Season Review 2020: Corey Seager

[Randi]

After missing most of 2018 due to elbow and hip surgery, Corey Seager looked a little bit more like himself in 2019 when he finally returned to the field. In 2020, the Corey Seager we all loved watching returned to the field, and Mookie Betts aside, Seager was the best thing to watch on the Dodgers this season. After winning NLCS MVP and World Series MVP, he finished 9th in MVP voting for the regular season.

If this had been a full 162-game season instead of a 60-game season, we might have seen Seager set some new career highs. Over 52 games, he had a slash line of .307/.358/.585 with an OPS of .943. He had 12 doubles, 1 triple, 15 home runs, 41 RBI, 17 walks, and 38 runs. Offensively, he was getting it done in every aspect of the game. He was in the 98th percentile when it came to his hard hit % and xwOBA and 99th percentile in xBA and xSLG. Seager was crushing baseballs this year. 

Seager didn’t have the best year defensively. He finished with a 0.0 dWAR but possibly would’ve raised it had there been more games. Only once in his career has he finished with a negative dWAR, and it was, of course, in 2018 before he had Tommy John surgery. One play early on in the season when Seager made a diving play to rob Josh Reddick of two RBI to end the inning. Without that play by Seager, the Astros probably extend their lead 4-0, and the Dodgers might not have come back to win that game. Can’t forget his impressive over the shoulder catch against the Braves in Game 2 as well. 

Injuries weren’t non-existent for Seager in 2020, but luckily his lower back discomfort only kept him out of five games. He was the Dodgers hottest hitter when he left the game against the Giants on August 7. And it only took him four games after he returned to find his groove at the plate again. 

Seager was never known as a clutch hitter for the Dodgers in October, but that changed in 2020. Over 18 playoff games, Seager hit .328 while slugging .746 and had an on-base percentage of .425. His OPS was insanely high, sitting at 1.171. He had 22 hits, and 8 of them were home runs; 4 of them were doubles. He scored 20 runs and had 20 RBI. Even stole 2 bases while drawing 11 walks. Corey had many significant moments in the playoffs, but his Game 5 performance against the Braves when he hit two home runs was a big one. The first home run is what put the Dodgers on the board for the first time that game after already being down 3-1 in the series. He had a lot of postseason moments, which is why I’ve added a video at the bottom instead of trying to write about all of them.

Seager will be 27 next season and is entering the final year of his contract. He is estimated to make $12 million in 2021. I think it’s safe to say every Dodger fan is hoping to see him in Dodger Blue for a very long time. 

 

Corey Seager 2020 Highlights