Baltimore Orioles star prospect Jackson Holliday hit .059 in 10 games and was sent back to the minor leagues.
Texas Rangers phenom Wyatt Langford posted a .588 OPS in 31 games before going down with an injury.
The Milwaukee Brewers just sent down Tyler Black after calling him up a few days ago.
Colt Keith was billed as the Detroit Tigers’ best prospect, yet he has slumped to a .414 OPS.
The Cleveland Guardians themselves have some rookie-eligible players who are struggling at the plate, like Brayan Rocchio (.599 OPS).
What is happening?
Why is the jump from Triple-A to the majors so difficult for hitters these days?
The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal wrote about it and provided his theory about the situation.
He talked to Guardians manager Stephen Vogt, who provided some pretty fascinating insight.
As “Guardians of the Land” tweeted, patience is required in most cases.
Why we need to have patience with young hitters. https://t.co/3dkapbZSYw pic.twitter.com/oN5PmkB0Qk
— Guardians of The Land (@OurCLEGuardians) May 9, 2024
Vogt states, accurately, that there are no breaks or easy at-bats.
Additionally, per Vogt, you have the best defenders in the world fielding even the toughest batted balls and turning some of them into outs.
Per Rosenthal, the average Stuff+ (a metric that evaluates pitches according to velocity, shape, movement and other factors) in MLB is 100.
In Triple-A, it’s 86.
In other words, it’s much easier to hit in Triple-A than in the majors.
In many cases, these young players will eventually adjust.
Teams are trying to be patient, but that could be a double-edged sword.
NEXT: Guardians Might Have A Problem With 3 Young Regulars
