Will Benson needs to make this adjustment and he’ll become a Star
Will Benson is one of the most interesting players in the league at the moment. Last season in 287 at bats, he hit 11 home runs while putting up an impressive slash line of .275/.365/.498. So far in 2024, he has been extremely underwhelming. He is currently hitting .214 with an OPS of .739. What has gone wrong with Will Benson and how can he fix it?
Advanced stats indicate that Benson might be the only player in the majors with an 80 grade eye and a 20 grade swing. He’s exceptional at avoiding pitches outside the strike zone and targeting those within it. Among his teammates only Jonathan India chases fewer pitches outside the zone. Unlike Benson, India rarely swings at all, including at strikes. Benson on the other hand, has a high swing rate for pitches inside the zone as well. The problem? He also has an extremely high whiff percentage. One of the worst in the league, in fact. The result is that his strikeout percentage has skyrocketed and his batting average is approaching Mendozaville.
Bensons batting stance seems ideal for a player poised too strike with a short compact swing path, and he possesses the strength to inflict damage doing so. However, as soon as the pitcher releases the ball his swing gets long and slow. This not only shows through his bat speed average (71.8mph, which ranks in the bottom half of the league) but also his batting average against fastballs. Last year Benson hit .297 on fastballs and this year he is hitting .235 in roughly the same sample size. This suggests that the league has adjusted the location of fastballs that Benson is receiving. From what I’ve noticed, he has been challenged a lot with high fastballs this year and he has not been able to adjust accordingly. The solution is simple. He needs to shorten up his swing. Benson already possesses well above average power, there is no reason for his swing to be as long as it is. If he is able to shorten up his swing his bat speed average will go up, and his whiff percentage will go down.
Another issue that Benson has that pitchers can take advantage of, is that he pulls the ball too much. This is evident in his 48.6% pull rate so far in 2024. He clearly needs to start looking to do more damage to the opposite field as well. Despite the struggles he has had so far this season, Will Benson presents an intriguing package of skills and if he is ever able to maximize those skills, look out.
