Ryan McMahon was acquired by the New York Yankees to be a defensive anchor at third base, removing the pressure off of him to be the middle-of-the-lineup threat he was asked to be for the Rockies.
Still, I think there’s more to his bat than what Colorado was able to unlock, and that those raw abilities played a role in the Yankees’ decision to take on the entirety of his contract.
The 30-year-old corner infielder possesses monstrous raw power, and yet he held an Isolated Power that was just good, not great, a shocking outcome for a hitter playing at Coors Field.
With some tweaks in his batted ball profile, the Yankees could unlock the power upside that McMahon has always possessed, and they could turn this trade into a massive win for the organization.
Why the Short Porch Could Turn Ryan McMahon Into the Yankees’ Ideal Corner Infielder
Ryan McMahon has displayed 70 grade raw power this year, having a 12.8% Barrel% and 93.9 MPH Average Exit Velocity, and yet his SLG% was just 1% better than league-average when adjusting for park environment.
He’s hitting more flyballs and fewer groundballs, and while he has a career-high 18.2% Air PULL%, he only has 16 home runs through 102 games.
On pace for about 23 round-trippers over 600 plate appearances, the discrepancy in raw and game power is something that has befuddled many analysts regarding McMahon throughout his career.
How is it that someone with his raw power has never hit more than 23 home runs while playing 81 games a year in Coors Field?
His spray chart on flyballs this season looks like what you’d expect for a right-handed hitter, predominately seeing them go to left field or centerfield.
This same issue plagued Jazz Chisholm with the Marlins, as his flyballs would mostly end up away from right field, seriously affecting his raw power.
Both of these hitters can crush the baseball when they make contact, but they fall short of having the 80-grade power that allows hitters such as Oneil Cruz or Aaron Judge to launch home runs regardless of spray angle.
Most pulled batted balls in the air tend to result in damage contact when the hitter has good raw power, but Ryan McMahon’s 1.041 xwOBA on pulled flyballs this season exceeds the likes of Pete Alonso and Oneil Cruz.
He compares to someone like Matt Olson (1.051) in that regard, and with a tweak in spray angle, the Yankees could unlock a massive surge in home runs from McMahon.
READ MORE: Yankees’ Trade Deadline Predictions: 2 moves to restock barren pitching staff
TO THE MOUNTAINS! 🏔️
Ryan McMahon hits a walk-off grand slam for the Rockies!
(via @MLB)pic.twitter.com/7qGSOqCIrW
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) April 5, 2024
Going to a ballpark like Yankee Stadium will only reward Ryan McMahon more on pulled flyballs, as if he can connect on a ball to right field in the air it’ll likely result in a home run.
He has the raw power to take full advantage of that part of the stadium, and as a lower-half of the lineup batter, he won’t have the pressure to go from below-average to dominant.
Steamer projects a .216/.308/.386 slashline for Ryan McMahon, which is a 95 wRC+ and would make him a massive improvement over what they got from Oswald Peraza.
If that ISO can bump from a projected .170 to a .200, that seemingly minor increase would result in a .724 OPS, which is an above-average mark in 2025.
With the stellar defense he provides at third base, this kind of player could rack up multiple 3-4 WAR seasons, and while that’s still not the sexy upgrade that someone like an Eugenio Suarez provides, it does make you notably better.
The Yankees have done a great job with left-handed power under James Rowson, with Juan Soto, Jazz Chisholm, Cody Bellinger, and Trent Grisham seeing their SLG% increase.
Maybe Ryan McMahon ends up being the exact player he was with the Rockies, but I think the Yankees can tap into that pullside power and turn his excellent raw power into big home run production.
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