The New York Mets starting lineup will be put to the test in their first road trip of the 2023 regular season. He loves getting a fastball in the zone to drive. Marcell Ozuna, Atlanta 3. Hitters swung and missed those out-of-zone sliders 34% of the time. Staff flamethrower: Evan Justicecan touch 97-98 mph. Fernando Tatis Jr. was set to play his first game for San Diego after missing the 2022 season because of an injury and drug suspension. Matt Olson has hit the most HR (22) against left-handed pitchers by a left-handed hitter during 1 season in MLB history. an RBI-single through the left side. Butler hit .500 (17-for-34) on balls on the inner third of the strike zone. The Dodgers performance against lefties has still lagged behind their overall production. He's a really useful bat against southpaws (.357 BA, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 1.150 OPS in 28 AB). Baseball America rated LAs prospect group third overall in the sports, behind the Orioles and D-backs. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. Lefties dont have to worry nearly as much about Williams slider, but Williams will work in and out against them more often and mixes his pitches, adding in a changeup. How He Does It: A graduate transfer from Furman, Bertrand has worked seven or more innings in eight of his 13 starts and has three complete games. How Do You Attack Him? The Rockies recorded three 98 mph pitches from righty Ryan Feltner, who threw two scoreless innings against the Royals. His plate skills against southpaws are solid too (15% bb%, 69% ct%, 0.58 Eye). It happens all of the time. Feltner, 26, debuted in 2021 -- living at the top of the strike zone, but at times hitters took advantage. You might think, given both the premise of this article and the pitcher-friendly nature of Oracle Park, that this is going to be an inverse-Castellanos situation, but thats not it; Longoria has actually hit a little better at home this year. On the pitching side, we have a nice mix of young arms with upside and less-exciting veterans in favorable spots, providing you with a variety of options to meet all of your streaming needs. Baseball HQ is intended for entertainment purposes only. He also is quite comfortable catching up to fastballs up in the zone. Pujols with the Dodgers is hitting .313/.350/.625, a 155 wRC+ with nine home runs against southpaws, only one behind Max Muncy for the team lead. Before he needed Tommy John surgery, Jaden Hill was touching 98 mph. And most of alla tradition of winning. Even that one home run on the road wasnt crushed, really. Irvin usually gets ahead early in the count. Access it all with asubscriptionto BaseballHQ.com. Soler has never been a highly regarded defender, but when he's wearing the glove this year, it has particularly not gone well. Or another guy good against righties (and Hays also happens to be good against lefties)? Really, go back and look at that first chart, Duvall hit .178 with 6 homers against lefties last season. He threw ball four with his breaking balls only four times. Brenton is a lifelong sports fan who resides in Ontario, Canada. Staff flamethrower: Madden can touch 98-99 mph and hes been known to do so deep into his outings. Even if these aren't likely predictive of the rest of the season, some of them may have a sliver of truth, and they're wild to look at right now nonetheless. He's had a few blowup outings, and his inflated 5.12 ERA can at least partly be blamed both on poor control (4.9 BB/9) as well as issues keeping the ball in the park. Acquiring Trea Turner at the trade deadline helped in many ways, but especially so against southpaws. Tempt him with sliders down and away out of the zone and pitchers can find some successof the 110 pitches thrown well out of the zone down and away he swung and missed at 20% of them. suggests MLBs new shift rules wont boost lefty hitters all that radically. He picked up hits on 50 of those fastballs (another 10%). Thats easier said than done, and its hard to simply look for a slider in pitcher counts when Sublette also has a mid-90s fastball. Any balanced bench bat or a sagnof guy is good for days Duvall faces a lefty. RotoGrinders.com is the home of the daily fantasy sports community. Tried to keep it simple so just somebody good against lefties. (Probably, anyway. Here are the hitters who have posted the widest LH-RH batting eye ratio splits: Let's