Earlier this month, DH Nelson Cruz was a late scratch from the Nationals' lineup when he was dealing with groin tightness when the Nationals played in Atlanta. Since his return back to the lineup Cruz hasn't been the same at all. This got us wondering what is going on with Nelson Cruz, and could his groin tightness have an effect on his performance?
After taking a closer look at the numbers there is an interesting story, that the groin injury might have an effect on his performance at the plate.
For the five games before his injury, Cruz had a 91.6 avg exit velo with 3 barrels(18.8%) and a 56.3% hard-hit percentage and was hitting .200/.273/.350 .623 OPS 82 wRC+
After coming back from the injury in his 13 games played his exit velocity has decreased to 88.6 avg with 2 barrels(5.1%) and his 38.5% hard-hit percentage has also decreased. Additionally, his overall batting numbers have been taking a hit also and are now hitting .163/.255/.224 .479 OPS 40 wRC+
Even over the past couple of games, things haven't improved for Cruz at-bat, and his numbers have dipped.
- Games 13-19 .185/.290/.185 .476 39 wRC+ 0 barrels 38.1% hard hit
- Games 20-26 .136/.208/.273 .481 41 wRC+ 2 barrels 38.9% hard hit
One has to ask the question, is Cruz still hurting?
Hat tip to @StatmasterSteve for taking a closer look at the numbers.