Cubs Quick Hits: Anthony Rizzo’s Disparate Halves in 2016

Anthony Rizzo finished 2016 with a .391 wOBA, the product of a .419 mark in the first half that was much higher than his .357 in the second half. But the randomness of baseball dictates that Rizzo wasn’t necessarily worse after the All-Star break. Upon deeper inspection, we find one notable and reliable difference between the two halves: walk rate.

Rizzo’s walk rate in the first half of 2016 was 13.4%, whereas his aggressiveness in the second half led to a 7.9% walk rate.