take a closer look at some bats who own significant lefty-righty production and batting eye splits. Saturday's bout against Cleveland, which has a bottom-five offense versus lefties this season, will be Detmer's most favorable matchup yet. In wins over Mercyhurst, Pitt-Johnstown and Glenville State, Taylor went 11-for-16 (.688) with a .722 on base percentage. The left-handed hitter can play all three outfield positions but fits best in the corner spots. That production wasn't a fluke either; reference his .203 ISO vs. LHers. (This parks a joke, he once said.) All Win Expectancy, Leverage Index, Run Expectancy, and Fans Scouting Report data licenced from TangoTiger.com. When the injured Adalberto Mondesi returns to play shortstop, it might free up Nicky Lopez to move back to second and push Whit Merrifield back to right, though that would leave the defensively-limited O'Hearn without a home. Throw a slider down and away and he can yank it with power, but throw a fastball down and away and hell just as happily drive the ball to the opposite field. With two strikes against a righthanded hitter, its nearly a flip of the coin on whether youre going to see the fastball or the slider, so its not easy to protect against both. He hasnt seen exceptional velocity this year (only 34 pitches above 93 mph this year and none above 94). Muncy has 42 more plate appearances against lefties than Pujols. With the ability to select which games a player starts; we can take two unheralded guys (say Adam Duvall and Austin Hays) to build an all-star hitter (maybe Aaron Judge). Copyright 2023. Our content, rankings, member blogs, promotions and forum discussion all cater to the players that like to create a new fantasy team every day of the week. Let's go out on a limb and say he will not continue to do this against lefties all year, though of course he's long been better against southpaws over the years. He was tattooed by the Cardinals for seven runs in just 1 1/3 innings his last time out, and he has a 6.10 road ERA this season. That all makes sense, and it's good strategy. Catchers should not put down one finger when Kavadas is hitting. We are simply here to provide information about sports betting for entertainment purposes. Since joining the Cardinals, Happ has been nominally better with a 4.30 ERA in six starts, with six home runs allowed and a 5.38 FIP. So, we did not build Aaron Judge like we really were hoping, but considering how atrocious Duvall has been against lefties there has to be some advantage right? Vs. LHP: .042/.042/.083 -- .125 OPS -- 0 HRVs. How Do You Attack Him? But if you miss your spot out of the zone, he will most likely take it (he has good strike-zone awareness), and if you miss your spot by coming further in, hell crush it. His career OPS against lefties is .891 and his slash line in that span is a solid .272/.367/.523. Right Handed Pitchers LEGEND Stats in blue are the best hitting teams are the best and between the 75th and 100th percentile. Outfield -- Jake Meyers (R), 3%, Houston Astros vs. Seattle Mariners (RHP Logan Gilbert): Meyers got the call after hitting .343/.408/.598 with 16 homers and 10 steals in 68 games at Triple-A. It sounds so easy! LA will face two southpaw starters in final three games in St. Louis. Sublette nibbles around the edges of the zone a lot, but his stuff can get misses and weak contact in the zone, so its not easy to be patient enough to draw a walk. Or, at least, it will be once Tommy La Stella gets untracked. On the season, Dodgers non-pitchers have a 115 wRC+ against right-handers, second in the majors behind only Houston. The main difference in the Dodgers improvement against lefty starters has been power, with 12 home runs off the starter in the last five such games. Copyright 2007 -2023 Razzball LLC. (All stats current entering Monday nights games.). This strategy can certainly work, but to your point it should be more of a plan B or in season strategy. He is docked two points for each hit, four points for each earned run allowed, two points for each unearned run allowed, and one point for each walk. Outfield -- Joc Pederson (L), 50%, Atlanta Braves at Baltimore Orioles (RHP Matt Harvey): The Braves are using Pederson in a strict platoon, which means he'll be in the lineup on Saturday against Harvey. Now, again, we're talking about 102 plate appearances, total, which would be enough to hand-wave away