Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels
March/April Stats: 1.052 OPS, .271 ISO, 6 homers, 16 RBI, good for a 179 wRC+ and 1.9 fWAR in 119 plate appearances
Mike Trout making his way onto this list is a tad surprising only because his performance hasn’t been otherworldly since returning from a groin injury (.226/.414/.340 triple slash since April 15th). That just goes to show you how incredible he was over the season’s first couple weeks, though.
One of many things that sticks out with regard to Trout’s early-season performance is yet another drastic improvement in plate discipline. He leads the league with a 24.4% walk rate, which would be a new career high, as would his current 11.8% strikeout rate. How has the outfielder done this? Well, he’s stopped swinging at balls out of the strike zone.
Mike Trout has been thrown 139 pitches clearly outside the strike zone this season. He's only chased *four* times. pic.twitter.com/Y9re45JD5W
— David Adler (@_dadler) April 30, 2019
The dude is just a machine. His 33.5% swing rate would be the lowest of his career if the season ended today, but his 92.2% contact rate, which includes a 96.4% clip inside the strike zone, would both be career-best marks. When combined with a 43.1% hard-hit rate and just a 31.9% ground-ball rate, good things are going to happen rather continuously.
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