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RocketSammael t1_jc6t9v7 wrote

Reply to comment by OneBar1905 in 21 year old Nicaraguan pitcher Duque Hebbert signed by Detroit Tigers immediately after game in which he struck out a trio of MLB stars. by carnifex2005

Juan Soto is an amazing talent, but you can't hit .240 for a season and claim you're the best hitter.

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TimRoxSox t1_jc6wwe4 wrote

Sure you can. On-base rate and slugging are so much more important to hitting, based on expected runs scored, and Soto is an on-base juggernaut. Players are purposefully swinging harder and putting up lower averages to increase their SLG, and there's a reason the whole league is doing this now. I have no doubt Soto could hit for a super high average if he wanted -- he was third in average in MLB in 2021, which is proof he has that ability.

I think Alvarez is a better hitter, but Soto is also young as hell. I think Soto has one peak season ahead of him that will blow us all away.

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RocketSammael t1_jc7ganx wrote

Even using your metrics, I fail to see how Soto is "the best hitter in the game."

He's only played three full seasons (2019, 2021, 2022) and in those seasons he ranked #22, #16, and #46 in slugging percentage, respectively. On-base percentage, which is obviously Soto's biggest skill and admittedly one in which he is a beast, he ranked #7, #1, and #6. OPS - #10, #3, #15

So again I'll say - Soto is an unbelievable talent, but he is not the best hitter in the MLB. He may get there one day, but he cannot currently make stake to that claim. He's got to actually produce and show that he's consistently the best year over year, and he hasn't done that.

The stats do not back up your claims.

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TimRoxSox t1_jc7nc7v wrote

But the combination of everything is what makes the hitter. In 2020, he was MLB's best hitter with a wRC+ of 202. He was MLB's 3rd-best hitter in 2021. In a huge down year, he was MLB's 10th-best hitter (Statcast data had him as the 4th-best). If a hitter is 1st, 3rd, and 10th in MLB over three seasons, it's totally fair for people to say he's the best. I wouldn't, but he's among the best, at the very least. He's not gonna run a BABIP of nearly 100 points below his career numbers again.

The biggest issue with your original comment is that you brought up AVG, which hardly describes how good a hitter is. I always use this example -- would you rather have Skip Schumaker's .303 AVG in 2009 or Prince Fielder's .299? Going by AVG, you would think Schumaker was the better hitter, but Fielder was absurdly more valuable with the bat. Just a preposterous gap in their production.

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OneBar1905 t1_jc7lo1o wrote

The argument for Soto is mostly one about his otherworldly control of the zone - something that 24 year old players usually struggle with. It’s not clear cut and others have as strong of an argument, but this is on a post about an unsigned pitcher striking Soto out, and in terms of zone control Soto is the best there is.

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ElPlatanoDelBronx t1_jc7ib0p wrote

He literally just said Alvarez is a better hitter.

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RocketSammael t1_jc7iiwp wrote

Thanks for pointing out the contradictory nature of his post. He did lead with "sure you can" in reference to claiming Juan Soto is the best hitter in the game, but we'll just ignore that part.

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OneBar1905 t1_jc6wss4 wrote

Batting average is an incredibly flawed metric for evaluating the productiveness of a hitter. Soto’s has a career .424 OBP which allows him to have a career 153 wrc+, meaning he’s worth 53% more than the average hitter.

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probablygolfer t1_jc7f7wh wrote

There are a bunch of sabermetric fans that want to disagree because they HATE BA but you're right. Even his OPS wasn't anything special last year at .850 and that's with his walks boosting the hell out of it. No one is saying he probably doesn't have the best eye at the plate, but best hitter? No way. Not unless he you know, starts hitting better.

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