Houston Astros: FOUR Evan Gattis Myths Debunked

Myth #3: Evan Gattis “Can’t hit for high enough average or contact … Plus, he strikes out too much and doesn’t draw enough walks.”

If Gattis was still a 2013 rookie with the Atlanta Braves, this would be a notion agreed upon. But lately, it has been just one of a number of myths circulating around him. So this one is also FALSE!

What many fans don’t realize is that the new “normal” league average has actually gone down to .230 recently. Even with that, Gattis is a career .250 hitter. Being both a power hitter and a catcher, those are actually fairly decent numbers.

He has plenty of the skills to make that career batting average go up. The team just needs to foster and provide him with the opportunities.

Also, his plate discipline has significantly improved, seeing as how he broke single season records in each of the following besides home runs:

OBP: .319
SLG: .508
OPS: .827
Walk%: 8.7
Pitches per plate appearance (P/PA): 3.85
WAR (wins above replacement): 3.0

Fangraphs also lists Gattis as having his swing rate go down in general, especially his swinging strike rate, or SwStr. His contact rate has also remained pretty consistent around 76% over his career. Not all-star numbers yet, but the potential is certainly there.

Drawing more walks is another thing that gets missed on a lot of people. While Gattis has only had about a 5-6% walk rate in his first three seasons, getting it up to almost 9% in 2016 proves just how much more patient he is at the plate.

And yes fans, his strikeout percentage rate is going to keep remaining somewhere in the upper teens or lower 20’s. But the truth is, power hitters can usually get away with that sort of thing. It certainly doesn’t decrease their value on a team by any means.