바카라Luis Arajes (26-Miami Marlins), still chasing his dream .400 batting average, took another hit.
Araúez went 1-for-5 in his first five plate appearances batting first and second against the St. Louis Cardinals at Marlins Park on Saturday (June 6) in Miami, Florida, USA.
The single snapped a six-game hitting streak, but his season batting average dropped further, from .387 to .384.
Araúez has drawn attention as a contender for the elusive .406 batting average since Ted Williams in 1941.
Araúez hit .400 against the Toronto Blue Jays on May 20. His batting average then dropped back into the triple digits, but he bounced back with a .402 batting average on the 24th of the same month, followed by a .401 batting average the next day.
Since then, however, Araúez’s batting average has gone backwards. He’s batting just .259 (7-for-27) in his last seven games, and it’s looking like he’s not going to get back to .400 anytime soon.
Of course, hitting .384 with the season around the turnaround point isn’t easy either.
According to MLB.com, a .384 batting average through a team’s first 88 games since 1941 ranks 14th all-time. The highest batting average during that time is Larry Walker’s .398 in 1997. Walker finished that year with a .366 batting average.
Araes is also looking to become the first player in history to win the American League (AL) and National League (NL) batting titles in consecutive seasons.
He led the AL in batting last year with a .316 average for the Minnesota Twins.
Since moving to the NL via trade to Miami prior to this season, Arajes has led the NL and all of Major League Baseball in batting average.