When a team like the 1927 Yankees starts a season 6-0, wins 110 games and sweeps the World Series, nobody cares about a four-game losing streak in August. No one even notices it.
But when you start the season with a four-game slide, or just two wins in your first six games — particularly when your team has high expectations — everybody freaks out. That’s clearly the case for five teams in 2023, all of whom are considered serious contenders this year but who have gotten off to slow starts this season. Four of these clubs reached the playoffs last year, two reached the World Series and one won it all. Yet each enters Tuesday with a sub-.500 record.
It’s too early to be too scared. But it’s not too early to be a little scared, no?