Article: Something Has Clicked with Eduardo Escobar

[Andrew Thares]

There have not been a lot of good things to say about the Minnesota Twins of late. The team has lost 9 of 10 (entering Tuesday), and it is hard to find much to be positive about here at Twins Daily, deservedly so.

 

So, I think everyone could use a short little break from all the misery and read about one of the few bright spots on the Twins, and that is of course shortstop Eduardo Escobar.Throughout his time with the Minnesota Twins, Eduardo Escobar has always served in the role of a backup utility infielder. However, with the Twins inconsistency on the left-side of the infield over that time, Escobar has seen plenty of playing time.

 

In his last two seasons Escobar has been called to step up in a big way at both shortstop and third base. Last season, when Miguel Sano went down with a leg injury with a month and a half left in the season, Escobar filled in nicely for him at third. Now this year Escobar has been called upon to fill the void at short after an 80-game suspension was handed down to Jorge Polanco.

 

In his time filling in, Escobar has been one of the Twins best hitters in a lineup that has had some success. At the end of 2017, after Sano went down with his injury, Escobar had an OPS of .826, which was not far off the .859 OPS Sano himself had put up last season. Escobar did have some struggles at third defensively, but considering the guy he was replacing, it didn’t make that much of a difference.

 

This year, Escobar has gotten off to an even hotter start with the bat, leading all Twins hitters with a .926 OPS. A big part of Escobar’s success has come from his ability to hit doubles. So far this year, Escobar has already hit 11 doubles, which is just one behind Ozzie Albies and Miguel Andujar for the major league lead.

 

The thing with Escobar is, his breakout didn’t just begin when Miguel Sano went down with his injury. In fact, Escobar actually started to heat up a couple months prior to that at the beginning of June. Since June 1st, Escobar has accumulated an OPS of .819 across 483 plate appearances.

 

Escobar’s biggest turnaround over that time has come in the power department. In the time that amounts to almost exactly one month shy of a full season, Escobar has hit 21 home runs to go along with 23 doubles and 5 triples.

 

So, what has caused this sudden turnaround from a below average hitter, to a guy the Twins can count on in the middle of their lineup?

 

One change Escobar has made over the last two years is his aggressiveness on pitches in the zone. Here is a chart illustrating how Eduardo Escobar’s aggressiveness towards pitches in the zone has evolved over the last few years.

Download attachment: Eduardo Escobar Z-Swing.PNG

As you can see, Escobar has taken a nearly eight percent jump in attack pitches in the zone over the last four years. Perhaps the most encouraging part about this increased aggressiveness for Escobar is it has not expanded much into chasing pitches outside of the zone. Over that same time, Escobar’s chase rate has only increased by a little over two percent.

 

One of the biggest talking points during the “Statcast Era” has been circled around hitters seeing improved results from increasing their launch angle. There have been many players like Ryan Zimmerman or Yonder Alonso, who have received some publicity for their improvements as a result of increasing their launch angle, but one player who has flown under the radar after also doing this is Eduardo Escobar.

 

Over the past four seasons, Escobar has seen his average launch angle steadily increase every year from 13.5°, to 15°, to 17.5°, and all the way up to 21.6° so far this year. This has played a big part in Escobar’s power production over that time.

 

Because of these changes in his approach, Eduardo Escobar has seen an increased ability to swing the bat from the left side of the plate. Leading up to that same June 1st date of last year, Escobar had a career OPS as a lefty of .640, or a wRC+ of 73.

 

Since then, Escobar has been one of the best left-handed hitters in the game. Among the exactly 100 hitters with at least 300 plate appearances as a left-handed hitter since June 1st, 2017, Escobar’s .887 OPS ranks 13th, and his 130 wRC+ ranks 16th.

 

This is all great news for Escobar, who at 29, will be hitting the free agent market this winter. Given the way things played out in free agency this past offseason, it could be a rough scene for a player like Escobar who has never been a full-time regular in the bigs. Hopefully, for both Escobar and the Twins, he can keep up his impressive performance for the rest of the season and give himself a shot at a multi-year contract this winter.

 

Click here to view the article

[rdehring]

I have believed for some time that Escobar may be the most important Twin to get extended over the summer.  He is a starter.  Just never certain where on the diamond he will be playing.

 

Plus, I understand he is a special guy to have in the locker room!

