Hitters Advanced Metrics Leaders for Barrel% - Fantasy Baseball Studs and Duds (Week 14)

Hello, RotoBallers, and welcome to our hitters advanced metrics leaders article for Week 14 of the 2024 fantasy baseball season! Today, we will be taking a look at players like Bryan Reynolds, Elly De La Cruz, Andy Pages, and more. As another week of baseball wraps up, I will recap which hitters had the most impactful plate appearances in the past few days.

For the first 11 weeks of the season, we discussed Statcast's Barrels per Plate Appearance stat, or Brls/PA%, but now we can transition. The weekly leaderboard for Brls/PA% has primarily stabilized, so now we can shift our focus towards Barrel Percentage in the last seven days.

Statcast's Barrel Percentage stat, or Barrel%, works by dividing the total number of barrels by the number of batted ball events within the given period. The higher the Barrel%, the more often the hitter makes ideal contact with the baseball. By narrowing our range, we can zero in on the players who have made the best and worst contact within the past week. We will also examine other stats, but the Barrel% will be the main focus of this piece. Take advantage of the rest of our Statcast analysis for fantasy baseball, including weekly Statcast Pitcher Studs and Duds.

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Barrel% Leaders

Notable Players

With another week comes a fresh batch of names on the leaderboard. The king of this week's leaderboard is Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Bryan Reynolds.

Reynolds has continued to be one of baseball's most consistently good hitters. The 29-year-old is on pace to put up yet another season with 20 home runs, 30 doubles, and a batting average of over .260. Reynolds is not the most exciting hitter in the world, but his consistency and veteran presence make him invaluable to a young Pirates team.

The Pirates outfielder is in the 80th percentile or better in xwOBA, xBA, xSLG, and hard-hit rate this season. After 344 plate appearances, Reynolds has slashed .275/.343/.466 with 12 home runs and five stolen bases. Reynolds is performing below his expected stats, which could lead to some positive regression, but this level of production is what you can expect from the veteran hitter.

Elly De La Cruz is another name worth mentioning this week. The Cincinnati Reds shortstop is one of the most electric players in baseball, but raw potential does not always translate to amazing performance. In terms of power-speed combos, De La Cruz is among the best, owning 99th percentile sprint speed and 84th percentile average exit velocity. Despite his electricity, De La Cruz has glaring holes in his game.

The 22-year-old has large holes in his swing, leading to whiff and strikeout rates of 32.5% and 31.4%, respectively. These rates can sometimes be attributed to a weak eye at the plate, but De La Cruz has an 85th percentile walk rate, so he has no trouble seeing the ball. The issue seems to be an emphasis on hitting the ball hard rather than hitting the ball well. De La Cruz has a 10.2-degree launch angle, leading to a 47.2% ground ball rate. The Reds slugger has a .243 batting average and a .230 xBA, which means he is more of a sell-high candidate than a buy-low opportunity.

It's time to talk about the Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder with the 82nd percentile barrel rate, Andy Pages. The young slugger had an interesting week worth discussing.

Get us started, Andy. pic.twitter.com/0HlSpxad31

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) June 19, 2024

The 23-year-old slashed .179/.258/.393 with one home run, three RBI, and four runs scored in the past seven days. Despite the rough week, Pages still managed a 25% barrel rate and 40% hard-hit rate in his 31 plate appearances. His 92.2 mph average exit velocity was also in the top 50 among qualified hitters this week.

The Dodgers outfielder has slashed .259/.311/.423 through his first 241 plate appearances, and his expected stats largely support the success he has made so far. Pages has displayed his plus power and defensive abilities, which should help him hold his spot in the Dodgers lineup. The young slugger usually finds himself in the bottom half of the order due to the talent atop the Dodgers roster, and he fills his role, but not much more than that. That said, Pages is not an overly exciting add in leagues where he is available.

The past week has been an absolute blast for Cleveland Guardian outfielder Steven Kwan, but you wouldn't know it by looking at the barrel rate leaders.

Kwan slashed .417/.462/.750 with two home runs and six RBI in the last seven days but finished the week with a 0% barrel rate and 27.3% hard-hit rate. Despite being one of the softest hitters in baseball, Kwan is an absolute technician with the bat in his hands.

The former Oregon State Beaver has some of the best eyes in baseball, as evidenced by his 100th-percentile walk and strikeout rates. Kwan is one of the best pure hitters in the game right now and this hot streak will make it even harder to acquire him.

The last hitter I want to highlight is Juan Soto. The New York Yankees outfielder had one of the worst performances of the past week, hitting below .150, which could open a possible buy-low opportunity for the superstar hitter.

The 25-year-old slashed .111/.407/.111 with one RBI in his last 27 plate appearances. The Yankees slugger still managed a 33.3% walk rate despite his struggles with the bat. Soto is one of the most talented hitters in the league and is in the 98th percentile or higher in most Statcast batting categories. A poor showing this week could open a buy-low window, but acquiring him will still take a lot. A late first-round talent and a future pick or two second-rounders could sway a panicking Soto manager.

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