7 years agoOakland Athletics catcher/first baseman Jonathan Lucroy is coming off of a weak 2017 season and is looking to make an impact in 2018. While Lucroy only had a .716 OPS last season, he did have an .865 OPS in 175 plate appearances after he was traded from the Rangers to the Rockies and had 46 walks and 51 strikeouts in 481 plate appearances between Texas and Colorado. A catcher with good plate discipline is always a good thing and Lucroy has also had an .835+ OPS in three seasons. While there are no solid statistics behind this, Lucroy has followed a season with a sub-.800 OPS with one where his OPS was over .835, so his .717 OPS from 2017 may actually be a good thing. After hitting a career-high 24 homers in 2016, the 31-year-old managed just six home runs last year, which is even more shocking considering he played his 2017 home games in two extreme hitters parks (Texas and Colorado). Batted ball data supports Lucroy’s sudden inability to hit the ball with any authority. After recording a hard hit rate of ~35% in each of his previous five seasons, Lucroy had a paltry 22.3% Hard% in 2017. He also hit a downright comical number of grounders, with a jaw-dropping 53.5% GB rate, compared to the 37.2% GB rate he recorded in the previous season. If Lucroy is able to turn those poor batted ball statistics around, while maintaining good plate discipline and finding a good offensive home, he could be a nice sleeper heading into 2018 drafts.--Chris Zolli