HOUSTON -- Last year, when MLB debuted its new bat tracking metrics, it was revealed that Angels first baseman Nolan Schanuel had one of the slowest velocity swings in the Majors.
Schanuel’s bat speed averaged 65.2 mph, which ranked as the fifth-slowest mark in the big leagues. It led to a high contact rate but not as much power, especially for a first baseman. So, Schanuel made it his mission to get stronger and work with underweighted and overweighted bats this offseason. That work paid off, as Schanuel is off to an impressive start, and his bat speed is 3 mph higher than last year, the third-best improvement in the Majors. He also homered on Saturday and again in Sunday’s 7-3 loss to the Astros in the series finale at Daikin Park.
“I did a lot of weightlifting, a lot of overload/underload with different bats,” Schanuel said. “I think that helped the most. It kind of helped it fast-twitch muscles in my body and kind of works the hips, works the obliques. I still do it every three days.”
Schanuel, 23, is slashing .298/.365/.491 with two homers, three doubles, a triple and seven RBIs through his first 15 games this year after batting .250/.343/.362 with 13 homers, 19 doubles and 54 RBIs in 147 games last year in his first full season in the Majors. He also set a career-best with an exit velocity of 109.8 mph on a single on March 31, which topped his high of 105.9 mph last year.
Schanuel said the next step to gaining more consistency is to let the ball travel deeper, which has helped fuel Kyren Paris’ emergence this season.
“I feel pretty good,” Schanuel said. “I feel like early on, especially in spring, I was catching the ball too far out forward, causing a lot of topspin, and kind of a little bit at the start of the season as well. So one thing I just had to work on was getting the ball a little deeper and not being out in front. I still feel like I'm a little out in front on the off-speeds. Even if I see it early, just kind of tend to try to get it out in front, but trying to see it a little deeper.”
Schanuel was rewarded with his first homer of the season on Saturday against the Astros and it was a no-doubter, landing 10 rows deep in right field. It left the bat at 103.3 mph, traveling a projected 383 feet, per Statcast, and would’ve been a homer in all 30 parks. His solo shot on Sunday left the bat at 99 mph and went a projected 371 feet, making it a homer in 28 parks. It was one of three solo blasts in a loss for the Angels, who became the first team in the Majors to reach the 30-homer mark.
“I think that kind of reflects on the work I put in in the offseason,” Schanuel said. “And hopefully, we’ll see many more of those this season.”
Angels manager Ron Washington has enjoyed watching Schanuel’s growth from last season and believes there’s more power to be unlocked. He has the frame at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, and now it’s about utilizing that improved bat speed to swing at the right pitches. But he's seen his isolated power or ISO improve since his first taste of the Majors in 2023, as it was .055 in his first year, .112 last year and .193 this season. The league average ISO is .148, including .157 for first basemen this season, so he’s well above that mark in the early going.
“He looks a little stronger,” Washington said. “I think he has a better idea of what they are trying to do to him than what he had last year. And last year set him up for what he's doing this year. Just watch and see where it goes. We're very happy with the way he's swinging the bat, and he caught one [Saturday] night and that just shows what he's got in him. And the time will come when he learns how to do that with a little more consistency.”