Matt Carpenter (65)

Stance: Starts from an open stance with elbows low and hands slightly below shoulder height. As the pitcher is set to release the ball he strides toward the plate with his front foot, generating power from his lower half. As he strides with his front foot his hands begin the motion of his swing. He cuts the plate in half with a smooth line drive swing.

Approach: Despite not possessing a typical leadoff hitter’s speed, Carpenter is one of the best run producers in all of baseball. He has possessed a good strikeout to walk rate over the course of his professional career. Carpenter has a natural talent for working the count and has posted a career batting average of just under .300 when behind in the count. He prefers the ball middle in but controls the strike zone consistently well. He is a very consistent hitter throughout the course of a season. Shows good pitch recognition. Likes to put the ball in play any way possible.

Hitting Ability: Carpenter is one of the games best contact hitters. He uses a smooth and compact swing to spray the ball to all fields. He does a great job of using the opposite field and driving the ball into the gaps. His quick hands and good pitch recognition allow for this. He has an incredibly high Z-swing percentage of 95%. (Contact made on pitches inside the zone). Further, Carpenter has the ability to hit lefties consistently well. (In 2012 five of his six home runs were against southpaws).

Power: Slightly below average power that does not play well in most parks (such as Busch Stadium). That being said, with his smooth and compact swing, he has the ability to square up about 10-15 home runs per year.

Running: Below average speed, but he hustles hard. He runs the bases well and has good baserunning instincts.

Fielding: Extremely versatile player who has played first, second, third and the outfield throughout his career. He is best defensively at second base or third. His versatility was shown this year by excelling at second base (a position he never played in the minor leagues). He takes good routes to the ball and shows good footwork around second base. He has excellent range at this position. He has above average arm strength (as he played third throughout his career) and has excellent accuracy with his throws, with only one throwing error from second base this season.

Physical Description: Tall and lean with good muscle distribution. Adding bad weight is not an issue. Has not suffered an injury all season, and he has proven the ability to keep in shape and play everyday.

Projection: Carpenter’s average may dip in 2014 due to a relatively high BABIP in 2013. He may potentially move around the infield again, due to the promotion of Kolten Wong. So long as there is a position for Carpenter to play, he will play it well defensively and impress with the bat. Look for the Cardinals to lock him up long-term and save money through buying out arbitration years as he will not be a free agent until 2018.