The athletic 6-foot-1, 160 Lb primary outfielder added 15 lbs from last year, getting stronger and quicker making jumps in his metrics across the board this preseason. The improved arm strength, speed with his quick first step will allow him to play any of the 3 OF positions. At the Plate Gage's Blast metrics all saw a up tick (Rotational Acceleration 24.5 G / Hand Speed 24 MPH / Bat Speed 75 MPH). This directly correlated to the results in BP where we not only saw a jump in his max exit velocity & distance (+7 MPH / 332'), but his AVG EV was up from 74.8 MPH to 86 MPH for an impressive, complete round of BP. On the mound Michael's FB went from averaging 77 MPH in '21 to 81 MPH this preseason while maintaining his command and feel for the breaking ball. The easy effort, balanced delivery shows signs of more velocity to come.
Progress Report