March 20, 2022

Solak exploded out of the gate in 2021, smashing seven home runs and hitting .293 in April. Unfortunately, things quickly took a downward turn for Solak, who slashed .228/.297/.315 with four home runs in 399 PAs after May 1. Solak offers little by ways of defensive value, so his extended slump eventually earned him a demotion back to the minors, where he hit .353 in 93 PA. Solak is clearly too good for Triple-A, but is he good enough for the majors? His Statcast would suggest not, as Solak strikes the ball with little authority, posting a meager 86.9 MPH average exit velocity. His expected stats were in line with his actual performance, as Solak had a .238 xBA, .361 xSLG, and .299 xwOBA in 2021. He fared much better against lefties than righties in 2021 as well, putting up a .729 OPS and 107 wRC+ versus southpaws, compared to a .654 OPS and 81 wRC+ against right-handers. That would suggest Solak's future is as a platoon player, but even those numbers against lefties would need to improve drastically for him to be a formidable option, especially since he'll be a full time corner outfielder in 2022. Currently, Solak is penciled in as Texas's every day left fielder, though his grasp on that job is tenuous and conditional based on his performance. The Rangers could shuffle things around and bench Solak in favor of a prospect like Josh Jung or Sherten Apostel, or choose to start a veteran NRI such as Jake Marisnick or Matt Carpenter. Either way, Solak doesn't offer much upside as a late round sleeper and probably deserves to go undrafted in standard leagues.--Elliott Baas