The fantasy baseball ranking season is in full swing. For me, that typically starts with searching advanced stats leaderboards. Advanced statistics are often more predictive than traditional box score statistics. Thus, they’re an excellent jumping-off point. This series will dive into a variety of my favorite advanced metrics. However, I must caution that no statistic in isolation is the secret sauce for unearthing a hidden gem or burgeoning stud. Instead, they are a piece of the puzzle and best viewed through that lens, using other statistics in conjunction with them to formulate a well-rounded opinion of the fantasy value of players.
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Barrel Percentage (Barrel%)
Barrel percentage (Barrel%) is a Statcast measure they define and explain on their glossary page. Barreled balls have had outstanding outcomes. They blend exit velocity and launch angle, and the higher the exit velocity, the more vast range of launch angles that qualify as a barreled ball. I suggest checking out the linked definition.
Additionally, FanGraphs also houses the Statcast data for Barrel%. So, let’s use their leaderboard to create some context for Barrel%. First, the highest Barrel% out of 132 qualified hitters in 2021 was 22.3%. Second, the lowest was 0.0%, and six qualified hitters had a Barrel% under 2.0%. Third, the median Barrel% was 9.05%.
2021 Qualified Hitters Barrel% Leaders
The Barrel% leaderboard among qualified hitters in 2021 was loaded, featuring American League MVP Shohei Ohtani and National League MVP Bryce Harper. It isn't only a top-heavy list, either.
Eugenio Suarez was the only below-average hitter in 2021 on the table, netting an 85 wRC+. Adam Duvall's 103 wRC+ was the second-lowest mark among the top-20 hitters in Barrel%. Everyone else above had a 110 wRC+ or higher, 14 hitters cleared a 125 wRC+, and eight had at least a 140 wRC+, and four had better than a 150 wRC+. The median wRC+ among this group was a 137 wRC+.
Moreover, it was a powerful group. Josh Donaldson's 26 homers were the lowest total among players featured in this section. After that, Miguel Sano's 30 taters were the second-lowest mark. Out of the 20 hitters, 14 smashed at least 35 homers, and four cleared 40 homers. The top-three players in homers in 2021 are all in this section, headlined by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (48) and Salvador Perez (48), followed by Ohtani (46). Beyond that elite trio, Fernando Tatis Jr. (42), Aaron Judge (39), Brandon Lowe (39), Rafael Devers (38), Joey Gallo (38), and Duvall (38) were all among the 12 players in the top 10 for homers -- there was a three-way tie for the 10th-most homers last year.
Noteworthy Non-Qualified Hitters in 2021
There was a ton of power and offensive production from this group, too. Bobby Bradley's 16 homers and 99 wRC+ were the lowest among this group. Not coincidentally, he's the player I'm least interested in from the 10 players above. Byron Buxton's 19 homers in only 254 plate appearances were the second-lowest total, but his 169 wRC+ was the highest in this section.
Ronald Acuna Jr. slugged 24 homers in only 360 plate appearances before his season was cut short with a season-ending injury. The remaining seven players hit 25 homers or more, climbing from Bobby Dalbec's 25 blasts to 27 for Rhys Hoskins, 28 for Patrick Wisdom, 29 for Brandon Belt, 30 for Franmil Reyes, 32 for Kyle Schwarber, and 33 for Mike Zunino. Thus, a high Barrel% has positively correlated with homers.
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Starting Pitchers CStr%
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Starting Pitchers CSW%
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Starting Pitchers O-Swing%
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Starting Pitchers GB%
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Starting Pitchers SwStr%
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Starting Pitchers Soft%
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Starting Pitchers IFFB%
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Starting Pitchers Z-Contact%
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Starting Pitchers BABIP
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Hitters BB/K
- Advanced Stats Leaderboard: Hitters FB/LD Exit Velocity
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Josh Shepardson is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Josh, check out his archive and follow him @BChad50.