Re-grading the biggest MLB offseason signings
he is hitting .243/.364/.475 with 10 home runs -- a relatively soft number considering 69 players had already hit 10 before Harper reached double digits Wednesday -- and was tied for the major league lead in strikeouts entering Wednesday. He ranked 84th in the majors in wOBA and the Phillies didn't give Harper $330 million to be the 84th-best hitter in the game.
He's drawing walks and one hot streak will increase his current pace of 27 home runs to 30-something. Still, the strikeouts are a growing concern -- up 7.2 percent from last season and more than 10 percent from two seasons ago. One thing to wonder about is his approach at the plate, especially with nobody on. He's hitting .306 with runners in scoring position and .299 with men on base, but just .168 with the bases empty. The same thing happened last season, when he hit .290 with runners in scoring position, .303 with men on and .214 with the bases empty. Maybe he's trying too hard to hit home runs with nobody on. Maybe he needs to view himself as a hitter more than a power hitter. Selling out for power with nobody on isn't working. Grade: C-