Some of baseball’s biggest stars have gotten off to some undesirable starts. Here are the five most surprising slow starts:
5. Heath Bell, Marlins » Miami didn’t sign the former Padres closer to blow saves, but that’s exactly what Bell did twice in his first four appearances with the Marlins — allowing six runs (four earned) in three innings. Bell earned his first save of the season Tuesday night vs. the Cubs.
4. Aramis Ramirez, Brewers ?» Trying to fill the hole left by the departure of slugger Prince Fielder, the former Cubs third baseman had just four hits in his first 35 at-bats (.114 batting average) hitting cleanup for the Brewers. He also has struck out eight times.
3. Ryan Zimmerman, Nationals ?» Zimmerman is hitting .217 with just four RBI and no home runs, and the Nationals are still 9-3. At least the slow start at the plate hasn’t affected him defensively. Despite going 0-for-4 on Sunday, Zimmerman had several spectacular plays at third.
2. Tim Lincecum, Giants » For the first time in his career, the two-time Cy Young winner has allowed five earned runs or more in three straight games in a season. Lincecum is 0-2 with a 10.54 ERA and hasn’t pitched past the sixth inning in his first three starts.
1. Albert Pujols, Angels » After the first 10 games of the season, Pujols still had yet to hit his first home run as a member of the Angels. Entering Tuesday night’s game, the Angels first baseman who signed a $254 million, 10-year deal in the offseason was hitting .268 with just four RBI.
– Jeffrey Tomik
