Sal Frelick has become even more elite in this one area amid inconsistent 2026 season

Milwaukee Brewers fan favorite outfielder Sal Frelick is off to an uncharacteristically slow start at the plate this season. Entering play on June 27, the left-hander has just a .236 batting average and a .628 OPS, which are both significantly lower than his career marks of .263 and .693.

One of the biggest changes in Frelick's offensive profile this season has been an increase in ground-ball rate. Currently, 53% of his balls in play have been on the ground, nearly 10 percentage points higher than his career average. As a result, his batting average on balls in play (BABIP) has decreased to a career-low .245, meaning instead of serving the ball into open areas of the field, he is rolling over pitches into routine groundouts.

However, necessary adjustments seem to have been made, as Frelick has begun to turn the corner in June, slashing .304/.371/.411 during the month while continuing to be one of the best contact hitters in the league. Even more impressive, he has gone 31 consecutive plate appearances without a strikeout, which is currently the second-longest streak in the league behind only Luis Arraez of the San Francisco Giants. Frelick's streak began out west against the Athletics and has continued through series against the Philadelphia Phillies, Cleveland Guardians, Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, and now one game against the Chicago Cubs.

Despite offensive inconsistency, Sal Frelick has improved as a contact hitter in 2026

Since debuting in 2023, Frelick has established himself as one of the game's toughest hitters to strike out, carrying a career strikeout rate of just 13.7%. This season, however, he has taken that skill to another level, evidenced by a strikeout rate of just 9.5%. That mark ranks fifth-best in Major League Baseball, trailing only Jung Hoo Lee, Ildemaro Vargas, Nico Hoerner, and Luis Arraez.

In addition to his improved strikeout numbers, Frelick has improved his zone contact rate, chase rate, whiff rate, and walk rate in 2026 compared to his 2025 numbers. In practically every metric relating to contact, Frelick has improved in 2026, but his overall numbers are far worse. Improving his line drive rate, which is one of the few underlying metrics that was better in 2025 than 2026, will certainly improve Frelick's outcomes. Additionally, if Frelick wants to replicate his surprising power output from a season ago, pulling the ball in the air, which was how the Brewers' outfielder hit 12 homers a season ago, is key.

Overall, the process hasn't been much different for Frelick this year when compared to his breakout 2025 season. In fact, in many ways, his contact skills have improved this season. The numbers are starting to come around for the 26-year-old Frelick, which is necessary given the pressure that 2026 standout Jake Bauers has put on Milwaukee's Gold Glove-winning right fielder.

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