Dodgers' Jason Heyward on new environment that's more his speed. Why Jason Heyward's New $184 Million Contract Is A Steal As such, its hard to decide what to make of Heywards 2014 season, in which he finished 34th among outfielders in Zach Sanders rankings, as he made strides as a contact hitter while taking a step back in the power department. That should tell you all you need to know about the Blue Jays plans for their fourth outfield spot, and this assignment is something he plans to grab with both hands. Granted, we cant just assume that Heyward will stay healthy from here on out (he had a thumb injury as a rookie and had some minor hip and shin ailments before that), but those are conservative projections if he does come to camp with a mended shoulder. Updated: Saturday, March 4, 2023 4:51 PM ET, Park Factors Updated: Saturday, March 4, 2023 4:51 PM ET, Park Factors All major league baseball data including pitch type, velocity, batted ball location, All Win Expectancy, Leverage Index, Run Expectancy, and Fans Scouting Report data licenced from TangoTiger.com. Whether he finds a home with Cleveland certainly wont depend on whether Quinn can maintain his power output. But even so, it seems like he has endured some bad luck on balls put in play. Heywards .113 ISO was no less than 71 points below his career mark entering this year, he slugged just .384 and notched only 58 RBIs, despite making about one-third of his plate appearances as the fifth hitter in the Braves order. by Retrosheet. He was 97-98 [mph], but I dont think that was the most interesting part of the outing. The general concern around Heyward and defense is twofold. But just looking at how Heyward has hit the ball, there are early signs that hes concentrating on pop. I was like, I really just want to see a strike, Heaney said. Unfortunately, for studying purposes anyway, there simply are not enough of those types of players to look at. All UZR (ultimate zone rating) calculations are provided courtesy of Mitchel Lichtman. Heyward and David Peralta, a pair of veteran left-handed hitters, could see time against right-handed pitchers. The team is confident in . Reported as the pre-2023 season number of waiver options remaining. Thats just how it goes. Now, increasingly deprived of opportunities to pull pitches, Heyward in recent years has been going the other way more often, and 2014 saw more than 19% of his plate appearances end with him hitting the ball to the opposite field, a new career high, and a credible explanation for the plunge in distance and home runs. All UZR (ultimate zone rating) calculations are provided courtesy of Mitchel Lichtman. Believe it or not, on a team with Chipper Jones, Brian McCann, Freddie Freeman, and Martin Prado, Bourn was tied with Jason Heyward with the most fWAR for position players on the Atlanta Braves. Solid production, that, despite some disappointing seasons mixed in. Tony Conigliaro was unfortunately never the same after a pitch permanently injured him, while other players like Ruben Sierra and Carlos Baerga simply did not produce despite opportunities. With such an advanced plate approach and gargantuan numbers in the minors (he slashed .323/.408/.555 while rising from High-A to Triple-A as a teenager in 2009), Heyward reached the show years before most hitters do. For my ease, I took five-year averages for both WAR and the cost of a win when calculating the total. Similarly, if you focus on Heywards triple crown numbers .269 with 27 home runs and 82 RBI youd be missing all that extra value he added in other facets of the game. Its where most hitters are strongest, and when Heyward had his powerful 2012, he hit just three of his homers the other way. Theres very little fly-ball action in left field. The lack of power does prevent easy comparison to most free agent mega-deals. That is a major boost for lefty pull hitters like Soto (who hit 38.1 percent of his balls in play to the right field side last season, per Fangraphs). And he continued to hit far too many ground balls (nearly 54 percent of the time he put it in play), limiting his power output (.162 ISO). Every other player produced at an incredibly high level from age 26 to age 35, maintaining their hitting line from 26 to 35 that they had in their early 20s. All UZR (ultimate zone rating) calculations are provided courtesy of Mitchel