I'm starting a thread because it's not quite true that he came out of nowhere, as this article from when NY traded for him on July 30 points out.
https://www.beyondtheboxscore.com/2018/7/30/17626544/new-york-yankees-cardinals-luke-voit-aaa-first-baseman-chasen-shreve-exit-velocity
1) He was 4th in wRC+ in the PCL in 2017 at 152.
2) In his limited time with STL in 2017, he had elite average exit velocity, 11th in all of baseball, just ahead of Miguel Cabrera, Manny Machado and JD Martinez.
3) This year, he had an oblique injury early on which seemed to impact his numbers, but in June and July he was the best hitter in all of AAA.
Obviously no one expected him to have a 1.063 OPS through 59 ABs as he currently does, but there have been a lot of signs over the last two seasons that he could break out if given a chance.
https://www.beyondtheboxscore.com/2018/7/30/17626544/new-york-yankees-cardinals-luke-voit-aaa-first-baseman-chasen-shreve-exit-velocity
1) He was 4th in wRC+ in the PCL in 2017 at 152.
2) In his limited time with STL in 2017, he had elite average exit velocity, 11th in all of baseball, just ahead of Miguel Cabrera, Manny Machado and JD Martinez.
3) This year, he had an oblique injury early on which seemed to impact his numbers, but in June and July he was the best hitter in all of AAA.
Obviously no one expected him to have a 1.063 OPS through 59 ABs as he currently does, but there have been a lot of signs over the last two seasons that he could break out if given a chance.