Astros: Josh Reddick has quietly put together a notable 2017 season

The addition of Josh Reddick in the Astros’ outfield has been a success in 2017.

If you may recall, the Astros signed then-free agent outfielder Josh Reddick to a four-year, $52 million contract.

At the time, it was an interesting contract.

For example, Reddick was coming off a 2016 season in which he produced an 104 wRC+ and an 1.1 WAR for the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers. It was arguably his worst season since 2011 when he produced a 2.0 WAR in 87 games. Last season he appeared in 115 games.

Yes, it wasn’t Reddick’s best showing. Committing $52 million to a soon-to-be 30-year old outfielder coming off a down season was a risky investment.

Fast forward to September 19, 2017, and the Astros have to pleased with Reddick’s performance this season.

Seriously, who couldn’t be pleased?

2017 offensive metrics: .315/.363/.482, 13 HR, 82 RBI, 125 wRC+, 8.0% BB%, 13.2% K%

If the season ended today, Reddick’s 125 wRC+ would be the highest of his career. The same goes for his batting average and slugging percentage. He is also likely to set a new career-high RBI total this season. His current career-high was 85 back in 2012.

Thanks to his improved offensive skill set, Reddick has already posted a 3.3 WAR. His previous career-high? 4.5 WAR in 2012.

In terms of defensive value, well, that’s another story if you subscribe to defensive metrics. For example, Reddick’s defensive rating per Fangraphs is -4.5. This is an improvement over the past two seasons. But his DRS (2) and UZR (0.6) are in the positive. Slightly, but still positive.

Regardless of the metrics, Reddick does bring much-needed range to the Astros’ outfield. Thanks to his acquisition, Houston was allowed to move George Springer to center field.

In terms of value converted into a dollar figure, Fangraphs has a useful calculation. And Reddick’s WAR converted to dollars for this season is  $26.2 million. Remember that this is not an indicator of future performance. But for this season, this is quite impressive. After all, Reddick is making $13 million this season.

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All in all, Reddick has brought move value to Houston than originally expected. In fact, he was predicted to finish the season with a 2.0 WAR per ZiPS. Good season thus far for the veteran outfielder.

**Statistics courtesy of Fangraphs**