Earlier this offseason, I examined hitters who saw their max exit velocity jump (maxEV). With Spring Training exit velocities for all players, some players have improved. I'm going to list those players and highlight a few of them, especially those showing improved contact skills.
The reason peak power is important starts with common sense. Hit a ball hard and good things will happen. Rob Arthur took it a step further and found that:
For every mile per hour above 108 [maxEV], a hitter is projected to gain about 6 points of OPS relative to their predicted number.
There's not much that can be gleaned from Spring Training, but hitting the ball harder is one. Here are the hitters who have seen a 1 mph increase from their 2025 max Exit Velocity.
| Name | MPH Increase | Spring Training maxEV | 2025 maxEV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adael Amador | 7.0 | 110.5 | 103.5 |
| Jac Caglianone | 6.1 | 120.2 | 114.1 |
| Reese McGuire | 4.5 | 110.2 | 105.7 |
| Brandon Lockridge | 4.5 | 112.6 | 108.1 |
| Chas McCormick | 4.4 | 110.8 | 106.4 |
| Jose Herrera | 4.0 | 110.1 | 106.1 |
| Matt Vierling | 3.1 | 110.9 | 107.8 |
| Elias Diaz | 3.1 | 114.5 | 111.4 |
| Josh Lowe | 2.9 | 112.1 | 109.2 |
| Tyler Wade | 2.9 | 103.4 | 100.5 |
| Alex Jackson | 2.7 | 111.4 | 108.7 |
| Wyatt Langford | 2.7 | 115.8 | 113.1 |
| Nick Loftin | 2.7 | 108.0 | 105.3 |
| Christian Moore | 2.6 | 115.1 | 112.5 |
| Kyle Karros | 2.6 | 110.1 | 107.5 |
| Gabriel Moreno | 2.5 | 112.8 | 110.3 |
| JJ Bleday | 2.5 | 112.4 | 109.9 |
| Eli White | 2.3 | 111.9 | 109.6 |
| TJ Friedl | 2.1 | 109.7 | 107.6 |
| Heston Kjerstad | 2.0 | 108.8 | 106.8 |
| Dane Myers | 1.8 | 109.9 | 108.1 |
| Matt Chapman | 1.7 | 115.2 | 113.5 |
Earlier this offseason, I examined hitters who saw their max exit velocity jump (maxEV). With Spring Training exit velocities for all players, some players have improved. I'm going to list those players and highlight a few of them, especially those showing improved contact skills.
The reason peak power is important starts with common sense. Hit a ball hard and good things will happen. Rob Arthur took it a step further and found that:
For every mile per hour above 108 [maxEV], a hitter is projected to gain about 6 points of OPS relative to their predicted number.
There's not much that can be gleaned from Spring Training, but hitting the ball harder is one. Here are the hitters who have seen a 1 mph increase from their 2025 max Exit Velocity.
