In an era where more emphasis is being put on power, San Diego Padres’ Luis Arraez is making a name for himself in a different way. The Venezuela native has a .328 batting average since the All-Star break. However, what is more impressive is that he has just two strikeouts in that span.
According to a post from the MLB, 472 players have recorded games with two or more strikeouts since the All-Star break. Arraez’s two strikeouts seem too good to be true, even for as good as Arraez has been the last few seasons.
Arraez is currently leading the National League in batting average. If the stat holds, he will win his third consecutive batting title. He won the American League Batting Title as a member of the Minnesota Twins in 2022. In 2023, he won the award in the National League as a member of the Marlins. Arraez began the 2024 season with the Marlins but was traded to the Padres.
Diving in even deeper, having the least strikeouts after the All-Star break is not uncommon for Arraez. As a matter of fact, he had a league-best 15 strikeouts after the All-Star break in 2022 and 2023. However, this season he is on another level.
Arraez has two strikeouts in 42 games. The next closest player with at least 35 games played is Sal Frelick of the Milwaukee Brewers. He has 16 strikeouts in 41 games. Arraez’s .328 average is the fifth-best in the MLB since the All-Star break and first in the National League.
Arraez is currently ranked fourth in all of baseball in batting average. In front of him are Bobby Witt Jr., Aaron Judge, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. All three have struck out over 80 times, with Judge striking out 153 times. Arraez is also on pace to have the least strikeouts among qualified hitters for the third consecutive year.
Arraez has 22 fewer strikeouts than Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians, who has the second least on the season. However, Arraez has played in 18 more games, has 109 more at-bats, and a 27-point higher batting average.
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WBN MLB: https://worldbaseball.com/league/mlb/
Photo Credit: Luis Arraez #4 of the San Diego Padres scores a run on a single. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