except for the fact that Soler had an OPS 203 points higher as a DH in 2020, and 202 points higher in 2019 as a DH than he did in right, and 231 points higher in 2018, and really it's just been like this for his entire American League career -- .914 OPS as a DH, .719 as an outfielder -- and since the glove is poor anyway, maybe the Royals might just consider letting him be a bat-only player full-time? It would be nearly impossible to capitalize on all the right matchups at the right time. So here's the real question, then: Should we be excited about what he's doing against lefties? His fastball and changeup (which he uses almost exclusively against righthanded hitters) are both better at generating weak contact than strikeouts. In early NFBC ADP we have Adam Duvall coming off the board around pick 225 and Austin Hays a few slots earlier in the 215 range. He takes great pride in his success and loves nothing more than to share that success for the benefit of everyone involved. Coming into the season you knew two things about the Cleveland roster: One, that its pitching was likely to be very good. Nearly half the time, the pitch ends up outside of the strike zone, but in 2021 hitters swung against those out-of-zone sliders 43% of the time. WebThe most surprising batting splits of 2021 Nick Castellanos, OF, Reds. He only swung and missed at 27 fastballs (5%). How Do You Attack Him? (Our thanks to @DaveyBerris for this one.). Andrew Vaughn (LF/1B, CHW) is another young hitter that shows glimpses of his high ceiling in certain situations. Web9/1/2021 Hello, and welcome back to Hitter List, where every week during the regular season Ill be sharing updated rankings for the top 150 hitters in baseball. 25 players are tied for the best career batting average against left-handed pitchers, with an average of 1.000. Another look at where the Dodgers farm system ranks among MLB teams. In the last 20 starts, the Dodgers have seven multi-homer games, contributing to a 5.51 ERA for southpaw starters against them during that time. How He Does It: Sublette is an effective power reliever who will likely work extended innings in one of the first two super regional games. PT TOMORROW: NL Central - Where does Turang find PT in MIL? Revisiting the Tigers 2022 MLB draft class after the conclusion of the minor league season. This has really been part of a lineup-wide issue for the Braves, who have had baseball's second-worst line against lefties so far this year. WebTeam Batting vs. Meanwhile, Gallen has a sad 6.55 ERA over his last seven starts. Required fields are marked *. Despite the struggles and low BABIP, Conforto still posted a .348 OBP and .792 OPS against right-handed pitching. WebRamon Laureano (CF, OAK) is one of the best bats in the game against lefties: .365 BA, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 1.056 OPS in 63 AB. Tatis was in the lineup Tuesday as the designated hitter and batting second in an exhibition against San Francisco. Davis, FACTS/FLUKES: Machado, Gallen, McMahon, Lauer, Longoria, FACTS/FLUKES: Jansen, J. Bez, S. Gray, Duvall, Vzquez, BATTERS: Hitters to track in the spring, 2023, STARTERS: SP to track in the spring, 2023, RELIEVERS: Things to watch during Spring Training, RELIEVERS: NFBC ADPs take control of your draft, ROTISSERIE: Quantifying Risk - Building Your Risk Budget, ROTISSERIE: Quantifying RiskThe cost to roster a player, HEAD-TO-HEAD: A Review of the 2023 Hitter Pools, HEAD-TO-HEAD: Identifying Consistent SP Targets for 2023, HEAD-TO-HEAD: Batter consistency check-up, ALTERNATIVE: 2023 Strat-O-Matic Ratings Guide - Pitchers, ALTERNATIVE: 2023 Strat-O-Matic Ratings Guide - Hitters, ALTERNATIVE: Scoresheet 2023 Defensive Range and Eligibility Changes, NFBC: Exploring the benefits of structured drafting, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. His value plummets against southpaws (.208 BA, .720 OPS, 0.50 Eye in 24 AB). How They Do It: When Leiter commands his fastball, he presents a nearly impossible challenge thanks to the pitchs elite movement. Learn how your comment data is processed. Commentary. Jared Walsh (1B/RF, LAA) has blossomed in a full-time role in the LAA lineup. Dont worry about Nikhazy going in and out nearly as much as him going up and down. 1 pitcher? All three are switch-hitters, and none had his best 2020 against right-handed pitching: Grandal: .218/.338/.406 WebThe 28-year-old switch