Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Anthony Santander might be the most underrated hitter in the American League, at least from a national perspective. Overshadowed by the young talent on his own team, the 29-year-old Baltimore Orioles outfielder has 102 home runs and a 123 wRC+ over the past three seasons. This year’s numbers are especially impressive. A reliable cog in manager Brandon Hyde’s lineup — he’s played in 145 of the team’s 151 games — the switch-hitter from Margarita, Venezuela, has hit 41 homers while putting up a 129 wRC+ and a club-best 95 RBI this season.
The degree to which he remains under the radar is relative. Santander enjoyed his first All-Star selection this summer, and he is currently getting increased attention due to his forthcoming free agency. Accolades have nonetheless been in shorter-than-deserved supply, and that includes our own coverage here at FanGraphs. As evidenced by his player page, Santander’s name isn’t in the title of any piece we’ve published prior to the one you’re reading. As good as he’s been, that is something that needed to be corrected. Santander sat down to talk hitting one day after smacking his 40th home run of the season last week at Fenway Park.
David Laurila: How did you first learn to hit, and what has been your development path from there?
Anthony Santander: “My dad introduced me to baseball when I was 4 years old, and when I was young I was a pure right-handed hitter. I didn’t start switch-hitting until I started working to become a pro when I was 15 or 16. That took a little bit, because it was new for me.”
Laurila: Why did you start switch-hitting?
Santander: “I was facing a lot of righties. It was righty-righty so, ‘OK, let’s grab a bat from the left side.’ That’s a different angle, so it took a bit, but with a lot of reps in the cage, batting practice, and competing in games, I started learning how to hit from the left side. “I took a step forward in High-A. That’s when I started to become a student of the game, learning things like what the pitcher is trying to do. I would say that’s really when I learned how to hit, when I was in High-A ball.”
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