Ranking Cody Bellinger and the MLB free agents most capable of quality at-bats

The MLB offseason is in full gear, so let's talk hitters. In determining what goes into a quality at-bat, you’d be wise to look beyond the traditional counting stats you’d see on a trading card. That’s not to say it’s bad when a hitter racks up home runs, records at least 100 RBIs, or ends the year with a high OPS. Those are obviously productive at-bats, especially when they help a team achieve the ultimate goal: competing for, and then winning, the World Series.

With that said, we feel that there are two important statistics that also factor into a quality at-bat: strikeout percentage and walk rate. Just ask the likes of Cody Bellinger, Bo Bichette, and Kyle Tucker, all of whom fare extremely well in those two categories. There’s a reason why pitchers tend to be extremely careful when those three come to the plate.

Ranking Cody Bellinger and MLB free agents by strikeout rate

Arraez is unsurprisingly an outlier here. He rarely walks and isn't afraid to put the ball in play, regardless of result. For reference, the league average strikeout rate in 2025 was 22.4% for the second straight season. Considering that hitters were striking out in 23.2% of their plate appearances in 2021, this is welcome progress.

Now, let’s take a look at which free agents have the highest walk rate.

Ranking Kyle Tucker and MLB free agents by walk rate

Hello, Marcell Ozuna! You're welcome for the negotiating ploy. The league average walk rate in 2025 was 8.4%, up from 8.2% in 2024. We mentioned 2021 earlier, which was the final year before the most recent CBA and subsequent rule changes, and the walk rate that year was 8.7%. So while walks are down, at least strikeouts have also reduced.

Pay close attention to Bo Bichette’s improved discipline 

More than enough has been said about Bichette’s long-term value in recent months, but his impressive plate discipline seemingly goes unmentioned. Bichette’s 14.5% strikeout rate tied him with St. Louis Cardinals utilityman Alec Burleson for the 25th-best ratio in baseball. Perhaps most impressively, Bichette’s 14.5% strikeout percentage was easily the best of his career, and a massive improvement from last year’s 19%.

Bichette’s 6.4% walk rate was his highest since his rookie year, and he’s walked in at least 5.8% of his plate appearances four times in five seasons. By no means is it the flashiest walk rate, but consider that Bichette had over 100 more strikeouts than walks (115 and 27, respectively) as recently as 2023.

Cody Bellinger’s comeback is for real

Bellinger is enjoying a career resurgence, and his plate discipline is a key reason why he’s resumed his place as one of the league’s more dangerous left-handed outfielders. Not only was Bellinger’s 13.7% strikeout rate in 656 plate appearances the sixth-best in baseball, but it marked a career-high by a wide margin; Bellinger struck out in 27.3% of his plate appearances in 2022, but he’s cut his strikeout percentage in half since leaving the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Although Bellinger’s 8.7% walk rate finished below his 9.8% career average, it was nonetheless his highest since he posted an 8.9% over 350 plate appearances for the Dodgers in 2021. We’ll see whether Bellinger, who recently opted out of his contract, can get his walk rate above 10% for the first time since 2020 — and if he can, don’t be surprised to see him competing for his second MVP award.

There’s a reason Kyle Tucker is about to make the big bucks

Tucker, who is arguably the best hitter on the open market, made this list. However, his inclusion goes far beyond his power stroke and above-average baserunning. Tucker has made massive strides in his plate discipline over the last three years, recording 234 strikeouts against 223 walks in over 1,600 plate appearances. In other words, Tucker struck out in 14.5% of his plate appearances and walked in another 13.9% during that time. From 2018 to 2022, his strikeout and walk rates were 17.1% and 9%, respectively.

When players make those kinds of changes, you pay attention, and even more so when it’s a perennial All-Star like Tucker.

Other interesting takeaways from the quality at-bats list

• If you’re familiar with Luis Arráez’s game, then his inclusion here won’t shock you. Arráez’s 3.1% strikeout rate was easily the best in baseball among qualified hitters. Let’s also not forget that Arráez has batted .318 with a .776 OPS and led the league in hits three times since the start of 2022.
• Although Marcell Ozuna isn’t getting any younger, that hasn’t stopped pitchers from avoiding pitching to him. Ozuna’s 15.9% walk rate trailed only Aaron Judge and Juan Freaking Soto. Perhaps you've heard of them.
• Andrew McCutchen is another veteran who is still going strong, with an above-average 21.4% strikeout rate. McCutchen was also one of 23 players who walked in at least 12% of their plate appearances.