Players / Player profile
TB · 2B

Richie Palacios

Age 29 B/T L/R 5′8″, 185 lb USA MLB debut 2022
40-man
  • Tampa Bay’s roster as it stands starts at 2B · 402 PA · 1.0 WAR in the role
  • Trade read Available at a price: TB 36% playoff odds; control through 2029.
xwOBA .307 wOBA .322
2026 fWAR 1.0
Projected 2027 WAR 0.9 at 404 PA · 1.0 in his 2027 role

Hitting · 2026 percentiles

vs. MLB hitters with 300+ PA · 396 PA

xwOBA .307 xwOBA: .307, 32nd percentile
Swing decisions −0.59 Swing decisions: −0.59, 24th percentile
Contact value −0.45 Contact value: −0.45, 30th percentile
Bat speed 69.1 Bat speed: 69.1, 16th percentile
Squared-up / swing 23% Squared-up / swing: 23%, 56th percentile
Blasts / swing 4% Blasts / swing: 4%, 9th percentile
EV90 101.0 EV90: 101.0, 12th percentile
Barrel % 4.0% Barrel %: 4.0%, 16th percentile
Chase % 32.4% Chase %: 32.4%, 33rd percentile
Zone contact 85.4% Zone contact: 85.4%, 56th percentile
Strikeout % 16.7% Strikeout %: 16.7%, 77th percentile
Walk % 11.6% Walk %: 11.6%, 85th percentile

Platoon splits · swing path

By pitcher handedness

vsPAwOBAxwOBAK%BB%ChaseDecisionsContact
LHP64.229.22219%9%37%−0.79−3.55
RHP332.340.32316%12%32%−0.55+0.08
Attack angle
7.6° (53% in 5–20°)
Attack direction
−5.2°
Swing length
7.3 ft
Fast-swing rate
4%
Pull-air %
18.2%
Hard-hit %
29.3%
Slash · wRC+
.235/.330/.374 · 101

Zone map · 2026

Where he does damage, and where to pitch him

−0.9+0.1−0.3+1.3−0.7+0.6−1.5+2.8−0.6+0.10.0+1.0+2.1−2.7−0.4−0.9−0.6+1.8−3.4+0.9−0.2+0.9−1.2−0.8−1.4LHB

Does the most damage up over the middle (+2.8 vs. league per 100; 1.3 standard errors on 71 pitches, inside the noise for the best of nine cells).

Weakest down and in (−3.4), but only 1.5 standard errors from average on 43 pitches: no in-zone spot to attack yet.

Runs per 100 pitches vs. an average LHB: better · worse. Catcher’s view · 1,396 pitches · faded cells are within one standard error of average. A spot is called only when it is farther from average than the best or worst of nine average cells gets 95% of the time (set from the league’s own pitches: about 3 standard errors above, 2 below).

Most similar hitters

Swings like Palacios: bat path, contact quality and approach

SimilarityPlayerxwOBA’26 WAR’27 proj2027
69Cooper Pratt MIL · ’04.3201.71.9Signed $3.9M
68Matt Shaw CHC · ’01.3060.71.2Pre-arb
65Austin Hedges CLE · ’92.2901.00.5Free agent
62Travis Bazzana CLE · ’02.3002.82.4Pre-arb
59Brayan Rocchio CLE · ’01.2973.62.0Arb

Nearest neighbours on bat speed, swing length, attack angle, squared-up and blast rates, EV90, barrels, pull-air, chase, zone contact, K% and BB%. 2026 regulars only.

Fielding

2027 rating at every position he can play · OAA by position · range by direction · tools. Same engine as the Fielding Lab and the Winter Plan.

2027 rating by position · best fit first, on the total with the position’s worth
2B −3.2 −0.7
3B −5.9prior −6.4
RF −0.9 −11.4
LF −1.7 −12.2
Outs Above Average by position
SeasonPosOAARangeArm, DPRunsBatters
2026LF000.00.036
20263B000.00.039
20262B−7−5+0.8−4.23,585
2025RF−1−1−0.1−1.133
20251B000.00.064
2025LF−2−2−0.2−2.2131
20252B−1−1−0.2−1.2145
2024SS000.00.011
20243B−2−10.0−1.042
2024LF+1+1−0.4+0.6585
2024RF+1+1−0.6+0.41,001
20242B+1+1−0.7+0.31,075
20232B000.00.034
2023RF000.00.040
2023CF−1−1+0.2−0.8274
2023LF−1−1+0.5−0.5624

Runs = range plus his arm and double-play runs spread over his positions by outs (Fielding Run Value, from 2023): what the rating counts.

Range by direction (OAA at 2B)
2025 · 2B2026 · 2B In (charging) 0−2Back −1−2Toward 3B line −3−4Toward 1B line 00vs. RHH −2−2vs. LHH −2−6

At 2B in 2026, the biggest loss came toward 3B line (−4 outs): a coaching target.

Tools (percentile; arm among 2Bs)
Arm at 2B 72.2 mph · 4th
Sprint speed 26.7 ft/s · 32nd
Reaction −0.9 ft · 28th
Burst −1.2 ft · 22nd
Route +0.6 ft · 83rd
Catch difficulty (latest season)
PlayMadeChancesRate
★★★★★00—
★★★★010%
★★★00—
★★00—
★00—
Zone rating (Keystone expected outs)
SeasonZoneBallsOuts vs. exp.
20262B333+3.2
2024RF93−1.0
2024LF45+1.3
20242B112+0.5

The zone rating counts every ball hit to his part of the field while he played there, his club’s positioning included; Savant OAA uses his actual starting spot and is the better individual grade. They agree best in the outfield. See the model card.

Compare in the Fielding Lab →

Contract & projection

Club control (RosterResource) · Keystone projected WAR

2027 0.9 WAR Arbitration $2.7M*
2028 0.6 WAR Arbitration $3.9M*
2029 0.2 WAR Arbitration $4.2M*
2030 −0.3 WAR Free agent

* projected arbitration or minimum salary. Contract Studio →

Minor leagues

MLB Stats API · public box-score data

SeasonLevelLevelTeamAgeGPA / IPPA / IP ·Line
2025AAAAMontgomery Biscuits2828 PA 8 PA · .286/.375/.286 · 0 HR · 37.5% K · 12.5% BB
2025AAAAAADurham Bulls282082 PA 82 PA · .158/.220/.263 · 2 HR · 24.4% K · 7.3% BB
2025ROKROKFCL Rays2828 PA 8 PA · .143/.250/.286 · 0 HR · 12.5% K · 12.5% BB

ABS challenges · 2026

Baseball Savant

As batter 50% 4/8 won · −0.9 runs
Keystone is an independent portfolio project. It is not affiliated with Major League Baseball or any club. Data: MLB Stats API, Baseball Savant, FanGraphs. Used under their terms for individual, non-commercial use.