Lichtman. What are your Gold Glove predictions for this year? : r/baseball The Fans: .279/.378/.468, 21 HR. Good defensive outfielders might simply be a smaller subset of that group overall. All Win Expectancy, Leverage Index, Run Expectancy, and Fans Scouting Report data licenced from TangoTiger.com. The way hitters hit the ball is a reflection of the swing and the approach, and so look at what you see above. Making Too Much of Too Little Jason Heyward | FanGraphs Baseball I think thats in the ballpark. All major league baseball data including pitch type, velocity, batted ball location, All UZR (ultimate zone rating) calculations are provided courtesy of Mitchel Lichtman. by Handedness, 2007 June Amateur Draft - Round: 1, Pick: 14, Overall: 14, Team: Atlanta Braves. Yeah, if continued this would make him shiftable. While hes never going to be a big stolen base threat, hes a quality athlete for a power forward-sized corner outfielder. Consider this an expansion on Matt Klaasens crowning of Jason Heyward as the King oF Little Things if you will. Dont look at me. Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. And Heywards 57 percent ground ball rate places him among lightweights like Alexi Casilla, Kosuke Fukudome and Elvis Andrus. Major League Leaderboards 2015 Outfielders Fielding Statistics Our premise is that their bad (or While Heyward is a solid offensive player, he does get a decent portion of his value from defense, which causes some concern about how Heywards value will sustain itself as he ages. Roberts described Jason Heyward, the former Cub who came to Dodgers camp as a non-roster invite, as "more than adequate" in the field at center. Ground balls are a function of the swings, and consider Xander Bogaerts. All major league baseball data including pitch type, velocity, batted ball location, Heyward went first to third on a single 15 of 32 times according to BIS, and thats not quite Trout-level (62%), but it was 15th-best of 180 qualified players. Jason Heyward is good | The Hardball Times - tht.fangraphs.com He homered off former Dodger Andrew Heaney in Wednesdays second inning. Cubs, Heyward Agree To $184 Million, Eight-Year Deal There are two graphs below estimating the value of Heywards comps over the next ten years. 3 outfielder who has yet to prove hes a reliable high-end fantasy option. He has been nominated for two SABR Analytics Research Award for Contemporary Analysis and won it in 2013 in tandem with Bill Petti. Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. Im not all that mad about it. What follows is an attempt to find similar players to Heyward using various methods: WAR, offense, defense, and a hybrid of offense and defense. Heyward was a little below the average offensively and well above the average defensively. Drafted: 2007 June Amateur Draft - Round: 1, Pick: 14, Overall: 14, Team: Atlanta Braves. Jason Heyward is not immune from those forces, but based on what he has done so far, his future could provide his employer with significant value on one of the biggest contracts in MLB history. On June 3, Higgins recorded his first major league hit, . On Friday, the Cubs won the bidding for Jason Heyward, convincing the outfielder to come to Chicago despite offers for more guaranteed money from the Nationals, the Cardinals, and reportedly. Greatest Careers Through Age 25 Since World War II, Jason Heyward WAR Comps, Age 26 to Age 30, Jason Heyward WAR Comps, Age 26 to Age 35, Jason Heyward Offense-Only Comps Through Age 25, Jason Heyward Offense-Only Comps, Age 26 Through Age 35, Jason Heyward Defense-Only Comps Through Age 26, Jason Heyward Defense-Only Comps, Age 26 Through Age 35. Its not so stark there are reasonable arguments to be made for Cabreras dominance at the plate, even if they rely on team- and division-based outcomes in the end but there was some of that bubbling under the surface of the debate. Heyward, a .211-hitter in 2021 and 2022, made significant swing changes over the winter. For one thing, pitchers have shied away from trying to bust Heyward inside, and instead are focusing on trying to get him to chase pitches away. All Win Expectancy, Leverage Index, Run Expectancy, and Fans Scouting Report data licenced from TangoTiger.com. This spring, Heyward has hit 18 flies and liners, and hes sent two of them toward left. Mining the News (3/2/23) | RotoGraphs