When Wil Myers signed his 6-year, $83 million contract the Padres expected him to be more than just the All-Star 1st baseman he’s turned in to.
They expected him to be the leader of the team and set the tone for the youth movement the franchise undertook. To steal a line from Swingers they wanted him to be “The guy behind the guy behind the guy” while still becoming the face of the franchise.
It is the largest contract the Padres have ever given out and right now it’s looking like they got a bargain, and not just because he has taken a liking to hitting giant extra-inning home runs to beat the Giants.
Myers leads the Padres in home runs, runs batted in, runs scored, batting average, doubles, triples, slugging percentage, OPS and bat flips. That’s not too shabby. Now, he’s striking out at an alarming rate (29.1% in April, easily a career high) but he’s also hitting the ball harder than he ever has. I’m about to get geeky on you so hang with for just a moment please.
After the first month of the season Myers has an ISO of .283 (ISO is a stat that measures raw power) and his BABIP (batting average on balls in play) is a robust .384. What that means is Myers is among the league leaders when it comes to power hitting metrics, even better than Marlins masher Giancarlo Stanton.
Myers’ numbers this April are well above his career average for the month and traditionally he spikes in June, suggesting the best offensive season of his career to date has commenced.
So from a purely statistical standpoint Myers is living up to his big dollar deal. But spending time around the clubhouse you can also see the impact he’s having on the kids. Myers has taken on more of a leadership role, answering questions that young players have and offering advice when they’re struggling. What’s doubly good is he has not lost his general demeanor, keeping that unflappable "never too high or too low" attitude.
As the Padres grow up on the job they need someone to be the steadying force when things inevitably go haywire. Myers has the personality … and now the desire to be that guy.
