly less embarrassment. Colorado has won half its games this month. If they manage nine wins per month the rest of the way, they’d finish with 45 victories — still awful, but not the worst team of all time.
