The San Diego Padres knew that Luke Voit had some contact issues when they acquired him from the New York Yankees before the season.
He has immense raw power and actually led MLB in homers in 2020, with 22.
But so far, it’s the strikeouts that are showing their ugly face so far in 2022.
He is striking out at a career-worst rate: 32.6 percent of his plate appearances have ended with strike three.
To get that many strikeouts, it usually means that the hitter is swinging and missing a lot.
In this case, that’s entirely true.
“Most swinging strikes in 2022 (through yesterday): Luke Voit, 39 Giancarlo Stanton, 33 Nick Castellanos, 31 Bryce Harper, 31 Jorge Soler, 31,” Codify Baseball tweeted on Monday, meaning the stats are through Sunday.
Most swinging strikes in 2022 (through yesterday):
Luke Voit, 39
Giancarlo Stanton, 33
Nick Castellanos, 31
Bryce Harper, 31
Jorge Soler, 31 pic.twitter.com/mx1cQXzvIG— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) April 18, 2022
Voit’s Swing And Miss Issues Are Becoming A Cause For Concern
It’s very disconcerting to see Voit leading the pack with so much difference over the rest of the pack.
It should be noted that Voit didn’t have a normal 2021 campaign.
He opened the year on the injured list with a meniscus issue, then spent some time off with an oblique ailment, and then re-injured his knee and was shut down for the rest of the season.
Overall, he would accumulate 241 plate appearances in which he slashed .239/.328/.437 with just 11 home runs.
When fully healthy, he is capable of getting on base at a high clip and belting lots of home runs.
He seems healthy now, but will need some time to take off and get into a rhythm at the plate.
The Padres will need to be patient, because despite Voit’s defensive limitations, he is their best option at first base if we consider offensive potential.
NEXT: Stat Proves Padres Are Focusing On What's Most Important