Aaron Judge has gotten tons of attention this year (and rightfully so), but he's actually struggled to start the second half with the New York Yankees. One guy who's done anything but struggle, though, is shortstop Didi Gregorius.
Gregorius' last 49 plate appearances have produced a 216 wRC+, which is the sixth-best among qualified hitters since the All-Star break. What may be even more surprising, though, is that the five homers he's hit during this time are tied for the second-most, with Giancarlo Stanton's six bombs the only total that's higher.
This has been a growing trend for the shortstop since landing in the Bronx -- after hitting 9 homers and producing a .105 ISO in 2015, he upped those numbers to 20 and .171, respectively, last year. His ascension has continued in 2017, as he's currently on track to once again set new career highs in each category.
The biggest change so far between his performance in the first half and second half is his quality of contact. Here's how his soft-hit rate (Soft%), medium-hit rate (Med%), and hard-hit rate (Hard%) has progressed this season.
| Time Period | Soft% | Med% | Hard% |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Half | 23.8% | 54.7% | 21.5% |
| Second Half | 22.5% | 45.0% | 32.5% |
While his soft-hit rate hasn't changed all that much, it's at least not higher than his current hard-hit rate anymore.