Fowler has always been a raw player, ever since being drafted. He was a two sport athlete in high school, also playing basketball, and drew attention from colleges for both sports. He ultimately chose professional baseball, and was drafted by the Rockies. Two sport athletes typically take a longer time to develop because they haven't focused strictly on baseball, and throughout high school they usually succeed purely on their athleticism. They need the repetition of minor league seasons to turn their tools into skills, and learn the subtleties of the game.
Going into each season from 2007 to 2009, Fowler was considered a top 100 prospect. Throughout all levels of the minors, Fowler had an inflated BABIP of .378, which hid his red flag. The main problem for Fowler has always been his strikeout rate. Throughout the minors, it was always around 20%, and has been 22.5% in his major league career. A player who strikes out that often, and doesn't have much power, will struggle to hit for a good average in the majors. His BABIP in the majors has been .343 so far, but his average is only .260, thanks in part to his strikeout rate.
There is still hope for Fowler to kick start his career, and turn into a good major league player. Looking into his numbers, Fowler's career platoon splits stick out. As a left handed batter, Fowler hits .249/.341/.399, but right handed, Fowler is a .285/.380/.414 hitter. Against lefties, Fowler hits well, with an very good on base percentage. He doesn't hit for much power from either side, but that's not his game.
If Fowler quit switch hitting, and focused on batting right handed fulltime, he might be able to put together a consistently good batting line. Putting more time into hitting from his better side could prove to help Fowler realize the potential that he's always had. If his platoon splits were reversed, this would be a no brainer, because Fowler bats left handed most of the time anyway. But then again, this probably wouldn't be an issue, because his overall numbers would be much better.
Going into each season from 2007 to 2009, Fowler was considered a top 100 prospect. Throughout all levels of the minors, Fowler had an inflated BABIP of .378, which hid his red flag. The main problem for Fowler has always been his strikeout rate. Throughout the minors, it was always around 20%, and has been 22.5% in his major league career. A player who strikes out that often, and doesn't have much power, will struggle to hit for a good average in the majors. His BABIP in the majors has been .343 so far, but his average is only .260, thanks in part to his strikeout rate.
There is still hope for Fowler to kick start his career, and turn into a good major league player. Looking into his numbers, Fowler's career platoon splits stick out. As a left handed batter, Fowler hits .249/.341/.399, but right handed, Fowler is a .285/.380/.414 hitter. Against lefties, Fowler hits well, with an very good on base percentage. He doesn't hit for much power from either side, but that's not his game.
If Fowler quit switch hitting, and focused on batting right handed fulltime, he might be able to put together a consistently good batting line. Putting more time into hitting from his better side could prove to help Fowler realize the potential that he's always had. If his platoon splits were reversed, this would be a no brainer, because Fowler bats left handed most of the time anyway. But then again, this probably wouldn't be an issue, because his overall numbers would be much better.
For Fowler to abandon switch hitting and focus on hitting right handed only, would take a full off season with a lot of work. The biggest thing he'd need to do would be to face right handed pitchers as a right handed batter. Recognizing pitches from an angle that he's not familiar with would take lots of repetition. Fowler didn't start switch hitting until he was in the minor leagues, so he has some background being a right handed only hitter. At this point, I think that we have a large enough sample for Fowler to abandon switch hitting. His strikeout rate while batting left handed is 24.7%, and while he's batting right handed it's only 17.5%.
Fowler is only 25, and still a valuable asset for the Rockies. If the Rockies don’t deem this to be a worthy cause, they could trade him. Another organization might have a different philosophy that could click with Fowler better. There are other teams that would take a chance on Fowler living up to his potential. Up the middle players are always coveted by teams. Fowler still has time to create a spot for himself in the majors, if it's not as a all-star caliber player, he can still turn into a good league average player, who can play center field and get on base at a good rate.
Fowler is only 25, and still a valuable asset for the Rockies. If the Rockies don’t deem this to be a worthy cause, they could trade him. Another organization might have a different philosophy that could click with Fowler better. There are other teams that would take a chance on Fowler living up to his potential. Up the middle players are always coveted by teams. Fowler still has time to create a spot for himself in the majors, if it's not as a all-star caliber player, he can still turn into a good league average player, who can play center field and get on base at a good rate.
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