While most stats take a while to stabilize, bat speed only takes a few swings. And any changes can make a huge difference. Today, I'm going to go through some of the biggest available gainers.
For reference, here are three studies to show how a change can make a difference.
The first couple of studies are from the 2025 edition of The Process, where I found the average production at different Bat Speed levels and how much production changes with a Bat Speed increase.
Average Production
Bat Speed | Average OPS | % Chance Over .700 OPS |
|---|---|---|
>75 | .772 | 71% |
74-75 | .749 | 70% |
73-74 | .712 | 55% |
72-73 | .699 | 52% |
71-72 | .683 | 46% |
70-71 | .662 | 38% |
69-70 | .632 | 28% |
68-69 | .650 | 19% |
67-68 | .669 | 42% |
66-67 | .612 | 9% |
<66 | .611 | 31% |
Production Change
Bat Speed Change | OPS |
|---|---|
>1.5 | .081 |
1 to 1.5 | .041 |
0.5 to 1 | .003 |
From these two tables, the key is to have at least a one mph increase to a value over 72 mph.
I also found the average home run rate (per 600 PA) as different levels:
Min Bat Speed | Max Bat Speed | HR/600 |
|---|---|---|
<66 | 8.8 | |
66 | 67 | 7.5 |
67 | 68 | 8.4 |
68 | 69 | 11.6 |
69 | 70 | 14.3 |
70 | 71 | 17.0 |
71 | 72 | 17.7 |
72 | 73 | 20.2 |
73 | 74 | 21.7 |
74 | 75 | 22.5 |
75 | 76 | 26.2 |
76 | 77 | 29.2 |
>77 | 33.2 |
With those baselines established, here are the players who have seen an increase of at least one mile per hour in their bat
While most stats take a while to stabilize, bat speed only takes a few swings. And any changes can make a huge difference. Today, I'm going to go through some of the biggest available gainers.
For reference, here are three studies to show how a change can make a difference.
The first couple of studies are from the 2025 edition of The Process, where I found the average production at different Bat Speed levels and how much production changes with a Bat Speed increase.
Average Production
Bat Speed | Average OPS | % Chance Over .700 OPS |
|---|---|---|
>75 | .772 | 71% |
74-75 | .749 | 70% |
73-74 | .712 | 55% |
72-73 | .699 | 52% |
71-72 | .683 | 46% |
70-71 | .662 | 38% |
69-70 | .632 | 28% |
68-69 | .650 | 19% |
67-68 | .669 | 42% |
66-67 | .612 | 9% |
<66 | .611 | 31% |
Production Change
Bat Speed Change | OPS |
|---|---|
>1.5 | .081 |
1 to 1.5 | .041 |
0.5 to 1 | .003 |
From these two tables, the key is to have at least a one mph increase to a value over 72 mph.
I also found the average home run rate (per 600 PA) as different levels:
Min Bat Speed | Max Bat Speed | HR/600 |
|---|---|---|
<66 | 8.8 | |
66 | 67 | 7.5 |
67 | 68 | 8.4 |
68 | 69 | 11.6 |
69 | 70 | 14.3 |
70 | 71 | 17.0 |
71 | 72 | 17.7 |
72 | 73 | 20.2 |
73 | 74 | 21.7 |
74 | 75 | 22.5 |
75 | 76 | 26.2 |
76 | 77 | 29.2 |
>77 | 33.2 |
With those baselines established, here are the players who have seen an increase of at least one mile per hour in their bat speed. I included their plate appearances and their rostership rate for the RotoWire Online Championship.
