Manny Machado’s Slow Start Speaks to a Growing Issue for Older Hitters

Key Points:

• Manny Machado highlighted that analytics and technology have transformed pitching, making it increasingly difficult for hitters in their thirties to succeed, with players aged 31–35 posting historically low batting averages and slugging percentages.
• The rise in fastball velocity, more frequent elite-speed pitches, increased use of breaking pitches with higher spin, and more specialized relief pitchers have all contributed to the decline in performance among older hitters.
• Machado’s career illustrates these changes: since 2013, fastball speeds have increased by 3.5 mph, breaking pitches have become nastier and more common, and pitchers release the ball from more difficult angles, all reducing the effectiveness of veteran hitters' experience-based hitting strategies.
• Teams relying heavily on players aged 31–35, such as the Padres, Phillies, Rangers, and Angels, have seen below-average offensive returns, underscoring the challenge older hitters face adapting to the modern game.
• Overall, while hitting has become tougher for all players, the gap between younger and older hitters has widened, with younger players (25 and under) now outperforming those in their early thirties, marking this as the most challenging era for veteran hitters in MLB history.