Fangraphs Interview with Shewmake

[Super]

Freeman may say he tries to hit liners over the SS, but the facts are he hits 35% of his balls in the air, and pulls 40% of them. He is an elite hitter, and has a batted ball distribution of an elite hitter.

If Shewmake wants to model himself after Yelich he would do well to understand what actually makes Yelich a great hitter. Here’s a hint: it isn’t spraying the ball the other way.

Of course Shewmake may not have the exit velocities to support being anything other than a gap to gap hitter, which makes the Yelich comp and any discussions about his approach at the plate pointless.

if he’s anything like pre-MVP Yelich i’m still stupidly happy

[Enscheff]

if he’s anything like pre-MVP Yelich i’m still stupidly happy

Yeah, a SS that hits like that would be pretty sweet.

Then when he improves his approach and hits like present Yelich, the Braves will have an 8 win SS!!

Swanson who?

[bravesfanMatt]

Yeah, a SS that hits like that would be pretty sweet.

Then when he improves his approach and hits like present Yelich, the Braves will have an 8 win SS!!

Swanson who?

He will be at 3rd base. The second coming of chipper Yelich who!!

[50PoundHead]

Freeman may say he tries to hit liners over the SS, but the facts are he hits 35% of his balls in the air, and pulls 40% of them. He is an elite hitter, and has a batted ball distribution of an elite hitter.

If Shewmake wants to model himself after Yelich he would do well to understand what actually makes Yelich a great hitter. Here’s a hint: it isn’t spraying the ball the other way.

Of course Shewmake may not have the exit velocities to support being anything other than a gap to gap hitter, which makes the Yelich comp and any discussions about his approach at the plate pointless.

It will depend on where he's at in his development arc. Every hitter needs a foundation on which they can build before they can really blossom. You're right on checking exit velocities, but I think of hitters like Don Mattingly who went through the minors with a plus hit tool that looked to be high on doubles and light on HRs, but when he got his feet underneath him and felt more comfortable pulling the ball, his HR totals went up. Same with Yelich. The question I always have is would MVP Yelich exist if he hadn't had the time to figure things out and would have been all about launch angle out of the gate. You have to hit before you can worry about launch angle.

[NYCBrave]

Freeman may say he tries to hit liners over the SS, but the facts are he hits 35% of his balls in the air, and pulls 40% of them. He is an elite hitter, and has a batted ball distribution of an elite hitter.

If Shewmake wants to model himself after Yelich he would do well to understand what actually makes Yelich a great hitter. Here’s a hint: it isn’t spraying the ball the other way.

Of course Shewmake may not have the exit velocities to support being anything other than a gap to gap hitter, which makes the Yelich comp and any discussions about his approach at the plate pointless.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but early in his career Freeman was a bit of a different hitter than he is now.

[bravesfanMatt]

It will depend on where he's at in his development arc. Every hitter needs a foundation on which they can build before they can really blossom. You're right on checking exit velocities, but I think of hitters like Don Mattingly who went through the minors with a plus hit tool that looked to be high on doubles and light on HRs, but when he got his feet underneath him and felt more comfortable pulling the ball, his HR totals went up. Same with Yelich. The question I always have is would MVP Yelich exist if he hadn't had the time to figure things out and would have been all about launch angle out of the gate. You have to hit before you can worry about launch angle.

That is just it though. Which came first. Chicken or egg. Did yelich learn to hit or was just gifted enough to know how to hit.

I think we will see this clash more and more as old school guys who still coach spraying to all fields go up against money balllers who say pulling ball for more slugging is more valuable even at the cost of average.

[Enscheff]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but early in his career Freeman was a bit of a different hitter than he is now.

You don’t need me to correct anything. His batted ball stats are right here for all to see.

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/fr...1B#batted-ball

He’s been the same hitter from the moment he debuted at the MLB level. His improvement from good hitter to great hitter has been driven by progression in his selectivity within the strike zone. His MVP season was fueled by a large jump in BB rate and a .361 BABIP that is unlikely to hold for a full 162 games, and he’s due for regression in 2021 just like most of the Braves hitters.

