Is Ryan O’Hearn’s Power Worth Keeping Around for the Royals?
In what's essentially been a tale of two seasons for Ryan O'Hearn, he's facing the Kansas City Royals with an interesting decision to make this winter.
Don't get it twisted: This is not the same O'Hearn who burst onto the scene for 44 games in 2018. His .597 slugging percentage and .950 OPS will almost surely never be replicated. With that said, he's been better in 2021 than he has been over the past couple of years. Through his first 20 games of this season, though, that wasn't the case.
After going 1-for-2 on May 27, O'Hearn had a .189/.246/.377 line and an OPS of .623. His OPS from 2019-2020 was .638. This simply seemed like who he was as a player. Since rejoining the team for a game on June 22, though, O'Hearn's bat has performed much better.
A .263 batting average and .286 on-base percentage aren't pretty but when paired with a .449 slugging percentage, an OPS of .735 is improved. This stretch brings O'Hearn's season numbers to .240, .273, .427 and .700, respectively. Far from good, but not downright unplayable. The intriguing part stems from the Royals' overall lineup.
Even with his immense struggles to start the season, O'Hearn's slugging percentage ranks second on the team behind only Salvador Perez. The Carlos Santana experiment hasn't quite worked out how the team had hoped, and there simply aren't many power bats on the roster. O'Hearn is flawed — very much so — but he has flashed a plus trait considering the talent surrounding him.
Another thing to consider is O'Hearn's ability to play at three different spots in the lineup. As a designated hitter, he provides the off chance of some much-needed pop in a power-bereft lineup. At first base, he's been a very slight plus on defense this season. What's recently developed is his play as a right fielder. In 103 innings out there, he's posted a 2.3 UZR. It's a limited sample size, sure, but it's also better than Hunter Dozier's 1.5 mark over a much wider span.
O'Hearn's bat probably isn't worth playing on a daily basis. He strikes out a ton (55 in 57 games) and isn't consistent with his on-base ability. With that said, he has more power than many players currently on the team and has displayed at least some ability to fill in at first base, DH or right field when needed. Unfortunately, the Royals already have players (both MLB ready and waiting in the minors) who can play those spots as well. The need for O'Hearn isn't great.
O'Hearn is eligible for arbitration after this season. He doesn't have a great track record as a proven player and is 28 years old. He still might be worth stashing on the bench, though. As a prototypical "AAAA" player, he has stretches of great play followed up by month-long slumps. In a pinch, he can find ways to bring value.
If O'Hearn and the team go to arbitration, he won't command much of a salary. Trading him likely won't net the Royals much, if anything, in return. He's too good for Triple-A, but not good enough to be an everyday option at the MLB level. That presents the Royals with in interesting dilemma — and one that doesn't have an easy answer.
