SPECULATOR: The best and worst of early hitting performances
Apr 20 2013
It's still too early to start drawing any kind of conclusions about whether any hot or cold starts we have seen so far are sustainable. But it's not too early to ask what they could look like, if they are real. Here are five hot-starting hitters and five cold-starting hitters, with a stab at what their full-season performance might look like, if they can do for 24 more weeks what they have done for the first two.
Hot starters
Justin Upton (OF, ATL)
So far: 9-13-.328-2 SB in 58 AB.
Supporting evidence: Simple extrapolation of these 58 AB would give Upton a shot at 90 HR in a full season, which of course is ridiculous. 39% of his fly balls have cleared the fence, which can't last. But the rest of his BPI, especially h% and ct%, are in...
Almost!
You’re just a few clicks away from accessing this feature and hundreds more throughout the year that have a singular goal in mind: Winning your league. Subscribe to BaseballHQ.com here!
Already a subscriber? Sign in here
More From Speculator
Using our Quality of Batted Ball (QBaB) metric to make some speculative hitter snap judgments.
Apr 8 2026 3:06am
Apr 8 2026 3:06am
Baseball is back, and it's time to overreact... because what else are we supposed to do?
Apr 1 2026 3:08am
Apr 1 2026 3:08am
Our Opening Day Eve tradition speculating on the top category producers who went late in drafts.
Mar 25 2026 3:07am
Mar 25 2026 3:07am
If history is any guide, this year's end-of-season Top 15 will come from all stages of the draft.
Mar 18 2026 3:08am
Mar 18 2026 3:08am
What lessons can we apply from Drew Rasmussen's 2025 breakout to this year's player pool?
Mar 11 2026 8:36am
Mar 11 2026 8:36am