[NYCBrave]

You don’t need me to correct anything. His batted ball stats are right here for all to see.

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/fr...1B#batted-ball

He’s been the same hitter from the moment he debuted at the MLB level. His improvement from good hitter to great hitter has been driven by progression in his selectivity within the strike zone. His MVP season was fueled by a large jump in BB rate and a .361 BABIP that is unlikely to hold for a full 162 games.

What about the serious spike in his ISO over the past 4 or 5 years? He was never considered a HR hitter early in his career and eventually his ISO shot up. Was this a swing change? Philosophy change?

[Enscheff]

What about the serious spike in his ISO over the past 4 or 5 years? He was never considered a HR hitter early in his career and eventually his ISO shot up. Was this a swing change? Philosophy change?

Someone one FG did an article on Freeman detailing how he has become better at attacking pitches in the zone he can do damage on. Something along the lines of Freeman becoming the best in the game at swinging at pitches he can hammer and not swinging at everything else. You can probably find it, but I cant find it quickly on my phone.

[Mad Dog Murph]

Someone one FG did an article on Freeman detailing how he has become better at attacking pitches in the zone he can do damage on. Something along the lines of Freeman becoming the best in the game at swinging at pitches he can hammer and not swinging at everything else. You can probably find it, but I cant find it quickly on my phone.

This one?

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/freddie-...-hall-of-fame/

[50PoundHead]

That is just it though. Which came first. Chicken or egg. Did yelich learn to hit or was just gifted enough to know how to hit.

I think we will see this clash more and more as old school guys who still coach spraying to all fields go up against money balllers who say pulling ball for more slugging is more valuable even at the cost of average.

My daughter was a very good gymnast and watching her made me think a lot about how I view athletic ability and how it translates into different levels of accomplishment. She had a gift, but she got to a point where she could no longer make the adjustments to get to the elite level of competition.

I view hitting the same way to some extent and it's even more difficult in baseball because of the added variables. Very few come into the majors as even nearly-finished products and most need to get their feet wet before they can comprehend what they can reasonably do. All have to adjust their games somewhat because it's in a different galaxy than the minor leagues, but it's a game of constant adjustments with each new performance plateau. Some can make adjustments and see their performance soar (Yelich is a good example here) and some simply can't. Maybe Shewmake turns out to be a big Punch 'n Judy hitter (which wouldn't be a bad thing if his BABIP is high or maybe, like Yelich, he builds off his foundation and starts turning on the ball with success. One of the real mysteries this season is determining which prospects suffered the most from not having formal competition in 2020.

[Enscheff]

This one?

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/freddie-...-hall-of-fame/

That’s a Jaffe fluff article.

This is the one I was thinking about

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/the-one-...than-everyone/

[bravesfanMatt]

My daughter was a very good gymnast and watching her made me think a lot about how I view athletic ability and how it translates into different levels of accomplishment. She had a gift, but she got to a point where she could no longer make the adjustments to get to the elite level of competition.

I view hitting the same way to some extent and it's even more difficult in baseball because of the added variables. Very few come into the majors as even nearly-finished products and most need to get their feet wet before they can comprehend what they can reasonably do. All have to adjust their games somewhat because it's in a different galaxy than the minor leagues, but it's a game of constant adjustments with each new performance plateau. Some can make adjustments and see their performance soar (Yelich is a good example here) and some simply can't. Maybe Shewmake turns out to be a big Punch 'n Judy hitter (which wouldn't be a bad thing if his BABIP is high or maybe, like Yelich, he builds off his foundation and starts turning on the ball with success. One of the real mysteries this season is determining which prospects suffered the most from not having formal competition in 2020.

My daughter was gifted at cheerleading. She just had it. Stage presence with the ability to do everything. Always a flyer and was just better. Then she got bored with it and quit working hard at it. basically everyone caught up to her. But it makes you think. There are some who just have some born ability to be better than others. If they work, then they can do whatever. Others are good but they have to work harder to be just average in comparison.

