White Sox OF Eloy Jimenez is already one of the best fastball hitters in Major League Baseball. Heading into his 2nd season with the club, he will look to continue and add to his success when it comes to his hitting prowess, as he hit 0.267/0.315/0.513 with 31 home runs. In 2019, Jimenez faced 934 fastballs and was highly productive. His expected statistics, which are measured based on his quality of contact, were highly impressive, as his xBA, xSLG and xwOBA, were 0.305, 0.588, and 0.392 respectfully. To emphasize his prowess on this pitch, he whiffed on 19.4% of fastballs and was put away on the pitch only 23.4% of the time. Opposing pitchers struggled throwing fastballs to Jimenez.
However, in order for Jimenez to become the best hitter in baseball, he must have a better approach at the plate against breaking pitches. The White Sox slugger faced 712 of such pitch last year and his struggles were glaring. His xBA, xSLG, xwOBA were 0.224, 0.457, and 0.301 respectfully. Jimenez whiffed on breaking pitches a staggering 47.2% and was put away on the pitch 25.3% of the time.
With the additions of Yasmani Grandal and Edwin Encarnacion, coupled with the talents of Jose Abreu, Yoan Moncada, and Tim Anderson, the White Sox are poised to make a run at winning the AL Central Division and be an offensive juggernaut. With this in mind, Jimenez must be a vital contributor to this success, and be able to be an effective offensive player against the varied pitch arsenals of opposing pitchers.
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