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In just about every game in the month of September, Daylen Lile has done something special. With how much we are writing about him lately, you might as well rename Federal Baseball to the Daylen Lile fanclub. Last night was yet another example of why Nats fans have fallen in love with the 22 year old outfielder.
His September has just been completely bonkers. Lile is now hitting .370 with a 1.178 OPS for the month. Somehow, those are not the craziest Daylen Lile numbers. He has a mind numbing 7 triples, as well as 4 home runs. Only three other men have hit 7 triples and 4 homers in a month. Two of those players are Hall of Famers, Enos Slaughter and Willie Mays.
Before this month, not many people knew about Daylen Lile outside of the DMV. However, they are getting to know his name. Mets and Cubs fans are definitely not going to forget who Daylen Lile is after what he has done to them.
Last night, Lile put a big dent in the Mets playoff hopes. In the 11th inning of what had already been a bonkers game, Lile provided a piece of magic. He shot a ball over the center fielders head and it took a favorable bounce. After that, all Nats fans were thinking about a triple. While triples are Lile’s specialty, he was thinking about bigger things. He rounded third and sprinted home for an inside the park homer.
Seeing Lile sprint around the bases was a sight to behold. He may not use his athleticism to the best of its abilities in the outfield, but when he is going around the bases, it is magical. At 14.86 seconds, Lile’s sprint around the bases was the fastest by any Nat who hit an inside the park home run. The 22 year old was just flying around the bases.
This second half, and September in particular has locked Daylen Lile in as a piece of the Nationals core. He has a wRC+ of 124, which is 24% better than the league average hitter. His OPS is at .814 for the season, which is actually higher than James Wood. The advanced numbers also suggest that he is the real deal and not a product of luck. For a while, Lile was underperforming those advanced metrics, but with this September surge, he is right in line with those numbers.
Lile’s secret sauce is his batted ball angles. Guys like James Wood and Dylan Crews hit the ball harder than Lile, but they hit a lot of ground balls. However, Lile is a master at finding the sweet spot. His 43.9% launch angle sweet spot percentage is in the 100 percentile of all hitters. What that means is Lile is hitting the ball at angles where hits are more likely. It is a statistic that leads to a high batting average. That is why his expected batting average of .307 is even higher than his real batting average of .288.
Seeing a guy truly blossom is a joy to watch. That is what is happening with Daylen Lile right here. He is becoming the real deal before our very eyes. For a guy not many people had heard of a month ago, he is having one of the most electric months you will ever see.
I still think there is more to come for Lile. He is still so young and has a lot to learn. With his athleticism, I believe he will eventually turn that into being a decent fielder. Once his reads get better, he will be able to weaponize his speed in the field like he does on the bases.
For me, there are not many questions with the bat. He is just a natural at the plate with such a low maintenance swing. Lile is one of those guys who can just roll out of bed and hit. Guys like Abrams and Wood have swings that can get out of rhythm at times, but Lile’s is just so free and easy. You can put Daylen Lile on Mars and he will just hit.
After so many years of not being able to find a diamond in the rough, the Nationals finally have one. He hits the ball all over the yard and is a triple machine. His name is Daylen Lile and he is here to stay.
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