In baseball, and MLB in particular, there are several types of batted balls.
We have the barrels, which are known as the ideal contact when it comes to launch angle and exit velocity.
Barrels produce the best results among batted balls.
After that, we have solid contact, flares (basically bloops that often fall for hits), burners (scorching-hot ground balls), under, topped, and weak contact (under 59 mph of exit velocity).
Here is a perfectly solid explanation of all types of contact.
Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco is known for his excellent contact rates and quality.
That makes him a constant threat to hit for high batting averages.
As a prospect, he was the prototypical .300 hitter.
Injuries and the expected adjustment to MLB pitching have lowered that ceiling somewhat, but he still has a solid .282 career average in the majors and can very well develop into that .300 batter.
Judging by the quality and quantity of his contact patterns, his two closest comps as a major leaguer are exciting.
Wander Franco's 2 most similar hitters by hitting profile last season:
Jeff McNeil
Luis Arraez pic.twitter.com/PXD0NQ1Ww5— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) March 3, 2023
In case you don’t remember, Jeff McNeil won the batting title in the National League last year and Luis Arraez did the same in the American League.
That means Franco’s contact quality is very much like that of the two reigning batting champs in the league.
That has to be an exciting development for Rays fans.
The best of all is that Franco has more power than both of them, and more speed too.
He could easily blossom into a .310 hitter with 25 or more homers this year in a best-case scenario.
Under the right circumstances, that player could be an MVP candidate with the kind of speed and defense Franco can provide.
NEXT: Randy Arozarena Discusses His Mindset For 2023
