RC+ Stumper #5: Reds Rookie Punishers

by — August 30, 2019 in Trivia

Welcome to RC+ Stat Stumper!

We’re taking a longtime ballpark tradition and giving it a  modern twist. At Great American Ball Park, the Scoreboard Stumper tests your knowledge of baseball history and you might learn a little bit about the Reds as well. The RC+ Stat Stumper is a weekly question about the Reds that involves a newer statistic.

We invite you to post your guesses in the comments (no looking up the answers, please). The correct answers and winners will be revealed prior to first pitch that day. Enjoy and thanks for playing!

RC+ Stat Stumper #5:

Aristides Aquino, aka The Punisher, is now the sole leader for home runs in a month by a National League rookie. His 14th home run last night passed Cody Bellinger. And while Aquino does hit the ball hard (hard enough to earn his nickname), his Hard-Hit % according to FanGraphs is only the 8th highest (38.9%) for a Reds rookie since 2002 with at least 100 plate appearances in a single season.

Four active Reds have had or are having a rookie season with a higher Hard%. Name those four players.

Tags:

Matt Habel

Matthew Habel was born and mostly raised in Cincinnati and was always a Reds fan growing up. Ironically, he did not become die-hard until moving to Pittsburgh after college and experiencing the 2013 Wild Card game behind enemy lines. While the "Cueto Game" is one of the worst sports moments of his life, he became enamored with the analytics side of the game after reading Big Data Baseball and watching the Pirates organization end their postseason drought. He started writing for Redleg Nation in 2017 and has enjoyed continuously learning more about the sport. He currently lives in Portland, Oregon where he loves exploring the great outdoors. Find him on Twitter @MattadorHeyBull

6 Responses

  1. Mike Bittenbender says:
    August 30, 2019 at 1:15 PM

    Votto VanMeter Lorenzen and Ervin

  2. Steve Mancuso says:
    August 30, 2019 at 3:49 PM

    Two questions: (1) Is Jesse Winker considered an “active” Reds player? (2) Do the players have to have been a rookie with the Reds?

  3. Steve Mancuso says:
    August 30, 2019 at 4:04 PM

    My guesses: Votto, Winker, VanMeter, Farmer.

  4. R Smith says:
    August 30, 2019 at 5:08 PM

    Votto Winker Van Meter and Schebler.

  5. Matt Wilkes says:
    August 30, 2019 at 5:15 PM

    Jay Bruce, Joey Votto, Jesse Winker, Josh VanMeter

  6. Matt Habel says:
    August 31, 2019 at 3:31 PM

    Everyone is close but no winners. The correct answers are:

    Josh VanMeter (47.9%)
    Jesse Winker (43.9%)
    Kyle Farmer (40.6%)
    Nick Senzel (40.0%)

    The other three, non-current players are pretty interesting as well.

    Mason Williams (45.8%)
    Josh Hamilton (40.4%)
    Chris Dickerson (39.7%)

Subscribe to RC+ via Email

Get an email every time we publish a new post!

Reds Content Plus is a site for passionate fans of the Cincinnati Reds. Our staff of independent writers covers the performance of Reds players and the strategies of the Reds manager and front office. Our content builds on what you’ll find at other Reds fan sites. What separates RC+ is our use of (and explaining) advanced statistical measures. Whether it’s a sacrifice bunt, intentional walk, stolen base, bullpen use, pinch hitting or pulling the starting pitcher, we’ll dig into the numbers. If you want to support us, check out our Support Page.