Alek Thomas

22-Year-Old OutfielderOF

Arizona Diamondbacks

2022 Stats

AVG

.316

RBI

Rest-of-Season Projections

AVG

RBI

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2022 Fantasy Outlook

Thomas put up impressive numbers (.313/.394/.559, 18 HR, 13 SB in 106 games) at Double-A and Triple-A last season at an appropriate age (21) for a top prospect at those levels. However, it should be noted that he took advantage of the hitter-friendly conditions in Amarillo and Reno (1.086 home OPS, .835 road OPS). Even so, his 20.0 K% and 10.5 BB% were encouraging marks, and he used the whole field at both stops. His groundball rate has been north of 50% at every stop other than High-A in 2019, so it's a hit-over-power profile, and given his slight build (5-foot-11, 175 pounds), it will likely always be that way. The key for Thomas to be a valuable fantasy outfielder will be for him to be hitting first or second in the lineup and putting his plus speed to use on the bases. He was successful on 59.1% of his stolen-base attempts last season and has a 61.5% success rate for his career, so 10-15 steals per season seems like a fair estimate in the majors. He doesn't have much left to prove in the minors, and center field is wide open for him at the big-league level, so we could see him in the first half. Read Past Outlooks

RANKSFrom Preseason

#565

ADP

Dynasty

Prospect

League Majors

Bats L

Throws L

40 Man Yes

Height 5'11"

Weight 175

DOB 4/28/2000

Born Chicago, IL

College None

Drafted 2nd Rd 2018 ARI

Homers in opener

OFArizona Diamondbacks

May 18, 2022

Thomas went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Dodgers. He later went 2-for-4 in the nightcap.

ANALYSIS
Thomas looks like he's here to stay in the majors with 10 hits, including two home runs, over his first 31 major-league at-bats. He's doing it with a style most hitting coaches don't teach -- a pronounced leg kick and a lot of hand movement before unleashing his swing. "It feels like there's a lot going on," Arizona hitting coach Joe Mather told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. "But when it's always been followed by production, you have to let him play it out. There is a lot going on, but basically all that is for him is just setting him up to be in position to hit the ball." With the Diamondbacks batting .205 (29th in MLB), the rookie's .323 average stands out.

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Batting Stats

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2022

2022 MLB Game Log

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Minor League Game Log

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Batting Order Slot Breakdown

vs Right-Handed Pitchers

vs RHP

vs Left-Handed Pitchers

vs LHP

Left/Right Batting Splits

Since 2020

+201%

OPS vs RHP

2022

+201%

OPS vs RHP

2021

No Stats

2020

No Stats

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2020vs Left	.364	11	1	0	0	0	.182	.182	.182
Since 2020vs Right	1.097	28	5	2	4	0	.370	.393	.704
2022vs Left	.364	11	1	0	0	0	.182	.182	.182
2022vs Right	1.097	28	5	2	4	0	.370	.393	.704
2021vs Left	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2021vs Right	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2020vs Left	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2020vs Right	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
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Home/Away Batting Splits

Since 2020

+58%

OPS at Home

2022

+58%

OPS at Home

2021

No Stats

2020

No Stats

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2020Home	1.084	20	5	1	3	0	.368	.400	.684
Since 2020Away	.684	19	1	1	1	0	.263	.263	.421
2022Home	1.084	20	5	1	3	0	.368	.400	.684
2022Away	.684	19	1	1	1	0	.263	.263	.421
2021Home	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2021Away	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2020Home	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2020Away	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
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Stat Review

How does Alek Thomas compare to other hitters?

This section compares his stats with all batting seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 400 plate appearances)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.

* Exit Velocity and Barrels/PA % are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 400 PA) and Hard Hit Rate is benchmarked against last season's data (min 400 PA). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.