| Name | 2025 Bat Speed | 2026 Bat Speed | Diff | PA | NFBC OC Rostership% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jorge Mateo | 71.9 | 76.2 | 4.3 | 10 | 0 |
| Alex Call | 66.1 | 70.2 | 4.1 | 12 | 0 |
| Jose Tena | 70.8 | 74.9 | 4.1 | 19 | 0 |
| Denzel Clarke | 74.3 | 78.3 | 4.0 | 26 | 2 |
| Cam Smith | 74.5 | 77.4 | 2.9 | 48 | 100 |
| Thomas Saggese | 69.8 | 72.7 | 2.9 | 29 | 0 |
| Myles Straw | 67.1 | 69.9 | 2.8 | 13 | 0 |
| Colt Keith | 70.7 | 73.5 | 2.7 | 36 | 89 |
| Nick Allen | 64.5 | 67.2 | 2.7 | 12 | 0 |
| Tyler Tolbert | 69.7 | 72.4 | 2.7 | 2 | 0 |
| Austin Slater | 69.6 | 72.3 | 2.7 | 20 | 0 |
| Nathaniel Lowe | 72.7 | 75.3 | 2.7 | 10 | 0 |
| Kyle Farmer | 66.6 | 69.2 | 2.7 | 3 | 0 |
| Ezequiel Duran | 71.5 | 74.1 | 2.6 | 16 | 0 |
| Matt McLain | 69.7 | 72.2 | 2.5 | 50 | 100 |
| Leody Taveras | 71.2 | 73.7 | 2.5 | 15 | 0 |
| Mitch Garver | 71.8 | 74.2 | 2.5 | 8 | 0 |
| Luisangel Acuna | 70.7 | 73.1 | 2.4 | 35 | 84 |
| Luke Keaschall | 66.9 | 69.4 | 2.4 | 48 | 100 |
| Jonah Heim | 69.0 | 71.4 | 2.4 | 14 | 0 |
| Jacob Young | 68.3 | 70.7 | 2.4 | 31 | 1 |
| Yohel Pozo | 69.5 | 71.8 | 2.3 | 7 | 0 |
| James McCann | 71.7 | 73.9 | 2.2 | 13 | 0 |
| Brandon Lockridge | 71.1 | 73.3 | 2.2 | 30 | 3 |
| Nathan Church | 69.0 | 71.1 | 2.1 | 29 | 0 |
| Miguel Vargas | 70.6 | 72.7 | 2.1 | 44 | 100 |
| Daylen Lile | 69.2 | 71.2 | 2.1 | 52 | 100 |
| Mark Vientos | 71.2 | 73.3 | 2.1 | 26 | 56 |
| Graham Pauley | 69.6 | 71.7 | 2.1 | 18 | 0 |
| Rhys Hoskins | 71.0 | 73.0 | 2.0 | 29 | 3 |
| Austin Wynns | 70.9 | 72.9 | 2.0 | 6 | 0 |
| Jonny DeLuca | 71.0 | 73.0 | 2.0 | 19 | 0 |
| Jackson Merrill | 72.0 | 73.9 | 2.0 | 43 | 100 |
| Will Benson | 71.8 | 73.7 | 1.9 | 23 | 0 |
| Henry Davis | 73.9 | 75.9 | 1.9 | 31 | 3 |
| Max Muncy | 73.1 | 75.0 | 1.9 | 38 | 92 |
| Edouard Julien | 70.2 | 72.1 | 1.9 | 20 | 0 |
| Davis Schneider | 71.4 | 73.3 | 1.9 | 17 | 0 |
| Richie Palacios | 68.1 | 69.9 | 1.8 | 22 | 0 |
| Ildemaro Vargas | 70.5 | 72.3 | 1.8 | 17 | 0 |
| Tyler Stephenson | 70.1 | 71.9 | 1.7 | 29 | 96 |
| Danny Jansen | 69.5 | 71.2 | 1.7 | 27 | 14 |
| Jordan Beck | 73.2 | 74.9 | 1.7 | 27 | 85 |
| Andres Chaparro | 73.3 | 75.0 | 1.7 | 7 | 0 |
| Brenton Doyle | 70.8 | 72.4 | 1.7 | 34 | 99 |
| Zach McKinstry | 67.5 | 69.1 | 1.6 | 24 | 33 |
| Tim Tawa | 73.1 | 74.7 | 1.6 | 15 | 0 |
| Kyle Karros | 69.1 | 70.6 | 1.6 | 35 | 0 |
| Jorge Barrosa | 68.2 | 69.7 | 1.5 | 17 | 0 |
| Dominic Canzone | 73.1 | 74.6 | 1.5 | 27 | 88 |
| Josh Lowe | 72.4 | 73.9 | 1.5 | 36 | 86 |
And here are my thoughts on a few of the players.
