After five weeks of baseball, the 2014 and 2015 seasons are almost identical in scoring. The 2014 season produced 8.479 runs per game, while the 2015 season stands at 8.478 runs per game. The seasons get there in different ways, however. Home runs are up slightly, 1.80 HR per game in 2014, 1.86 HR per game in 2015. Walks, strikeouts, and non-home run hits are down, strikeouts down 0.8 K per game. People worried about strikeouts running away should be encouraged by this trend.

Fewer people on base should mean fewer runs, but last year through five batters produced a .244/.327/.378 slash line with men in scoring position, while in 2015 that rose to .261/.342/.409. Batters may be trying to put the ball in play more when there are scoring opportunities.