Even if you assume he maintains his current (likely unsustainable) pace for a full season, Trout, Yelich, and Bellinger have been far better. Yelich has been on his crazy pace since the ASB in 2018. Interestingly, there are 3 qualified hitters in MLB this season with OPSs over 1.100. There's only one between 1.000-1.100 (Rendon) - this is where Alvarez currently slots in if you assume a full season. And then 21 guys in the 0.900's. I suspect Alvarez ends up in the low-mid 900's by the end of the year.
This. Errbody needs to chill on the expectations. Nothing at all wrong with his most likely outcome, which is a Nellie Cruz type 850-950 ops for the next 6 years. We’d all love for him to be David Ortiz but it’d be shame to set those expectations only to be disappointed when he turns out to just be excellent instead of an all time great.
I still marvel at how perfect his swing is. His stance is just ideal. His swing is completely balanced. You really have to look at those clips from the side they show right after he hits something, and then it makes sense how it all looks so effortless. Yeah, he's not a perfect batter, but, I mean, that's the amazing thing: the guy looks like he's been in the majors for years, so you forget that's been here for a month. Crazy. I've never seen a guy making their debut that looks like that, and I remember various Astros that took the league by storm when they first came up. They still didn't look like this. He needs to work on the low-outside stuff, but his eye is also really good, so that's a big advantage already to working that kink out. Pitchers will adjust to him. I just hope the coaches don't 1) overwhelm him with preparatory information for every pitcher ever, and 2) try to modify anything about his swing in any significant way. The swing is so good already that you really need a master batting craftsmen with a very light touch if you're going think about touching it. Give him Beltran's number (my solution for everything nowdays.)
Reality is, he's hitting the ball as well as anyone in the game. I'd guess he'll start walking more as teams pitch around him which will boost his OPS. You also have to consider he is slower than those 3 guys, so he's not going to leg out infield hits or get doubles and triples on some balls those other guys will. Of course we can't put the cart before the horse, but you can't help but be in awe every time he hits the ball. You just don't see such consistently hard contact.
You can make a case they are better. There is no case you can say they are far better hitters. They guy has almost 1.100 ops.
There are definitely “better” hitters right now in the game... but what Alvarez is doing right now as a very young rookie is absolutely astonishing. The ability to make adjustments during at-bats is something great players are able to do throughout their careers, it’s looking like he has that ability. The sky is the limit...
LOL. Yes, it's pretty easy to make the case that Mike Trout is a far better hitter than Yordan Alvarez.
He has great plate discipline, generally does not chase which is great for such a young player. As he plays more he'll start getting the rep as having a good eye and probably get more calls
There are two types of people in this thread. Those who are hopeful and optimistic, and those who are jaded and shi**y. Which are you?
Realistic guy here. Alvarez's sample size is too small. Optimistic because of how beautiful and near-perfect his swing is, but only time will tell what adjustments pitchers make and how he'll respond to them.