[Russ2dollas]

Isn't the Yelich comp just people saying he has a lanky body type and good hit tool?

If the happy fun ball is no more I'm curious to see the results for some guys.

[50PoundHead]

Isn't the Yelich comp just people saying he has a lanky body type and good hit tool?

If the happy fun ball is no more I'm curious to see the results for some guys.

As am I. I'm throwing out 2020 to some extent. For the most part, good players were still good players, but there were a number of guys I saw as anomalies and I don't know if the nature of the baseball contributed to that. I think it's safe to say there was some helium in the ball in 2019.

[GovClintonTyree]

As am I. I'm throwing out 2020 to some extent. For the most part, good players were still good players, but there were a number of guys I saw as anomalies and I don't know if the nature of the baseball contributed to that. I think it's safe to say there was some helium in the ball in 2019.

I'm thinking about Swanson as you say this. Oppo power used to be a special thing that only monsters could do. Now wiry, athletic shortstops hit 420' dingers to RCF.

[Enscheff]

It's almost like athletes in 2021 are bigger, stronger, and faster than they were 20 years ago. Weird...

Since 2015, MLB-wide average LD/FB exit velocity has increased steadily from 91.8 mph to 92.7 mph.

Since 2015, MLB-wide FB% has increased steadily from 33.8% to 35.7%.

So yeah, stronger guys hitting the ball harder and in the air more often will naturally lead to more HRs. I know boomers don't like it, but athletes are better now than when the opinions about baseball of middle aged guys were formed. Swanson is probably bigger and stronger than half the "power hitters" from the 80s/90s.

[mfree80]

It's almost like athletes in 2021 are bigger, stronger, and faster than they were 20 years ago. Weird...

Since 2015, MLB-wide average LD/FB exit velocity has increased steadily from 91.8 mph to 92.7 mph.

Since 2015, MLB-wide FB% has increased steadily from 33.8% to 35.7%.

So yeah, stronger guys hitting the ball harder and in the air more often will naturally lead to more HRs. I know boomers don't like it, but athletes are better now than when the opinions about baseball of middle aged guys were formed. Swanson is probably bigger and stronger than half the "power hitters" from the 80s/90s.

...and/or the ball has been sailing better. Probably a bit of both.

[50PoundHead]

It's almost like athletes in 2021 are bigger, stronger, and faster than they were 20 years ago. Weird...

Since 2015, MLB-wide average LD/FB exit velocity has increased steadily from 91.8 mph to 92.7 mph.

Since 2015, MLB-wide FB% has increased steadily from 33.8% to 35.7%.

So yeah, stronger guys hitting the ball harder and in the air more often will naturally lead to more HRs. I know boomers don't like it, but athletes are better now than when the opinions about baseball of middle aged guys were formed. Swanson is probably bigger and stronger than half the "power hitters" from the 80s/90s.

I agree with pretty much everything you say, but the ball really contributed as well. Look at the heights/weights (and then take a look at the pictures) of guys in earlier eras and you can easily see that guys are much bigger (and stronger) now without having lost much in terms of speed. That's pretty much the same in every sport. You never used to see HRs where guys really didn't square up on the ball. Clearly, the situation has reversed and you see it with some frequency. All that said, the HR spikes of the past few seasons show that something must be going on with the ball as well.

[Enscheff]

I agree with pretty much everything you say, but the ball really contributed as well. Look at the heights/weights (and then take a look at the pictures) of guys in earlier eras and you can easily see that guys are much bigger (and stronger) now without having lost much in terms of speed. That's pretty much the same in every sport. You never used to see HRs where guys really didn't square up on the ball. Clearly, the situation has reversed and you see it with some frequency. All that said, the HR spikes of the past few seasons show that something must be going on with the ball as well.

There have been studies done that show something with the surface of the ball is allowing it to carry further. Then the extra carry vanishes for a period of time, supposedly due to inconsistencies with production.