Pittsburgh Pirates: Two Batters Benefitting From a High Batting Average on Balls in Play

Why Peguero is more likely to sustain current numbers

It is much more likely that Peguero can sustain a high BAbip than it is for Triolo to sustain one. First off, Peguero brings a speed element to the table that Triolo does not. Peguero has a 60-grade speed tool and ranks in the 98th percentile of baseball in spring speed. Batters with that type of speed are going to turn more balls in play that are typically outs into hits which can keep their BAbip high. Starling Marte's career .351 BAbip is an example of this.

A second reason this is more sustainable for Peguero than Triolo is the difference in the quality of contact. Peguero owns a 25.8% line drive rate and 6.5% barrel rate, both of which are right about league average. So is his average exit velocity of 86.4 MPH.

For Triolo, these numbers are not nearly as strong. Both his 1.3% barrel rate and average exit velocity of 84.2 MPH are well below league average. So is Triolo's 29.9% hard hit rate. Even though he has a strong 28% line drive rate, this is not enough to cancel out all of the other poor conact numbers.