Positive Phillies’ Firepower
By Tal Venada
Even though he averaged .294 at Lehigh Valley, Aaron Altherr appears to be a .280 hitter, which is enough to claim an outfield spot for ’18. Of course, everything will begin anew in April, and the league will find other ways to challenge him. But producing every summer is not a given as Cameron Rupp has found out. Ergo, no guarantees.
Altherr’s stats:
- Overall: 77 Gms., 265 AB, .279, 13 HR, 43 RBI and an .864 OPS.
- Projection for 162 games: 25 HR and 81 RBI.
According to Fangraphs, low walk rates are only acceptable for players with exceptional power numbers. Stats are through July 8.
Plate Discipline:
- Altherr in MLB: K% at 26.2% and BB% at 8.2%
- Williams at Triple-A: K% at 29.4% and BB% at 5.2%
| Rating | K% | BB% |
|---|---|---|
| Excellent | 10.0% | 15.0% |
| Great | 12.5% | 12.5% |
| Above Average | 16.0% | 10.0% |
| Average | 20.0% | 8.0% |
| Below Average | 22.0% | 7.0% |
| Poor | 25.0% | 5.5% |
| Awful | 27.5% | 4.0% |
Promoted recently from Lehigh Valley, Nick Williams is here due to an injury, not performance. Yes, he batted .350 in his last six contests at Triple-A with six free passes and eight punch outs, but he only earned a brief look from the higher-ups. However, the league already knows he strikes out too much and walks too little. But motivation-wise, Klentak understands Williams won’t like returning to the IronPigs, will try to avoid it, will benefit from better coaching in Philly, and will do everything he can to keep earning a big league salary, which is considerably more than the minors.