[Squirrel]

Esco has been one of my favorite players since the Twins got him from the White Sox. On the field he’s not a star but he’s solid wherever you put him. At the plate he seems to keep improving. And the guy himself, he seems to work hard but manages to also keep the atmosphere light. He’s not an all-star player, but he does his job well. Attaway, Esco!

[Rosterman]

Well, when Eduardo is the spare guy on the bench, he is just okay. But when called upon to fill in, he's dynamite.

 

Not sure how that computes into a longterm contract.

 

But when called upon to play fulltime, he has not disappointed.

 

So.......

[Shaitan]

I wish he was better at 2B. It would set up the Twins well to rest Dozier in the second half.

[B Good]

Escobar should be our new full time 3B.  Sano can be the DH when he comes back.  Bring Gordon up to play SS, Dozier and Mauer can man the right side.  When Polanco comes back, if we are out of it, Dozier will be shipped out and Polanco and Gordon can be the middle infielders.   

[nicksaviking]

If Polanco or Gordon are destined to be the starting SS here the next couple of years, I'm all aboard the Escobar extension train. The future of Dozier and Sano are murky and he's an excellent safety net. He's versatile enough and still likely cheap enough that extending him in no way would preclude the team from also addressing 2nd or 3rd later should better options appear.

[jtkoupal]

Escobar can definitely hit. His defense isn't the best, but he can hit.

 

Problem is, he is a free agent at the end of the year. If the Twins don't compete, Escobar will finish 2018 in a different uniform.

 

However, if Dozier is to move on, maybe keep Esco and make him the 2nd Baseman? I don't love his glove on the left side, but maybe 2nd Base isn't a bad idea.

[slash129]

Contract season ... Click!

[Danchat]

I don't give TR praise very often, but acquiring 6 years of Escobar for 2 months of Liriano was one heck of a trade. I've always liked having him around and I hope they find a way to keep him for a couple more years. They're going to need a reliable utility infielder if they keep playing Sano at 3B.

[Doubles]

Love love love me some Esco.  Gimme an entire team full of guys that play the game with as much joy & passion as that cat exudes every single day.  Love seeing guys like that thrive.

[by jiminy]

Thanks for focusing on a happy story! It's true, he's been a huge lift.

 

I have a question about launch angles.  I've always accepted the standard argument that increasing your launch angle by a few degrees increases doubles and homers.

 

But that's not the only way to increase your average.

 

If you hit 90 percent of balls exactly the same, but eliminated some grounders, it would look on paper like a slight increase in average launch angle.

 

It's great to stop hitting nubbers, maybe even better than hitting more flies. Replacing some groundouts with line drives is wonderful. But it's not a whole new strategy.

 

In Escobar's case, becoming a league leader in doubles, and all the homers he started hitting last year, implies he's launching more long flies.

 

But in general, I wonder how often an uptick in average launch angle is really that, or something else?

 

 

[Andrew Thares]

 

Thanks for focusing on a happy story! It's true, he's been a huge lift.

 

I have a question about launch angles.  I've always accepted the standard argument that increasing your launch angle by a few degrees increases doubles and homers.

 

But that's not the only way to increase your average.

No, increasing launch angle doesn't necessarily increase your average because you hit more flyballs. However, increasing you average isn't the goal. The goal is increasing your overall production, and the best way to do that is increasing your power numbers, and a great way to do that is optimizing your launch angle.

[Squirrel]

Love love love me some Esco. Gimme an entire team full of guys that play the game with as much joy & passion as that cat exudes every single day. Love seeing guys like that thrive.

This, absolutely. Big reason he’s one of my favorites. Attitude isn’t everything, but it’s a big thing, imo.

[DocBauer]

One of my favorite players and easy to root for. Laughed when people talked about trading him or letting walk after last season. Disappointed we didn't sign him to at least a 2 year deal this past off season.

 

Forget 2016...wish we all could...hr was productive and solid in a smaller role in '14 and '15 as well. He's not a stud, but he's a really, really nice, productive and versatile player. The kind you should be thinking about keeping.

[Riverbrian]

The guy helps you win games. 

 

When you acquire players via trade or free agency you hope to get players who help you win games. 

 

I'd be talking to his agent about a contract right now. 

[Thrylos]

 

I wish he was better at 2B. It would set up the Twins well to rest Dozier in the second half.

 

He is fine at 2B.  Just has not played it much because the Twins do not rest Dozier that often.  Not out of the realm of possibility that he will be the starting second baseman for the Twins in 2019...