The 2023 season has continued to be a challenging one for Chris Taylor, but the Los Angeles Dodgers need him to get back on track after he also dealt with struggles last year.
Taylor entered the Dodgers’ series against the Pittsburgh Pirates batting just .111/.196/.378 with four home runs, a 52 wRC+ and -0.2 WAR. While it could normally be attributed to early struggles, Taylor hit .221/.304/.373 with a 93 wRC+ last season, so it has become a more concerning trend.
With the Dodgers having a day off on Monday, Taylor went to an empty PNC Park to get some extra work in, via Juan Toribio of MLB.com:
As his early season struggles continued, Chris Taylor decided to make his way across the bridge in Pittsburgh in order to get some work in at a vacant PNC Park during the Dodgers’ off-day on Monday.
The 32-year-old has always had a high-maintenance swing, and it’s something Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has previously credited for Taylor’s hitting woes. So Taylor tried to simplify everything:
“I sort of tried to keep it as simple as I can — stay inside the ball, start early,” Taylor said. “I had that fortunate hit that fell in, and once you start getting hits, you sort of relax a little bit. The tension frees up, and everything slows down.”
The swings Taylor took paid off in the series opener against the Pirates. Taylor went 3-for-4 with a three-run homer during the 8-7 victory.
With the performance, he raised his batting line to .163/.236/.469 with an 86 wRC+ and 0 WAR. He still has a long way to go, but it was an encouraging game that he can continue to build upon.
Chris Taylor visited Driveline
Taylor has been trying to find his swing mechanics for some time. He spent the offseason working with the Dodgers’ hitting coaches and also took a trip to the data-driven Driveline Baseball training facility.
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