For years, baseball was transferring towards a recreation constructed purely on energy and analytics. Dwelling runs and strikeouts dominated.
However right this moment’s stars — maybe most prominently Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Atlanta Braves and Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers — are breaking the mould, bringing again an thrilling mix of energy and pace.
They’re paying homage to previous stars corresponding to Rickey Henderson (4 seasons of not less than 20 HR, 53 SB), Alex Rodriguez (42 HR/46 SB in 1998) and Barry Bonds (5 seasons of 30-30 and a 40-40 marketing campaign in 1996).
MLB is witnessing a resurgence of the power-speed mixture, and it’s altering how groups strategy the sport. The presence of those dual-threat gamers forces managers to regulate their technique, valuing versatility and athleticism as a lot as uncooked energy.
Acuna Jr. and Ohtani have made this dynamic type of play look cool once more. Listed below are 5 different gamers who can dazzle on the plate and on the basepaths. All statistics by means of Wednesday’s video games.
RF Fernando Tatis Jr. | San Diego Padres
After lacking the 2022 season on account of a PED suspension, Tatis Jr. returned in 2023 and shortly reestablished himself as a twin risk. He hit 25 residence runs and stole 29 bases, ending 14th in MVP voting.