| Name | MPH Increase | Spring Training maxEV | 2025 maxEV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adael Amador | 7.0 | 110.5 | 103.5 |
| Jac Caglianone | 6.1 | 120.2 | 114.1 |
| Reese McGuire | 4.5 | 110.2 | 105.7 |
| Brandon Lockridge | 4.5 | 112.6 | 108.1 |
| Chas McCormick | 4.4 | 110.8 | 106.4 |
| Jose Herrera | 4.0 | 110.1 | 106.1 |
| Matt Vierling | 3.1 | 110.9 | 107.8 |
| Elias Diaz | 3.1 | 114.5 | 111.4 |
| Josh Lowe | 2.9 | 112.1 | 109.2 |
| Tyler Wade | 2.9 | 103.4 | 100.5 |
| Alex Jackson | 2.7 | 111.4 | 108.7 |
| Wyatt Langford | 2.7 | 115.8 | 113.1 |
| Nick Loftin | 2.7 | 108.0 | 105.3 |
| Christian Moore | 2.6 | 115.1 | 112.5 |
| Kyle Karros | 2.6 | 110.1 | 107.5 |
| Gabriel Moreno | 2.5 | 112.8 | 110.3 |
| JJ Bleday | 2.5 | 112.4 | 109.9 |
| Eli White | 2.3 | 111.9 | 109.6 |
| TJ Friedl | 2.1 | 109.7 | 107.6 |
| Heston Kjerstad | 2.0 | 108.8 | 106.8 |
| Dane Myers | 1.8 | 109.9 | 108.1 |
| Matt Chapman | 1.7 | 115.2 | 113.5 |
| Coby Mayo | 1.7 | 111.5 | 109.8 |
| Matt Mervis | 1.6 | 109.8 | 108.2 |
| Spencer Steer | 1.5 | 109.8 | 108.3 |
| Danny Jansen | 1.4 | 108.8 | 107.4 |
| Alek Thomas | 1.3 | 111.9 | 110.6 |
| Victor Scott II | 1.3 | 108.0 | 106.7 |
| Dansby Swanson | 1.3 | 110.6 | 109.3 |
| Harrison Bader | 1.3 | 113.6 | 112.3 |
| Jeff McNeil | 1.2 | 108.3 | 107.1 |
| Leo Rivas | 1.2 | 105.4 | 104.2 |
| Ke'Bryan Hayes | 1.0 | 110.7 | 109.7 |
| Joey Loperfido | 1.0 | 108.2 | 107.2 |
| Willie MacIver | 1.0 | 109.7 | 108.7 |
| Ryan Ritter | 1.0 | 109.4 | 108.4 |
Here are my thoughts on some of these guys.
Adael Amador: Amador has never hit a ball over 104 mph in the majors, but he got ahold of one this Spring Training. It seems to be his only hit hard, as his average Exit Velocity is down (84.8 mph to 83.1 mph). With the additions of Edouard Julien and Willi Castro, he's not assured much playing time.
Jac Caglianone: The news was all over Caglianone crushing his previous high. Hitting a ball 120.2 mph would have ranked him third on the 2025 maxEV leaderboard. He hit this ball Feb. 26. Before that date, he was drafted in all 73 NFBC Rotowire Online Championship leagues with an 207 average draft position (ADP), going as early as pick 172. Since that hit, he's moved up 22 spots to a 184 ADP and went as early as the 157th pick.
Matt Vierling: Vierling experienced his worst season in the majors last year with a 76 wRC+ in only 100 PA as he dealt with shoulder and oblique injuries. This spring, he's hitting the ball hard with a 95 mph average exit velocity. Besides hitting the ball harder, he has a 94 percent contact rate, well above his career mark of 83 percent. Additionally, he's played all three outfield positions while hitting in the top three lineup spots.
Wyatt Langford: Langford is on fire so far, hitting the ball hard and improving his contact rate from 76 percent to 92 percent across 21 plate appearances. He could put up first-round value if the improvements hold.
Christian Moore: Even though Moore is hitting the ball harder, he's putting too many of them on the ground (58 percent groundball rate). It is nice to see his strikeout rate drop from 34 percent to 23 percent. In redraft leagues, he's barely being added, so he makes for a nice dart throw.
Kyle Karros: Karros is battling Ryan Ritter and Willi Castro for playing time at third base. In 23 spring training plate appearances, he's hit more home runs and stolen more bases than he did in 156 PA last year in the majors.
Gabriel Moreno, TJ Friedl, and Victor Scott II: This trio has been solid contact hitters over their careers but with limited power. They could have another gear if they can finally hit for some power.
Heston Kjerstad: Maybe a breakout is finally happening for Kjerstad. He already has two homer runs and has cut his strikeout rate from 27 percent to 19 percent. His performance so far just adds to the Orioles' playing time confusion.
Harrison Bader: While it only comes in 13 plate appearances, this new power mark, along with his contact rate increasing from 74 percent to 79 percent, makes him a solid late addition.