Jose Tena: While Tena is swinging the bat harder, he is doing so with a lower contact rate. While he has posted a 79 percent contact rate coming into the season, it's down to 63 percent this year. And so far, he is not getting to any power (0 XBH). Ignore him until he starts making more contact.
Denzel Clarke: Clarke's defense might be good enough to keep him on the field even if he's horrible at the plate. The bat speed jump has his average exit velocity up 3.5 mph. Two problems might keep him off the field. His contact rate is down to 65 percent, thereby pushing up his strikeout rate from 38 percent to 46 percent. Additionally, a 73 percent groundball rate has led to zero extra-base hits.
Thomas Saggese: I liked some aspects of Saggese's game coming into the season, but he's not playing enough to be fantasy relevant. And his talent has declined. His contact rate is down from 77 percent to 73 percent. He's trying to air out some home runs, with his Launch Angle going from 13 degrees to 24 degrees. Even with the improved bat speed, he doesn't have over-the-wall power.
Colt Keith: Keith would profile as a sleeper, but his .480 BABIP means his rostership rate is up. The extra bat speed has him with a 95.1 mph average exit velocity and a 56 percent hard hit rate. He doesn't have any home runs just yet, but they should be coming.
Luisangel Acuna: The (not) switch-hitting Acuna was known for his foot speed coming into the season, and some additional power would be great. The problem is that he's hitting everything into the ground, with a 64 percent groundball rate. Maybe he can get up to 10-homer power. Maybe.
Jacob Young: Young seems like he wants to hit more home runs. Higher bat speed, with fewer groundballs (with his groundball rate dropping from 54 to 39 percent). He has one homer so far this season in 31 plate appearances. If he can get to 10 homers, 40 steals and a .240 average, he'd be comparable to Jakob Marsee.
Brandon Lockridge: Lockridge starts about two-thirds of the time while batting .308/.379/.346 with three steals. Like several of the guys featured today, Lockridge is putting the ball on the ground too much (80 percent groundball rate) to take full advantage of the added bat speed.
Nathan Church: Church starts against righties, but even then, he struggles (.143/.172/.250, 58 percent groundball rate, 31 percent strikeout rate). Nothing seems to be going right with him. Before the season started, I thought he could break out, with 20-homer, 20-steal potential. Right now, he's going to be lucky to stay in the majors.
Mark Vientos: If available, Vientos makes a solid add. Besides the improved bat speed, he's raised his contact rate from 70 percent to 75 percent. The additional contact has his strikeout rate dropping from 25 percent to 15 percent. His .474 BABIP won't last, but he's showing some solid skill improvement.
Rhys Hoskins: I came in wanting to show that Hoskins is swinging hard and rejuvenating his value, and then I see his 41 percent strikeout rate and 65 percent contact rate. His 21 percent walk rate is the only thing propping up his production. While he's slowly declined over the past few seasons, this drop might be the end for him.
Jonny DeLuca: No matter the changes, his value is limited since he's on the short side of an outfield platoon.
Henry Davis: Solid sleeper in two-catcher leagues. The 26-year-old's power metrics (swing speed, avgEV, maxEV) are at career highs. Additionally, he's making more contact (going from a 74 percent contact rate to 79 percent), leading to a halving of his strikeout rate (from 27 percent to 13 percent).
Max Muncy (Athletics): The 23-year-old Muncy is getting to more power (improving his average exit velocity from 87 mph to 94 mph), but it's coming at the expense of a 35 percent strikeout rate and 62 percent contact rate. A .434 BABIP is propping up his over stats, but it will never last.
