August 6, 2020 3:01 PM : Semien, who went 1-for-4 with a run and three strikeouts in a win over the Rangers on Wednesday, is now sporting a 31.5 percent strikeout rate across his first 54 plate appearances.
Analysis: The leadoff hitter is typically responsible for setting the tone for a team's offense, and as such, it isn't surprising to see the Athletics have often struggled to score runs this season with Semien seeing a significant drop-off at the plate early. The veteran shortstop, who's due to hit the open market this coming offseason, has also seen a drop in walk rate from 11.6 percent to 3.7 percent and sports a pedestrian 25.7 percent hard contact rate after logging a 41.9 percent figure last season. There is no artificially low BABIP (.286) as a culprit either, as Semien is simply either swinging and missing or putting the ball in the air a lot more (51.4 percent flyball rate) than in previous seasons. Semien has hit safely in three of the past four games, but he still sports just a .130 average (3-for-24) in five August contests and hasn't left the yard yet this season after slugging a career-high 33 home runs in 2019.