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Hello, RotoBallers! As another week of baseball wraps up, I will recap which hitters had the most impactful plate appearances in the past few days. Using Statcast's Barrels per Plate Appearance stat, or Brls/PA %, we can narrow our view to the hitters who are the most locked in through the season's first two months.
Statcast's Brls/PA % works by dividing the total number of barrels by the number of plate appearances within the given period. The higher the Brls/PA %, the more often the hitter makes ideal contact with the baseball. We will also examine other stats, but the Brls/PA % will be the main focus of this piece.
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Brls/PA % Leaders
| Player | BBE | Max Exit Velocity (MPH) | Avg Exit Velocity (MPH) | Brls | Brls/PA% | |
| Aaron Judge | 138 | 115.9 | 96.9 | 40 | 16.3 | |
| Juan Soto | 174 | 115.7 | 95.6 | 34 | 13.6 | |
| Shohei Ohtani | 167 | 119.2 | 94.8 | 32 | 13.4 | |
| Bobby Witt Jr. | 176 | 113.3 | 93.3 | 29 | 12.2 | |
| Giancarlo Stanton | 117 | 119.9 | 93.2 | 23 | 12.0 | |
| Shea Langeliers | 119 | 110.8 | 91.4 | 20 | 11.2 | |
| Mike Trout | 82 | 114.5 | 89.2 | 14 | 11.1 | |
| Corey Seager | 153 | 113.3 | 90.5 | 24 | 11.0 | |
| Kerry Carpenter | 109 | 109.0 | 88.6 | 18 | 11.0 | |
| Salvador Perez | 158 | 112.6 | 91.9 | 23 | 10.9 | |
| Marcell Ozuna | 139 | 114.6 | 92.9 | 23 | 10.8 | |
| Adolis Garcia | 138 | 116.1 | 91.8 | 22 | 10.3 | |
| Andrew McCutchen | 110 | 108.5 | 89.3 | 19 | 10.3 | |
| Rhys Hoskins | 101 | 107.4 | 88.8 | 16 | 10.3 | |
| Oneil Cruz | 118 | 121.5 | 95.2 | 21 | 10.2 | |
| Christian Walker | 143 | 113.9 | 90.9 | 23 | 10.1 | |
| Kyle Tucker | 154 | 108.1 | 91.0 | 23 | 9.9 | |
| Jo Adell | 97 | 115.6 | 89.4 | 15 | 9.9 | |
| Tyler O'Neill | 90 | 110.6 | 91.9 | 17 | 9.9 | |
| Taylor Ward | 156 | 108.6 | 91.0 | 22 | 9.8 | |
| Colton Cowser | 93 | 113.6 | 92.0 | 16 | 9.8 | |
| Pete Alonso | 161 | 115.3 | 88.7 | 22 | 9.6 | |
| Eloy Jimenez | 109 | 112.2 | 92.4 | 14 | 9.6 | |
| Davis Schneider | 93 | 109.3 | 90.6 | 15 | 9.5 | |
| Ryan McMahon | 140 | 112.2 | 93.6 | 21 | 9.3 | |
Notable Players
Aaron Judge and his teammates Juan Soto and Giancarlo Stanton are now at the top of our leaderboard. The Bronx Bombers are tearing the covers off baseballs right now, and Judge is leading the way.
In the past week, Judge slashed .357/.441/1.000 with five home runs and 10 RBI in 34 plate appearances. The 32-year-old continues to raise his batting average with his hot streak, and he's now up to .279 on the season. The Yankees slugger has a .470 xwOBA, .730 xSLG, 96.9 mph average exit velocity, 29.0% barrel rate, 62.3% hard-hit rate, and 17.6% walk rate. Those stats rank in the 99th percentile or better among qualified hitters this season.
Oneil Cruz is a new face on the leaderboard this week. The hard-hitting Pirates slugger has a Statcast page full of extremes. On one end of the spectrum, Cruz is 96th percentile or better in average exit velocity, bat speed, barrel rate, and hard-hit rate. On the other end of the spectrum, Cruz is 11th percentile or worse in chase, whiff, and strikeout rates.
Cruz has the third-highest average exit velocity among qualified hitters and recorded the hardest-hit ball this season with an exit velocity of 121.5 mph. While his intangibles are off the charts, the 25-year-old still needs to find more consistency at the plate to take the next step into stardom. That said, Cruz is on the right track.
It's time to talk about Eloy Jimenez, the currently injured Chicago White Sox hitter with the 90th average exit velocity this season. Despite his injury troubles, Jimenez is a great hitter when healthy and worth discussing in the context of this leaderboard.
Eloy Jiménez goes yard! pic.twitter.com/UR5CGXqyxb
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) May 14, 2024
The 27-year-old is batting .231 with a .381 SLG in 134 plate appearances this season. Jimenez's numbers will likely increase once he returns, as his xBA and xSLG are .261 and .465, respectively. His injury history is an issue and will likely continue for the rest of his career. Still, if you can get a healthy stretch from him on your team, Jimenez can be a strong contributor across several categories.
Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has not been mentioned much this season due to his lower percentage of barrels per plate appearance. Still, he is worth noting for nearly every other stat.
In the past week, Guerrero Jr. has slashed .419/.500/.613 with six runs scored and five RBI in 36 plate appearances. The 25-year-old has a Statcast page filled with red, with a 94.2 mph average exit velocity and 58.6% hard-hit rate, which are 98th and 99th percentile, respectively, among qualified hitters.
Guerrero Jr. is not on pace to have a prolific power season. Still, his bat-to-ball skills are undeniable, and he can be an above-average contributor across the board, except for stolen bases. If he maintains his current batting average, it will be his highest since 2021 and his first time batting over .300 since then. His power may also tick up in the summer when the ball carries more.
The last hitter I want to highlight is Josh Naylor. The Cleveland Guardians first baseman slashed .087/.160/.217 with one home run and one RBI in the past six games. Despite his recent skid, Naylor had been one of the better hitters in the league. His batting average has now dropped to .235, but his expected stats suggest positive regression.
Naylor has an xBA of .278, so he should be turning things around sooner than later. The 26-year-old also has a 15.6% strikeout, demonstrating his patient eye and above-average contact skills. His recent skid opens up a buy-low window for the Guardians slugger. I suggest snatching him up before he starts heating up again.
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