When the Yankees traded for Nick Swisher two offseasons ago, they expected a low average, high OPB, and power hitter. They had good reason to expect this, as Swish had never had a season where he hit over .262, fewer than 21 home runs, and (outside of 2 off years) an OPB under .371. Well Swisher continued that trend in his first year in pinstripes, hitting .249 with 29 HRs, and a .371 OPB. This season though, something is very different about Nick Swisher. The power is still there, as he has 17 HRs so far. OPB? Check. He boasts a .376 OPB 90 games in. So if you guessed that AVG was the thing that made him a different hitter, YOU ARE CORRECT! Swish his hitting .306, which is by far the best of his career. Granted, it is just past the first half mark, but Swish hasn’t hit like this in the first half of any season… In the first half of 2005, his first season as a regular starter, Swish had a .246 AVG. In 2006, he hit .258 for the first half. In 2007, 2008, and 2009, Swisher hit .263, .235, and .237, respectively. So what is different about this year? Well for starters, his BABIP is way up. He has a .344 BABIP, compared to last seasons .272. His line drive rate is up 5.3% from last year, which could explain the elevated BABIP. His ground ball rate is down about the same amount, and his fly ball rate is about the same. So with the elevated average, Swisher obviously becomes a more valuable player. Though he is getting on base at roughly the same clip, the fact that he is getting more actual hits gives him more opportunities to drive in runs, which is the goal. If you think about it logically, Swish getting more hits means that his extra base hits are on the rise, which means that he should have better chances at scoring runs, which is even more so the goal.That makes sense right?
So anyway, go Swish! Lets see if he can keep up this high AVG.
