A few weeks ago, I listened to a podcast show and in the show, a guest indicated that a team made a great decision to ink a deal with an infielder because that player had a high BB/K ratio in 2022. After listening to the show, I was thinking about the leaders for the BB/K ratio last season.
To understand a little bit, I went to check on the MLB website.
Last season, 6 players each finished the season with a walk to strikeout rate over 1. Juan Soto drew 135 walks in 2022 and he was struck out only 96 times. Soto’s BB/K ratio was 1.406 last year. From 2020 to 2022, he finished each season with a BB/K rate over 1.400.
Additionally, Yandy Diaz drew 78 walks last season and he was struck out only 60 times in 137 games. Diaz’s BB/K rate was 1.300 in 2022. In the shortened 2020 season, his BB/K rate was over 1.300 as well. Moreover, in 2022, Luis Arraez was selected to the All-Star for the first time in his career. He finished the 2022 season with a 1.163 BB/K ratio. Arraez drew 50 walks and was struck out 43 times last year.
Meanwhile, Alex Bregman posted a 1.130 BB/K ratio last season. It’s the third time that he finished a season with a BB/K rate over 1. Bregman got 87 walks and was struck out 77 times in 155 games last season. Moreover, Alejandro Kirk became an All-Star last year. He got 63 walks and was struck out 58 times in 139 games. Kirk’s BB/K rate increased from .864 to 1.086. Furthermore, Steven Kwan had a good rookie season, hitting .298/.373/.400 in 147 games. He drew 62 walks and was struck out only 60 times.
In the meantime, DJ LeMahieu owned a .944 BB/K rate last season, which is his career-high.
Looking back at the walk to strikeout ratio in 2022, I was also wondering whether these players did the same in the spring training. I checked the BB/K rate in the 2022 spring training. Looking at the chart, Juan Soto’s BB/K rate was 2.000 in the 2022 spring training and Luis Arraez posted a 1.667 BB/K. Well, the sample size is small, but, in the spring training, these 2 players already showed strong plate discipline.
The 2023 spring training games will begin very soon. Baseball fans must be really excited to see that baseball is back. Spring training games are important for players to get ready for the regular season. It’s good to see players hit very well or crush home runs in spring training games. However, there are other things worth watching during spring training games. For me, taking a look at the BB/K rate isn’t a bad idea. The sample size might be small, but strong plate discipline is quite important. It will be interesting to see whether Juan Soto and Luis Arraez will do the same in the spring training games this year. Perhaps, we will see some players who were struck out many times last season show strong plate discipline in the 2023 spring training games.
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