Is Austin Meadows Good
The 2019 Tampa Bay Rays’ breakout big hitter was Austin Meadows, who batted .291/.364/.558 with a 143 wRC+ and led the team in home runs with 33.
There had been big expectations for his role as an offensive pillar, but then 2020 came along and threw a wrench in the works. Meadows was found to be positive for COVID-19 at the start of Spring Training 2.0.
Due to this delay, he wasn’t activated on the MLB roster until the second week of the season, which was a significant setback for him.
When he hit, Meadows appeared lethargic and out of breath.
In 152 plate appearances, he hit 205/.296/.371 with a wRC+ of 87 and four home runs. His strikeout rate had increased by more than 10%, while his ISO had fallen by less than a hundredth of a percentage point.
However, he did continue to hammer the ball forcefully after making contact. His exit velocity of 90.3 mph matched that of his 2019 performance (90.4 mph) and he was tied with Randy Arozarena for the Rays’ regulars’ highest mark.
He slugged .137/.170/.255 with a 13 wRC+ in 53 playoff plate appearances. Although he didn’t do very well, he did have a tremendous hit.
Gerrit Cole allowed him to tie the game at 1-1 in game five of the ALDS, allowing Mike Brosseau the chance to hit a game-winning home run against Aroldis Chapman.
How big is Austin Meadows?
The 6-foot-3, 210-pound left-handed hitter maintains his athleticism despite gaining 10-15 pounds since last summer, despite his 6-foot-3 size. Scouts think it’s a nice weight, so staying in the center field may be a problem for Meadows in the future.
Austin Meadows weighs around 91 kg
