Phillip Evans Has Been A Pleasant Surprise
4 years agoPittsburgh Pirates rookie third baseman/outfielder Phillip Evans is 13-for-38 (.342) with three home runs, two doubles and a 1.076 OPS through 11 games to begin the season. The 28-year-old is tied for 26th among qualified hitters (tied with Nolan Arenado and Mike Trout) with 17 hard-hit batted balls (balls with an exit velocity above 95 mph). Evans' 92.8 mph average exit velocity ranks him at 17th, one spot higher than Bryce Harper. The rookie doesn't elevate the ball much, but he's struck out just 11.1 percent of the time. Evans is slashing .342/.444/.632 with eight runs scored and five RBI in the first 11 games of the season. He's taken full advantage of Ke'Bryan Hayes' injury, so expect the Pirates to find him a spot in the everyday lineup once Hayes is ready to return.
Source: MLB.com - Sam Dykstra
Source: MLB.com - Sam Dykstra