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There’s no better story in baseball than when guys come out of nowhere and have career years whether it be at the plate or on the mound. From the up and coming youngsters to the late bloomers we see it every year.
This past season there was a handful of talent that took their game to another level and helped carry their teams late in the season.
Here’s a look at four of those sluggers who had career years in the American League this season.
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Teoscar Hernandez, Toronto Blue Jays
Ever since he was acquired from the Astros, Hernandez has been a solid power bat for the Blue Jays. The potential has always been there, it’s just been a matter of time before he put it all together at the big league level.
Finally, over the past two seasons Hernandez has begun to take his game to the next level, becoming more of an all-around threat at the plate. He’s taken home back-to-back Silver Sluggers and finished in the top-20 in MVP voting each of the past two seasons.
Over 143 games last season, Hernandez hit 29 doubles and posted new career highs with 32 home runs (18th in the AL) and 116 RBI (3rd in the AL). His 4.0 WAR was the eighth highest amongst AL outfielders and he posted a .870 OPS and .346 OBP.
On top of that, the big man had some sneaky speed on the base paths. He finished in the 85th percentile in sprint speed, stole a career-high 12 bases, and led the Blue Jays with 19 infield hits.
While he still struggled a bit with plate discipline, Hernandez actually was able to cut down his strikeout rate (24.9%) to a new career low. He also became more aggressive early on in the count, swinging at the first pitch 39.8% of the time.
Hernandez’s power was on full display all season long, as he finished above the 85th percentile in both max and average exit velocity, hard-hit percentage, and barrel percentage. Hernandez figures to hit cleanup in that young and powerful Blue Jays lineup. With his production over the past few seasons, he’s certainly solidified himself as part of that talented core for years to come.
Jared Walsh, Los Angeles Angels
Similar to Hernandez, Walsh broke out for the Angels during the shortened season and then proved it wasn’t a fluke with a strong 2021 campaign. He finished seventh in Rookie of the Year voting in 2020 and then was named to his first All Star team this past season.
Walsh solidified himself as a regular in the middle of the Angels lineup last season, hitting 29 home runs and 34 doubles. He also drove in 98 runs and posted a 128 OPS+, .340 OBP, and .850 OPS.
Of course, one of his biggest moments from this past season was breaking the hearts of Yankees fans early on in the morning. After a long rain delay in the Bronx, Walsh crushed a game-tying grand slam off of Aroldis Chapman to help cap off an Angles comeback win.
Walsh showed off both his power and gold glove caliber defense, solidifying his spot in the middle of the Angels lineup. The only two areas that Walsh really struggled with are the strikeouts and left-handed pitching. On the season, he posted a 26% strikeout rate and had just a .565 OPS against opposing southpaws.
If he can improve in those areas moving forward, Walsh could be looking at a monster 2022 season. The sweet-swinging lefty is again projected to hit right in the middle of what should be a strong Angels lineup.
Salvador Perez, Kansas City Royals
We know what Salvy can do defensively behind the plate, but offensively he’s always been one of the more underrated catchers in the game. This past season he put his power on full display and took home his fourth career Silver Slugger award.
He followed up a strong pandemic season with an even better 2021 campaign. For the second consecutive year, he received AL MVP votes (finishing seventh) and was named to his seventh career All-Star game. Perez was selected to participate in the Home Run Derby in Colorado. Despite being eliminated in the first round by the eventual champ, Pete Alonso, his 28 home runs were the most hit by a catcher in derby history.
It wasn’t just in the derby that Perez made some big-time splashes. His 48 home runs on the year not only tied the Royals’ franchise single-season record, but he finished tied with Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr for the league lead. Additionally, he led the league with 121 RBI.
Even in the pitcher-friendly Kauffman Stadium, Perez saw his power number sore through the roof. His 56.2% hard-hit percentage increased 9.2% from last year and finished third in the league, only behind Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge. With the breakout in power came a bit of an increase in the strikeout department. While his walk rate still finished in the second percentile in all of baseball, he did actually see a 2.3% increase, though his strikeout rate also increased 2.5%.
Salvy was easily the top fantasy catcher last season. It’s fair to expect some regression after his historic campaign, though his track record shows he should be able to put together a 20-30 home run campaign.
Hunter Renfroe, Boston Red Sox
Renfroe signed a one-year deal with the Red Sox last winter and proved to be one of the best value pickups of the offseason. He ranked in the top-five amongst AL outfielders in home runs (31), RBI (96), doubles (33), slugging percentage (.501), and OPS (.816). Renfroe again struck out 130 times and posted a 22.7% strikeout rate, but when he made contact, he hit the ball extremely hard. His 116.4 MPH maximum exit velocity finished ranked 20th in baseball. He posted career-highs in both hard-hit percentage (44.3%) and barrel percentage (14.4%). Renfroe also recorded a career-high 57 barrels on the year, which finished as the 16th most in all of baseball.
Prior to the lockout, Renfroe was surprisingly traded to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for Gold Glove centerfielder Jackie Bradley Jr and minor league prospects Alex Binelas and David Hamilton. Renfroe figures to bring some much-needed right-handed power to the Brewers lineup. He’ll replace fellow slugging outfielder Avisail Garcia, who left the Brew Crew for the Marlins this offseason in free agency.
The slugger should benefit from playing his home games in the hitter-friendly American Family Field. If he played all his games there last season, Baseball Savant projects he would’ve hit a career-high 35 home runs on the year. Renfroe has hit 25+ homers in each of his full seasons.
Playing every day and hitting in the middle of that Brewers lineup, Renfroe could be looking at another big season at the plate.
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