[Justice] Rigorous preparation has made Altuve elite hitter

I hear people talk about Altuve last year as if there is no doubt that was his "career year". That kind of talk makes me chuckle a little. It isn't as if he didn't hit like crazy in the minors, and even in spurts in the majors before last year. He just finally put together a full season last year, and the guy is only 24 years old!!

Also, some talk about his average as if it was only so high because he got "lucky" on balls put in play. It isn't as if he was hitting a bunch of looping balls that just fell in, Altuve was 3rd in MLB in doubles last year with 47. He was 25th in MLB in OPS last year! This guy is a STUD and him and Correa could very well form the best middle infield in baseball over the next decade

 

I do remember that in seasons past it always seemed like Altuve would be on a hot streak and then would cool off at some point in the season. That point seemed to come back later and later with each season until last season when he never seemed to cool off. I'm hoping it wasn't a matter of luck but more a matter of him finally getting himself to a place where he didn't wear down over the course of a very long season. If that's the case, then last year might very well be what we can expect every season. Here's to hoping!

 

A big part of Altuve being an elite hitter is exceptional hand-eye coordination.

 

Being a God amongst boys also helps.

 

When people say that, I don't think they expect him to become "bad"... just that last year could have been one of the rare cases where a player just never goes into a prolonged slump.

Hell, Lance Berkman's first full season (2001) was, IMO, his "best" overall season... even though he played the rest of his career at a very high level.

If Altuve mirrors Berkman's career ark... it will be a VERY good thing despite him having a "career" year early on.

 

Yea I get that, I just see nothing in his past to say he won't be what he was last year

The better the team gets around him won't hurt either

 

Jose is great for Houston. The batting-title puts Houston more on the map both with victories and the national spotlight... and he's just getting warm.

Great to see him at Rockets games showing city pride as well.

 

He has hit everywhere he's been, he has also swung at every pitch he's seen everywhere he's been. A bit of selectivity is always nice. Pitchers can adjust, and then he can adjust to them.

 

God, his contract is such a steal.

 

Not yet it isn't.

If he hadn't signed that contact, this would have been his first arbitration year, and guys typically don't make a whole lot on their first year of arbitration. And he was also paid more last season than he would have been if not for the contract.

Having said that, if he can maintain anywhere near last seasons level, we will have 4 years left after this season with him being grossly underpaid, and it will quickly become by far the best contract in baseball. The Astros could end up saving 40-50 million dollars over the life of the deal, but they haven't started reaping those savings just yet.

 

But it certainly will be... and there's no way they'd get a similar deal now (after his career year) vs. when they signed him.

They need to work on something similar for Springer to cover his first possible free agency years... obviously will be looking for more than the $30 million he rejected.