MLB Players Power Rankings: Top 10 Hitters in August 2019
Who was the best MLB hitter during the month of August? Find out in this latest edition of MLB Players Power Rankings for hitters.
In this edition of “MLB Players Power Rankings,” we had a difficult time assessing who the top-10 hitters in baseball were. Especially considering how many players that are contributing to their team’s success that didn’t make the list.
We stuck to our guns, however, and determined that the following hitters were by far the best in baseball during the month of August. To make our determinations, as we typically do, we ranked hitters based on their individual advanced stats (SLG, wOBA, wRC+, and fWAR). Scores are then totaled and sorted.
With that being said, here are you 10-6 ranked hitters in MLB during August.
10. Gio Urshela, New York Yankees
Here are his August 2019 stats: 0.663 SLG | 0.445 wOBA | 181 wRC+ | 1.3 fWAR
9. Yuli Gurriel, Houston Astros
Here are his August 2019 stats: 0.677 SLG | 0.443 wOBA | 186 wRC+ | 1.4 fWAR
8. Nicholas Castellanos, Chicago Cubs
Here are his August 2019 stats: 0.713 SLG | 0.446 wOBA | 177 wRC+ | 1.4 fWAR
7. Carlos Santana, Cleveland Indians
Here are his August 2019 stats: 0.650 SLG | 0.459 wOBA | 188 wRC+ | 1.6 fWAR
6. Juan Soto, Washington Nationals
Here are his August 2019 stats: 0.717 SLG | 0.455 wOBA | 181 wRC+ | 1.5 fWAR
MLB Players Power Rankings (5): Aristides Aquino, Cincinnati Reds
August Stats: 0.767 SLG | 0.459 wOBA | 184 wRC+ | 1.3 fWAR
Aristides Aquino has earned the nickname “Punisher” for his performance since being called up from the minors. In just 30 games this season, Aquino already has 14 home runs and 33 RBI.
If not for another rookie’s record-setting performance this year in Pete Alonso, Aquino would most definitely be a front-runner for the NL Rookie of the Year award.
So, how did Aquino turn to many heads in just a single month worth of games?
He earns a spot in the top five hitters in August by falling just short of the rookie home run record for a single month. Ahead of him are Aaron Judge and Mark McGwire, each with 15 home runs, and Rudy York who in 1937 hit 17 homers in a single month as a rookie. Aquino also tied Greg Vaughn and Frank Robinson for the most home runs in a single month for a Cincinnati Reds player.
Looking back on this season, the Reds are probably wondering what could’ve been had they called Aquino up sooner. Despite having a better run differential than the Milwaukee Brewers, the Brew Crew are in playoff contention whereas the Reds are not.
Could Aquino have been the difference? We’ll never know. The future sure is bright for Cincinnati though.
MLB Players Power Rankings (4): Kyle Seager, Seattle Mariners
August Stats: 0.699 SLG | 0.452 wOBA | 192 wRC+ | 1.9 fWAR
Kyle Seager missed a good chunk of the early part of the 2019 MLB season due to a left third-digit extensor hood tear — whatever that is. Upon returning, to start things were slow going for the veteran third baseman.
The low-point coming in his 46th game of the season where he was only slashing .186 / .260 / .331 with just six home runs and 18 RBI. Like the Seattle Mariners’ season, things were down in the dumps for Seager.
Unlike his team, however, things started to take a turn for the better after that. Over the next 35 games, Seager started to look like a better version of his old self. He doubled his home run total from the first 46 games and drove in 32 more RBIs while slashing an incredible .339 / .421 / .717.
This left many wondering if the M’s had made a mistake in not attempting to move the aging veteran and his remaining $52M in salary. Surely he could’ve made a difference in a playoff-contending team in need of an offensive threat with a good glove.
For now, fans get to hope that Kyle Seager can continue this level of play as the team works to rebuild. You need something to look forward to in Seattle, right?
MLB Players Power Rankings (3): Anthony Rendon, Washington Nationals
August Stats: 0.712 SLG | 0.467 wOBA | 189 wRC+ | 1.9 fWAR
Anthony Rendon is quietly having one of the best seasons of any player in the National League. If not for the tremendous start Cody Bellinger and Christian Yelich, we’d most certainly be talking about Rendon as a more serious NL MVP contender this season.
In fact, in the second half of the season, not only has Rendon been better than Yelich and Bellinger, he’s been better than Mike Trout and all of MLB too. According to FanGraphs, Anthony Rendon has the highest fWAR (3.1) in MLB. Yelich and Bellinger have a 1.8 and 1.6 fWAR respectively.
Where Rendon trails his the afore mention competition is in his power hitting. Both Yelich and Bellinger each have 40+ home runs whereas Rendon only has 31.
During the month of August, Rendon really exhibited why he’s such an elite player. The Washington Nationals hold a comfortable 4.5 game lead for the Wild Card and trail the Atlanta Braves by just 5.0 games in the NL East.
Sure, you can’t credit Rendon will all the success of the Nats, but it’s undeniable that he’s played a major part in the team’s success over the second half of the season.
MLB Players Power Rankings (2): J.D. Martinez, Boston Red Sox
August Stats: 0.768 SLG | 0.495 wOBA | 212 wRC+ | 1.7 fWAR
J.D. Martinez and the Boston Red Sox offense are finally clicking on all cylinders, leaving the competition hoping that the defending champs don’t go on a run that sees them in the postseason this year.
Martinez’s offensive production spells good news for the Red Sox moving forward. It’s a foregone conclusion that Martinez won’t exercise his opt-out clause at the end of this season, so it’s best that the team has an elite hitter on their team over the next couple of years.
Martinez has been dealing with a back issue this season, which sidelined him for a number of games but never quite knocked him out altogether. Given how good he was in August, you’d have to think that Martinez is feeling like himself again.
With the Red Sox trailing the Cleveland Indians and the Tampa Bay Rays by 5.5 games (five in the loss column) for the Wild Card, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that Boston fights for a playoff berth. To stand a real chance and slug there way into a second consecutive World Series title, Martinez will have to keep this level of production going.
Can he do it?
MLB Players Power Rankings (1): Alex Bregman, Houston Astros
August Stats: 0.747 SLG | 0.500 wOBA | 224 wRC+ | 2.2 fWAR
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What can’t Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman do?
With each season, he has increased his home run total, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and is on-pace to exceed his RBI total.
- 2017 – .284 AVG / .352 OBP / .475 SLG / 19 HR / 71 RBI
- 2018 – .286 AVG / .394 OBP / .532 SLG / 31 HR / 103 RBI
- 2019 – .290 AVG / .412 OBP / .564 SLG / 32 HR / 94 RBI
What’s more, this season Bregman is playing the best he ever has defensively, at least he is according to Defensive Runs Saved (DRS). Back in 2017, Bregman featured a -3 DRS; in 2018 he had a -6 DRS; this season, he’s currently saved +6 runs for the Astros at third base.
Next. Astros ace Verlander ages in reverse, tosses no-no. dark
It’s no surprise that the Astros have become the Golden State Warriors of MLB since 2017. With the rise of players like Bregman alongside the likes of Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve plus the addition of Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole, don’t be surprised if Houston walks away with a second World Series title in three years.