The Nats have a bevy of phenomenal hitters in their lineup and Rendon is certainly one of them. He was solid for the team last year, by accumulating a .270 average and .797 OPS with 20 homers and 85 RBI.
However, the third baseman has kicked things into another gear in 2017. Rendon is hitting a robust .318 in 305 at-bats with 22 doubles, 20 home runs, 64 RBI and a stellar 1.017 OPS.
The big difference for Rendon this season is his keen eye at the plate. The infielder has walked 54 times and struck out just 50 times, which has led to a career-high .423 on-base percentage.
If Rendon keeps this pace up until season’s end, it will mark the first time in his career that he compiles an OBP over .400 and have a higher number of walks than strikeouts.
The prowess at the plate shown by Rendon isn’t a surprise, considering he finished fifth in the NL MVP voting in 2014 with 66 extra-base hits, 83 RBI, an OPS+ of 125 and led the league with 111 runs scored.
In 26 games against the Diamondbacks, he has a .330 average with nine extra-base hits.
Rendon also thrives hitting at Chase Field, by having a .355 batting average and .889 OPS in eight career games.