Fantasy Baseball Updated: Saturday, March 4, 2023 4:51 PM ET, Park Factors Reported as the pre-2023 season number of waiver options remaining. Jason Heyward - Stats - Batting | FanGraphs Baseball Because it means Wheeler is now throwing a four-seam fastball, a sinker, a cutter, a tight slider, a bigger slider (aka the sweeper), a curveball and, occasionally, a changeup. The Yankees finished second in the majors and first in the American League in 2022 with 4.98 runs scored per game. With the injury to Gavin Lux, Miguel Rojas and Chris Taylor will see time at shortstop while Jason Heyward and Trayce Thompson will play in center field. Here are their total numbers from age 26 through age 35, a total of ten seasons per player. Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. Historically, Heyward has hit about 30% of his flies and liners toward left. Heyward, a .211-hitter in 2021 and 2022, made significant swing changes over the winter. Crossword; Sudoku; Crossword; Sudoku _____ About Us Some call it a sweeper. They were like, Why are you not throwing it with a [sinker] grip and try to get used to it and learn how to throw it?. Chicago Cubs. Play-by-play data prior to 2002 was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted The shift movement had already produced some . The 19-year old was a first round pick in 2007 and has wasted no time The 19-year old was a first round pick in 2007 and has wasted no time establishing himself as a premier outfielder I cant wait to see how this turns out. Kiner-Falefa was a defensive whiz with 10 Defensive Runs saved in 2022, helping result in the lowest runs allowed per game in the Bronx since 1981. Just a couple years ago, it was Jason Heyward and Giancarlo Stanton that were tearing up baseball, looking like an unprecedented pair of rookie talents ready to continue on into the stratosphere together. Play-by-play data prior to 2002 was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted But a lot of the value Heyward accumulated last season he did in a fashion that might seem Troutian. Follow/harass him on Twitter @Karl_de_Vries. Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. Craig Edwards can be found on twitter @craigjedwards. Heyward will get paid. Updated: Saturday, March 4, 2023 4:51 PM ET, Park Factors Heres why. His rookie year was off-the-charts good and play-by-play data provided by Sports Info Solutions. For an awfully consistent hitter, Jason Heyward is considered an awfully frustrating hitter. His expected BABIP (xBABIP), which is based on home runs, strikeouts, stolen bases, and batted ball data, was about .315. Apparently the Dodgers will do anything to keep James Outman on the farm. Dec 11 2015 Signed an 8 year $184 million contract with Chicago (CHC) Nov 15 2015 Player declined $15.8 million qualiying offer. dodgersnation.com - Jeff Snider 10h Read more on dodgersnation.com UZRs range component agrees. Heyward did it all offensively as a rookie: he showed superb plate discipline (a 14.6% walk rate), hit for power (a .179 Isolated Power) and didnt punch out at an exorbitant rate (20.5 K%). Freddie Freeman homers, Miguel Vargas walks again, Walker Buehler starts throwing. Jason Heyward pitch% heatmaps. Gavin Lux is likely . Theres a pretty good distribution of balls around the field. Using the players from the chart above, here is how those players played from age 26 through age 30, the first five years of a potential Jason Heyward contract. Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. Jeff, one of the authors of the fantasy baseball guide,The Process, writes for RotoGraphs, The Hardball Times, Rotowire, Baseball America, and BaseballHQ. Heyward does need to keep the ball of the grass and pare down the pop ups to truly tap into his power, but its important to remember that hes still younger than many celebrated rookies and prospects. His work for Inside Edge Scouting Services has appeared on ESPN.com and Yahoo.com, and he was a fantasy baseball columnist for Rotoworld from 2009-2010. . Jordan Walker has a 28.5 ft/s Sprint Speed, good for an 80% percentile red lollipop once he gets a Savant slider. Heyward was coming off a rookie season in which he popped 18 home runs and batted .277/.393/.456 at age 20, tying him with Ty Cobb for the Play-by-play data prior to 2002 was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted