3 Royals who will improve in 2024 and 2 who will not
By Joel Wagler
4. MJ Melendez will build off strong second half for all of 2024
Like Massey, MJ Melendez saw some drastic improvements in the second half of the season. Even if you looked at nothing but the slash lines, you could tell how much better he was after June.
His slash line in the first half was .206/.289/.333 in 346 plate appearances. In the second half, however, there was a marked improvement, posting a line of .273/.352/.485 in 256 plate appearances.
Despite having 90 less plate appearances in the second half, he had more total bases, 110 to 102. While his Walk Rate stayed about the same, he lowered his Strikeout Rate from 29.8 percent to 26.2 percent.
While his BABIP skyrocketed from .285 in the first half to .344 in the second, part of that was he was hitting fewer flyballs and more line drives and ground balls. He also increased his Hard Hit Rate from 38.8 percent to 46 percent. He was hitting fewer easy fly balls and making better contact, which led to a higher BABIP.
Assuming he continues to make better contact and whittle away at his Strikeout Rate, there is a good chance he second half can be the new norm for Melendez going forward.