One of my first articles for True Blue LA was on Austin Barnes and, despite the fact he wasn’t hitting, he was still providing value.
Fast forward two months and, well, Barnes still isn’t hitting. It’s really strange. His wRC+ is 69 and his power has all but disappeared (.047 ISO, .255 slugging). He’s still providing some value with his defense, but every time he steps to plate, there isn’t much excitement.
His soft-hit percentage has fallen since the May 25 article from 32.1 percent to 26.4 percent, but his current rate is seventh-worst in baseball among players with at least 170 plate appearances (tied with Yasiel Puig, coincidentally).