MLB standings by average sprint speed: Yankees, Braves are slowpokes

MLB standings are ordered by wins and losses. It’s fun to look at the standings with different metrics to see what areas a team stands out in and what areas they’re weaker in. Speed is a weapon on the basepaths, while a lack of speed can hurt a team. The league average sprint speed is 27 feet per second.

Which MLB teams are the fastest and which are the slowest? Each team's average sprint speed consists of their current active roster, not including pitchers. Sprint speed is measured by feet per second.

Here are the MLB standings when ordered by average sprint speed.

MLB standings ordered by sprint speed in first month of 2024 season

AL East

Most of the AL East is very close in average sprint speed. The Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles are tied for the fastest in the division, with the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays right behind them. The outlier here is the New York Yankees, who are the slowest team in the AL East at 26.4 ft/sec.

Everyone will immediately think of Giancarlo Stanton, but so far this season, Anthony Rizzo (24.3 ft/sec) and Jose Trevino (24.5 ft/sec) are actually running slower than Stanton (24.8 ft/sec). Only two players in the Yankees’ lineup are above league average in sprint speed. Anthony Volpe clocks in at 28.5 ft/sec and Oswaldo Cabrera is at 27.5 ft/sec. Speed is not this team's strength. Forty-year-old retiree Brett Gardner would probably still be faster than any current Yankee not named Volpe.

AL Central

The Detroit Tigers are the fastest team in the AL Central at 27.4 ft/sec. The Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Guardians are not far behind. The Minnesota Twins and Chicago White Sox have similar speed.

Most of the players on the Tigers' roster are above average in sprint speed, with some just below. Only their catcher, Carson Kelly, is far below at 25.1 ft/sec. The fastest player on the Tigers is Parker Meadows at 29.2 ft/sec. Matt Vierling is among the fastest third basemen at 28.7 ft/sec.

AL West

The Texas Rangers are the fastest team in the AL West at 27.6 ft/sec. The Los Angeles Angels and Oakland Athletics are not far behind. The Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners are tied for slowest in the division at 26.8 ft/sec.

Most of the Rangers players are above league average or just below league average. At 29.6 ft/sec, Wyatt Langford is the fastest DH in MLB. Evan Carter is the fastest left fielder in MLB at 29.7 ft/sec. Cory Seager is the slowest ranked shortstop in the league at 24.8 ft/sec.

NL East

The Philadelphia Phillies are the fastest team in the NL East, while the Miami Marlins and Washington Nationals have similar speed as each other. At 26.5 ft/sec, the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves are the slowest.

While the Braves have four players above MLB average speed, none of them are anywhere near the fastest at their position. Marcell Ozuna is one of the slowest DHs in MLB at 24.8 ft/sec. Orlando Arcia is the second-slowest shortstop at 25.3 ft/sec. The fastest member of the team is Michael Harris II at 28.1 ft/sec. As for the Mets, Omar Narvaez is the second-slowest player in MLB at 23.1 ft/sec. Starling Marte is the slowest right fielder in the National League at 25.7 ft/sec. The Mets did add some speed in the offseason with outfielders Tyrone Taylor (28.5 ft/sec) and Harrison Bader (27.9 ft/sec).

NL Central

According to average sprint speed, the Cincinnati Reds are the fastest team in the NL Central at 27.8 ft/sec. The Milwaukee Brewers are almost as fast as the Reds at 27.7 ft/sec. The Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates have the same average speed, while the St. Louis Cardinals are ranked last.

The Reds only have two players with below-average sprint speed. With a sprint speed of 29.8 ft/sec, Elly De La Cruz is the fourth-fastest player in baseball. Stuart Fairchild, Will Benson, and Jake Fraley are also speedy. Luke Maile is the slowest on the team at 25.0 ft/sec. As for the Brewers, Brice Turang is the fastest shortstop in the National League at 29.3 ft/sec. Oliver Dunn is the fastest third baseman in MLB at 29 ft/sec. Gary Sanchez is the slowest member of the team, at 24.7 ft/sec, and the slowest DH in MLB.

NL West

The Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, and Arizona Diamondbacks have a three-way tie in the NL West. The San Francisco Giants follow, with the Colorado Rockies being the slowest team in the division according to average sprint speed.

Both of the Rockies catchers are on the low-end of catcher speed in MLB. Elias Diaz clocks in at 24.2 ft/sec and Jacob Stallings is listed at 23.7 ft/sec. Brendan Rodgers is the second-slowest second baseman in MLB at 25.6 ft/sec. The Rockies have no players who are among the fastest at their position. Brenton Doyle is the fastest member of the team at 29 ft/sec.

So do these standings correlate with the actual MLB standings? Yes and no. The Braves are tied for second-slowest in MLB. They have the best record in MLB right now. The Yankees are the slowest and have the sixth-best record. However, the Phillies are the fastest team and have the second-best record in baseball right now. The Orioles are seventh in sprint speed and have the third-best record. What does this mean? Speed isn’t the only factor, but like any other stat, it can contribute to a team’s success or struggles.