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What a difference a year makes! Josh Hader’s performance in the 2023 season has made his struggles in 2022 a distant memory. A 5.22 ERA in 2022 was definitely not what his fans were used to seeing from him. But 2023 was a whole different story. His 1.28 ERA has solidified his spot as the top free-agent closer available.
So what changed for Hader? Well, it all comes down to eliminating hard contact… again. Throughout his career, he has always had elite strikeout numbers, but he has also battled with high hard-hit rates and barrel rates allowed. He managed to solve this issue in 2021, only to have it reappear in 2022. However, he made the necessary adjustments in 2023, resulting in a dominant season that mirrored his success in 2021.
Now, Josh Hader is the best free-agent reliever of 2023, and it’s all thanks to his ability to reduce hard contact while maintaining his impressive strikeout numbers. Want to know more about his incredible journey? Read more here.