Tom Brennan- Low Ks for Minors Hitters Give Them A MLB Chance

Hall of Famer Joe Sewell, along ago, fanned just 3 times in 2 different seasons

Very few hitters force their way onto a major league roster.

If you’re a pitcher, you’re decently talented, and your arm isn’t detaching, you have a much better chance than a similarly talented hitter of making the bigs.

So far this year, 19 hitters have been used by the Mets, but a far higher 25 pitchers have been used.

So, hitters’ flaws like excessive Ks can keep your hitter’s glass ceiling intact - for all your efforts, high Ks damage your big league chances, perhaps fatally.

Which is why a player like Branny de Oleo makes me smile. 

de Oleo, in the DSL, is a young SS (recently turned 18) who has been to the plate 58 times through Tuesday and is hitting .365, in part because he has fanned just 3 times, or roughly once every 20 times up.  Hall of Famer Joe Sewell, 100 years back, fanned just twice in 2 different seasons - it worked for him.

Branny still has to fill out, as he is listed at 6’1”, 156.  

But he is off to a superb low minors start, a big part of which is rarely striking out.

And that low K rate just may propel him to very high places in 4 or 5 years.