We have said it many, many times: Washington Nationals slugger Juan Soto is special not because of his power or contact, but because of his unmatched plate discipline.
No player in MLB can discern balls from strikes as well as he does.
Of course, we should add his incredible contact skills and excellent power to all fields to his offensive profile: without them, pitchers wouldn’t fear him so much and would probably throw more strikes, thus decreasing his walk tally.
But he is who he is because of his knowledge of the strike zone.
Combine that with the putrid offense behind him and we have a player who may work walks at a record pace in 2022.
In fact, he is already dominating in the category.
“Juan Soto’s .607 OBP in his last 15 games is the highest by any player in any 15-game span this season,” MLB analyst Sarah Langs tweeted.
Juan Soto's .607 OBP in his last 15 games is the highest by any player in any 15-game span this season
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) July 14, 2022
Soto Is Starting To Turn Things Around
Of course, to achieve such a high OBP, a hitter needs to have both a high average and a penchant for walks.
Soto, despite his .245 batting average for the year, has a .402 OBP because he walks in 20.2 percent of his plate appearances.
When you add power to a high OBP profile, the resulting OPS would be magnificent.
In Soto’s last 15 games, he has a 1.440 OPS to go with that .607 OBP.
If we go to his last seven games, he is hitting an incredible .458/.594/.958 with four home runs.
His 2022 season has been stellar for most mortals, but Soto is not any player: he is a perennial MVP candidate, and he knows he can be better.
He is sporting a .892 OPS, but the number was .999 last season.
Little by little, we are starting to see Soto’s best version.
NEXT: Tweet By A Nationals Insider Sums Up The Team's Rough Season