SUMMARY Jason Heyward - Play Logs - 2022 - Batting | FanGraphs Baseball Players who rove around the outfield will qualify at the specific outfield position where he played the most innings provided it was a minimum of 75 percent (475 innings) of total innings at the specific position. Limiting Heyward comps solely to free agents leaves little by way of realistic comparison. by Handedness, 2007 June Amateur Draft - Round: 1, Pick: 14, Overall: 14, Team: Atlanta Braves. . But, after falling to a .227/.319/.389 triple-slash and 14 homers in 2011 while bothered by a bum shoulder, Heyward ranks 31st among outfielders (114th overall) in MockDraftCentral.coms latest ADP rankings. Cubs Plan to Release Jason Heyward From Final Year of Deal Its ever so early, but it seems like he could be working on that. and play-by-play data provided by Sports Info Solutions. 1 seed Bradley Braves (24-8, 16-4 MVC) square off against the No. Im sure you dont think about ground-ball pull rate very often, but I like it as an indicator of change. 2023 Jason Heyward Projections For instance, Heyward, batting primarily in the leadoff spot for the first time in his career, put up a solid .351 OBP, scored 74 runs and stole 20 bases at an impressive 83% success rate, all while batting .271, the second-best mark of his big league tenure. Heyward went first to third on a single 15 of 32 times according to BIS, and that's not quite Trout-level (62%), but it was 15th-best of 180 qualified players. by Handedness, Whos Been (Un)luckyThe Starting Pitchers. by Handedness, 2007 June Amateur Draft - Round: 1, Pick: 14, Overall: 14, Team: Atlanta Braves. Karl, a journalist living in Washington, D.C., learned about life's disappointments by following the Mets beginning at a young age. sent RF Jason Heyward on a rehab assignment to Gwinnett Braves. Atlanta Braves Rumors - MLB Trade Rumors - Part 276 and play-by-play data provided by Sports Info Solutions. As expected, their value on defense drops over the next ten years, but a curious thing has happened to their offensive numbers simultaneously. Earlier this week, August Fagerstrom took a look at recent seasons authored first of Mike Trout and then of Clayton Kershaw and compared them to the greatest peaks of all time. Jason Heyward Stats, Fantasy & News | MiLB.com As in the case of the first table, we again see some of the greatest baseball players. Red Sox employ loophole to MLB shift ban against Joey Gallo Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. No matter which group you look at, he is likely to be a productive player at age 30. In the *other* MVP debate, Miguel Cabrera represented, perhaps, a belief in the older-school stats, those three fetishized numbers that have been in the newspapers since the games inception. These were the players remaining. De Paula hit .350/.448/.522 with 13 doubles, five home runs, and two triples in 53 games in the Dominican Summer League in his professional debut, and the power was intriguing enough that FanGraphs wasn't alone on an island. It doesnt matter that Heyward has still been productive; he looks like he should be a beast of a hitter, so its odd to see him hit singles and doubles. Looking at the numbers from 26 to 30 in each group, it is understandable why Heywards agents would seek an opt-out clause within the first five years. FanGraphs Shirts. With an injury (and a team deflation) taking some of the wind out of Stantons sails, and Buster Posey blowing up the National League Most Valuable Player debate, the new toys got a lot more attention than the old new ones. Its impossible for anyone outside of the Braves training room and front office to assess Heywards health. and play-by-play data provided by Sports Info Solutions. I am obligated to mention that Mike Trout still has two more seasons to add to his totals. Heyward managed to nab nine bases in 11 tries last year, and Bill James projects hell have 14 SB in 2012. Mike Trout represented, perhaps, a belief that we could quantify the other aspects of the game and assign them value. The Dodgers announced Thursday that they've signed free-agent outfielder Jason Heyward to a minor league contract and invited him to Major League Spring Training. He went second to home on a single. Heywards main drawback, perhaps only drawback, as a player seeking more than $100 million is his lack of power.