BB/K
Walk to strikeout ratio
BB Rate
The percentage of plate appearances resulting in a walk.
K Rate
The percentage of plate appearances resulting in a strikeout.
BABIP
Batting average on balls in play. Measures how many of a batter’s balls in play go for hits.
ISO
Isolated Power. Slugging percentage minus batting average. A computation used to measure a batter's raw power.
AVG
Batting average. Hits divided by at bats.
OBP
On Base Percentage. A measure of how often a batters reaches base. Roughly equal to number of times on base divided by plate appearances.
SLG
Slugging Percentage. A measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at bats.
OPS
On base plus slugging. THe sum of a batter's on-base percentage and slugging percentage.
wOBA
Weighted on-base average. Measures a player's overall offensive contributions per plate appearance. wOBA combines all the different aspects of hitting into one metric, weighting each of them in proportion to their actual run value.
Exit Velocity
The speed of the baseball as it comes off the bat, immediately after a batter makes contact.
Hard Hit Rate
A measure of contact quality from Sports Info Solutions. This stat explains what percentage of batted balls were hit hard vs. medium or soft.
Barrels/PA
The percentage of plate appearances where a batter had a batted ball classified as a Barrel. A Barrel is a batted ball with similar exit velocity and launch angle to past ones that led to a minimum .500 batting average and 1.500 slugging percentage.

BB/K

0.13

BB Rate

2.6%

K Rate

20.5%

BABIP

.357

ISO

.237

AVG

.316

OBP

.333

SLG

.553

OPS

.886

wOBA

.383

Exit Velocity

84.7 mph

Hard Hit Rate

30.0%

Barrels/PA

7.7%

Prospect Rankings History

Advanced Batting Stats

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Additional Stats

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Defensive Stats

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Batted Ball Stats

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Stats Vs Upcoming Pitchers

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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Alek Thomas

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Past Fantasy Outlooks

2021

2020

2019

Given the well-deserved hype surrounding Kristian Robinson and Corbin Carroll, Thomas feels a bit like a forgotten man. He can't match the upside of his organizational outfield mates, but Thomas is the elder statesman (turning 21 in late April) and could beat them to the majors. The lefty-hitting center fielder has long fit the archetype of a potential table setter, thanks to a strong hit tool and 60-grade speed. He doesn't have a great arm, but is a good enough defender in center field to be an everyday player even if he never taps into 20-homer pop. Thomas will probably need to become a plus hitter to be a sought after fantasy commodity, otherwise he will be a Kevin Kiermaier type who gets scooped up in the later rounds strictly for his stolen-base contributions. He should open the year at Double-A and should reach the majors in 2022.

Thomas' prospect value peaked when he was riding high in the Midwest League, looking the part of a future five-category center fielder. With a well-rounded tool set that is headlined by plus speed and a potentially plus hit tool, that outcome is still very much in play, but he had a poor showing in a 23-game stint in the Cal League. His K% skyrocketed from 17.9% at Low-A to 31.7% at High-A, and his BB% ticked down. He stopped doing damage when he connected -- his ISO was cut in half and he logged just four extra-base hits in 104 PA. His GB% fell from 55.5% to 46.7%, so he may have been tinkering with his swing after the promotion. He definitely needed to cut down on the groundballs, so this could end up being a positive. A 153 wRC+ in 91 games is more instructive than four weeks' worth of struggles by a 19-year-old at High-A, but he needs to recapture the command of the strike zone he showed at Low-A.

It seemed valid to be concerned about Thomas' lack of physicality during the pre-draft process -- his listed measurements of 5-foot-11, 175 pounds appear pretty generous. The No. 63 overall pick put those concerns to rest by showing above-average potential on both sides of the ball. He stays within himself, lacing the ball to all fields while taking his fair share of walks (8.9 BB%) and rarely striking out (13.6 K%). In addition to showing the potential to develop into a .300 hitter in the big leagues, Thomas puts his plus speed to good use on the bases (12-for-17 on SB attempts in 272 PA). It is possible that he could develop enough power to hit 10-to-15 home runs in a good year, but it will be his batting average, steals and runs that drive his fantasy value. The Diamondbacks will send him to the Midwest League for his first full season. He was one of the younger high schoolers in his class, and won't turn 19 until April 28.

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