So Justin Smoak, remember him? Of course you do. Everyone loved him forever and he ended up being a huge disappointment. Well, now it's time to talk about him, because he's been playing really well lately, batting .283 with eight home runs and 25 RBIs on the year so far. He continued that on Monday night, going 2-3, 1 HR, 2 R, 2 RBI. So what's going on with Smoak? Well, there's actually some reason to be optimistic. Smoak's always had good power, and so far this year, that's still been there. His exit velocity, his launch angles, and his hard hit rate are all very good right now. What's different is his plate discipline. His strikeout rate has gone way down, as has his whiff rate, and that's what's interesting. He's still chasing balls, actually a bit more than last year, but he's whiffing and striking out less. It's important to remember that this is Justin Smoak, and disappointment is very possible, but what he's doing so far is interesting, and as long as he's getting playing time, this could keep up. I'm interested, and if you're in a deep league, he's worth a speculative add.
Let's take a look at some of the other performances from Monday night:
hitters gonna hit?
Aces gonna Ace. Shooters gonna shoot. Hitters gonna hit.
A hitman will hit, man.
A beasts gonna beast. Studs will stud. In studs we trust. You guys should hire me.