Baseball Mike

How are rookie hitters doing this year? Unlike the rookie pitcher scene in the AL, hitters across the majors aren’t exactly burning it up, but some are still putting together pretty solid first seasons.

Here’s a look at those who qualify for the batting title (not that any of them are going to win the batting title, but the qualification of 3.1 plate appearances per team games played is a good cutoff to show only the rookies who are getting a lot of playing time).

Josh Barfield (.293/.331/.423) leads the class in batting average. After a slow start, he hit .400/.435/.590 in July and has 16 steals on the year.

Dan Uggla (.291/.351/.496) has been a pleasant surprise, making the All-Star Team and becoming a good fantasy second baseman. He has 16 home runs (driven by a 33.6% fly ball rate) and 61 RBIs. He also has a great 30.3 VORP.

Kenji Johjima (.291/.335/.459) got hot in June but cooled off in July. His stamina is untested, but if he can stay at these levels right now, he will put up a solid year for a catcher. One thing that’s a little distressing is his walk rate: he has only walked 15 times for the year, and only once in June.

Ryan Zimmerman (.288/.353/.470) is my choice for NL Rookie of the Year so far. He leads all rookies in hits, doubles, RBIs, extra-base hits, and walks (tied with Conor Jackson), and he has put up a nice OPS and even stolen 9 bases. He has a 9% walk rate. It looks like all the predictions about Zimmerman were right on the mark.

Prince Fielder (.287/.346/.505) has also met expectations, as he has 20 home runs on the year so far. He has also stolen 5 bases, more than his father did in his 13-year MLB career. In terms of batting average, he had a poor June and a good July, but his power has been down since May, so he may be experiencing some fatigue.

Mike Jacobs (.287/.350/.512) leads all rookies in OPS and Isolated Power. He has had some pretty serious problems hitting lefties, though: .181/.234/.264 in 72 at bats.

Hanley Ramirez (.270/.339/.435) has faded from his strong start, but he has stolen 31 bases and scored 80 runs, leading all rookies in both categories. He has shown a relatively good eye: he has 39 walks, which isn’t great but is better than expected, and he has seen over 4 pitches per plate appearance, which leads all rookies.

Conor Jackson (.269/.357/.421) leads all rookies in OBP. He hasn’t shown much in terms of average or power. This falls pretty much in line with expectations. With his patience at the plate and other skills, he looks to evolve into a pretty good player, though he still has a way to go.

Josh Willingham (.263/.338/.478) has the lowest average of the bunch. I think many people expected he’d be a Three True Outcomes guy, though he has been frustratingly inconsistent from month to month and doesn’t have a good OBP. He still has some value because of his catcher eligibility in fantasy leagues, and he has 16 home runs and very good Isolated Power (.215), so he could explode (in a good way) if injuries don’t get to him first.

Barely missing the cutoff for this list in terms of minimum plate appearances are Ronny Paulino, Melky Cabrera, and Nick Markakis.