Bohm Wasn’t Built in a Day

Alec Bohm (PHI): 2-4, 2 HR, 2 R, 6 RBI.

This isn’t the sort of line (2-4, 2 HR, 2 R, 6 RBI) we’ve come to expect from Bohm having hit just 47 dingers in 476 games. But you have to admit he’s got a pretty swing when he gets hold of one. I’m not sure the same can be said about these City Connect uniforms though. Anyways, his first three-run dinger came on a 97 mph heater from Garrett Crochet at the top of the zone that he smacked the other way to right. It wasn’t a huge home run in either distance (353 ft) or EV (98 mph), but given the location of the pitch, it was an impressive shot. He went yard again off Crochet in the third, belting a 3-2 cutter near the bottom of the zone 400 feet to left-center (103.8 EV).

At 6’5″, it always seemed to me, and many, many others, that Bohm had more pop in his bat than he let on. Sure enough, that was his scouting report when the Phillies drafted him third overall out of Wichita State five years ago. However, he hasn’t really lived up to that yet, with just one season with a .800 OPS, and that was back in 2020. Now in year five, it kind of feels like now or never. Can he show more power, or is he destined to be a sort of D.J. LeMahieu type of hitter? By that, I mean lots of contact but with an underwhelming batted ball profile in terms of barrels.

Speaking of barrels, Bohm’s barrel rate for the season sits at 3.9%, which would be the lowest mark of his career. But it’s still fairly early, so there’s a good bit of noise in the sample for batted balls. A potentially interesting thing is that he’s walking a bit more at 14.3% and his chase rate is down nearly ten points relative to last year at 22.4%. Perhaps a more selective approach might allow him to tap into some more power. Or maybe this is all nothing, just a mirage. Who knows. Still, I just get the sense that we haven’t seen his final form yet, and I’m very interested to see what his line looks like at the end of the year.

Let’s see how the other hitters did Friday:

Travis d’Arnaud (ATL): 3-4, 3 HR, 3 R, 6 RBI.

The former Met pushed his OPS from .561 OPS to .819 in one night. d’Arnaud’s first home run of the year, a 429-foot, solo shot to left off Andrew Heaney in the second, broke a 1-1 tie. He torched Heaney again in the fifth, blasting his first pitch curveball into the second deck in left (440 feet, 107.1 EV). His grand slam came in the sixth against lefty reliever Jacob Latz. It was his first multi-home run game since September 2nd last season against the Marlins. He also hit three home runs in a game back on July 15th, 2019 while playing against the Yankees.

Blaze Alexander (ARI): 3-5, 2 2B, HR, 2 R, 5 RBI, BB.

The D-Backs were crushing the Giants 11-1 in the eighth when their rookie shortstop redirected a slider from reliever Nick Avila, sending it 342 feet the other way to right for his first career grand slam. Selected by the D-Backs in the 11th-round pick back in 2018, Alexander has been filling in for the injured Geraldo Perdomo. Last year, Alexander hit .291 with a .393 wOBA with eight home runs and two stolen bases across 73 games with Triple-A Reno.

Trevor Larnach (MIN): 2-3, HR, R, 2 RBI.

After starting the season on the injured list, Larnach returned this past Tuesday. His first home run of the season came on a 0-2 fastball from Jack Flaherty, which he blasted 414 feet to right (106.9 EV). Larnach hit just .213 last year across 58 games with a .313 wOBA and eight home runs. He’s always shown good pop in the minors but should be in a platoon role that will limit his opportunities.

Francisco Lindor (NYM): 2-5, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, SB.

With the game tied 4-4 in the seventh, Lindor drilled a middle-middle slider from Daniel Hudson into the seats in right (395 feet, 104.2 EV) giving the Mets a 4-2 lead they never relinquished. The two hits brought his average up to .167. It’s not all bad, though, as his K rate of 10.6% is a career-low. That’s something, right?

Ceddanne Rafaela (BOS): 1-4, HR, R, 2 RBI, SB.

With the bases empty in the sixth, the righty-hitting outfielder parked a hanging slider from Roansy Contreras 407 feet to left (101.6 EV), giving Boston a 6-0 lead. He’s off to a rough start hitting .167 with a .224 wOBA through 21 games. He’s shown a rough-looking plate approach with a chase rate in the bottom sixth percentile and a contact % in the bottom 15th percentile. However, Rafaela should remain a fixture in Boston’s lineup thanks to his glove and he showed SB upside last year with 36 stolen bases across 108 games in the minors.

Wilyer Abreu and Rob Refsnyder, who was activated after Tyler O’Neill hit the IL with a concussion, also went yard for Boston.

Kerry Carpenter (DET): 4-4, 2B, R, 2 RBI.

With flurries falling at Target Field, Carpenter belted a double to right off Joe Ryan in his first at-bat. He also broke a 2-2 tie with a lucky single on an excuse-me check swing in the second. The lefty’s first four-hit game of his career has him hitting .328 with a .426 wOBA.

Elly De La Cruz (CIN): 2-4, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, 3 SB.

He’s just silly. I don’t what else to say. And I, of course, mean that in a good way. The home run came on a low and away 95 mph heater from reliever José Cisnero. He didn’t have his A-swing on it, and yet he still crushed it 354 feet the other way to left (104.3 EV). He’s striking out a bit more than you’d like at 32.5% but he’s also hitting .290 with a .428 wOBA while rocking a 96th percentile 18.2% barrel rate. And, oh yeah, his ten steals lead everybody. Not bad.

Tyler Freeman (CLE): 2-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI.

His third home run of the season was hit with an EV of 89.5, which has to be one of the lowest EVs I’ve seen and was the definition of a wall-scraper into the right-field corner. But they all count, and, hey, he’s got two more than the other Freeman. The 24-year-old lefty doesn’t have a ton of pop, but he hit .319 with ten steals in 24 games with Triple-A Akron last year, so he could be worth a look-see for deep leagues.

Adley Rutschman (BAL): 3-5, HR, R, 4 RBI.

Adley’s first career grand slam came courtesy of a 92 mph meatball from former closer Will Smith. The switch-hitting phenom is hitting .297 with a .759 OPS, good for seventh among qualified catchers. So far, he’s shown a more aggressive approach at the plate with his swing rate having jumped from 41% to 46.6%.

 

Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter/X)