hitter is known less for his offense and more for his defense, having won the American League Gold Glove at second base just two years ago. Thats roughly in line with their performance against southpaws the last three seasons, when they finished eighth in the majors in wRC+ each year. But with two strikes, his slider can be filthy, and that makes his fastball play better as well. Left-handed starters had a 3.14 ERA against the Dodgers, but lefty relievers struggled to the tune of a 5.00 ERA against LA. Franklin does an excellent job of catching up to velocity (.304/.500/.502 against fastballs 93-plus mph), and he is extremely dangerous against pitchers trying to work on the inside edge of the strike zone. Duvall has been known to be a masher of right-handed pitching across his career with 115 of his 151 career long-balls coming off those poor righties with his splits being even more severe in 2021. Hitters hit .357/.364/.929 against Maddens fastballs in the upper third of the strike zone. That was fine with Scherzer. Staff flamethrower: Leiter and Rocker have both touched 98-99 mph this year. Overall, there is not nearly the advantage that we first anticipated could exist. Only Mike Brosseau and Luis Urias in 2022 had numbers better than Voit's worst season versus southpaws between 2019-2021; those stats were only slightly better. A pitcher who can throw breaking balls for strikes and out of the zone will have much more success. Cora has historically preferred to alternate lefties and right-handed hitters, especially near the top of the lineup. Among the 498 fastballs hes seen, he took 41% of them (205) for a ball. Call 1-800-GAMBLER. However, making it a core part of your strategy without spending hours matching up the statistics to how our fantasy game rolls is probably not the wisest decision. I intentionally platooned one year a while back in a daily. Nearly half the time, the pitch ends up outside of the strike zone, but in 2021 hitters swung against those out-of-zone sliders 43% of the time. He's wasted little time getting back into the swing of things, going 3-for-3 with a homer in his third start back. The catch is that there arent generally a lot of those guys to start the season. Thats not entirely due to the fact that Great American Ball Park is baseballs number one home run field, but it seems likely its not totally unrelated, either. Ranking the best prospects in the Detroit Tigers farm system, projecting their 2026 lineup, rotation and more. Ive been working That line against lefties comes out to "one hit, a double, and no walks in 24 plate appearances," which is almost inconceivable, really. He looks like an upper-tier bat against RHers: .964 OPS, 0.50 Eye in 181 AB. Click on the button below to get free picks delivered to your email daily Tells us how above or below an offense is over league average when external factors (venue, for instance) are taken into consideration. WebVisit ESPN to view the Miami Marlins team splits for the 2022 season. Teel hit .156/.229/.188 against breaking balls from lefties. Hitter ratings account for the opposing starting pitcher's past history (three years' worth as well as past 21 days) as well as ballpark factors. The concept has been around for years and hinges on some real-world strategy in the major leagues. Jones has shown no issues in catching up to velocity. How the weather should factor in your fantasy baseball lineup decisions, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Johnston throws both pitches a nearly equal amount and he actually throws his sliders for strikes a little more often than his fastball. Keegan hits balls in the zone. He hit .438/.579/.938 on fastballs. He hit .333 against those fastballs, but with Vanderbilt teeming with pitchers who can light up a Trackman, maybe Vanderbilt can try to challenge him and find out how well he handles 95-plus velocity up in the zone. Let's take an updated look at the batters who have posted the most significant lefty/righty production and batting eye splits so far in 2021. How He Does It: When a lefty has a fastball that can get swings and misses up in the strike zone and an above-average changeup and curveball, its generally going to be a tough day for hitters. I guess the opener strategy has one positiveit gives some players sp eligibility. : Dont give him fastballs to hit. 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