There has been a lot of discussion over the past few seasons about “launch angle” and the way baseball has gone with the approach of hitting over defensive shifts and strikeouts are no big deal.
Maybe the pendulum is starting to switch.
Everyone’s friends, the Houston Astros might be changing the narrative. The Astros lead the major leagues in runs scored, yet have struck out the fewest times of any team. Toronto, who has scored the third most runs, have whiffed the next fewest.
While it is true the other teams in the top five rank more toward the middle of the pack in striking out (Dodgers-19th, Red Sox-14th, White Sox-13th), of the teams that fan the most, only Tampa Bay, whose hitters have struck out more than anyone, score more than the sports average (4.48 runs/game).
The next best team is Atlanta, who have scored the 7th most runs.
Let’s compare the Astros and Blue Jays offenses to the hometown team, the Cleveland Indians.
The Astros have six hitters who get regular at bats with on base percentages of over .350, and four players have more than 35 walks. As we just saw when the swept the Tribe in a four game series here, when their hitters get to two strikes, they have a more old school approach, looking to put the ball in play.
They also have seven batters with slugging averages over .450.
Toronto isn’t a team that walks a lot, with only Vladimir Guerrero Jr. having an on base percentage over .350, although Bo Bichette and Marcus Simien are close. They do have five hitters with slugging percentages over .450.
As for the Tribe, they have only one hitter with an OBP over .350, and that’s Bradley Zimmer, which is quite shocking, but he only has slightly over 100 plate appearances. Among players with over 200 PA’s, there is no one. Jose Ramirez’ .347 figure leads the team, with Franmil Reyes (who actually has just 197 times at the dish) next at .325.
As for slugging percentage, the Indians have just three players over .450: Jose Ramirez (.518), Reyes (.597), and Harold Ramirez (.451).
We know we are stating the obvious, but the Indians simply need more good hitters. To have an offense like Houston or Toronto, they need really three good hitters. More to the point, they need guys who don’t make outs.
The next best offenses in the AL, the White Sox and Red Sox breakdown as follows–Chicago has four solid on base hitters (over .350 OBP), but only two sluggers, although Tim Anderson’s slugging percentage is .447.
Boston has just two on base guys, but five sluggers, including Christian Arroyo, who Cleveland let go last season.
Cesar Hernandez and Amed Rosario have been okay, although the latter seems to be getting a lot of love from the baseball media lately. Hernandez has a .300 on base percentage, and although Rosario has good speed, and does hit the ball the other way, his OBP is just .307 because he doesn’t walk, which was his problem with the Mets.
Hernandez has had good years of getting on base, and is tied for the team lead in walks with Ramirez at 35. As a team, the Indians rank 13th in taking walks, and that needs to improve greatly for the team to score more often.
We are a huge believer in strike zone judgment being a big factor as to whether or not hitters have a solid long range future. That doesn’t bode well for the Cleveland lineup going forward. It’s also one of the reasons we would like to see more of Jordan Luplow.
Despite being on the IL since the end of May, and having only 121 plate appearances, he still ranks third on the team in walks with 21. It’s a skill this team needs.
We aren’t saying it’s the only way to improve the offense, but it’s a start in the right direction. Walking is good, the Tribe should do more of it.
Cleveland Sports Perspective 