Freddie Freeman has been among several Los Angeles Dodgers searching for answers at the plate over an extended period, and he’s used any source of inspiration in effort to break out of the slump.
That included taking a “step-out cue” from last year’s World Series at the beginning of the month. Freeman began to have better results but still isn’t meeting his lofty expectations.
Things started to click over recent days after incorporating an approach that involves focusing more on right front ankle, which was the one Freeman had surgically repaired during the offseason.
Freeman explained he got the idea after being sent a photo Sunday night of his batting stance from the World Series, during which he earned MVP honors against the New York Yankees.
“There was a friend of ours, a mutual friend, sent this meme, and I guess it unlocked something,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “So there’s an overlay with him with the walk-off homer last year in the World Series, and so that kind of visual helped him tap into something. … So I feel pretty good about where he’s at.”
Freeman is currently dealing with a contusion as the result of being hit on the inside of his left wrist by an 88 mph sinker and immediately came out of the game on Sunday. Freeman has remained in the Dodgers lineup since then, and on Wednesday delivered a walk-off single.
“His work has been consistent, he looks more like himself,” Roberts said.
“I do think that swing he took was a really good swing and he’s not chasing as much as the last four weeks, so that’s a good thing. That means he’s seeing the baseball better. Work in progress, but I think we’re turning a corner right now with his swing.”
Manny Machado believes Freddie Freeman deserved All-Star Game ovation
Manny Machado is hostile toward the Dodgers as part of a rivalry with the San Diego Padres, but has a deep respect for players like Clayton Kershaw and Freddie Freeman as a fellow member of the MLB fraternity.
As the crowd at Truist Park showered Freeman and Kershaw with applause after their respective exits from the All-Star Game, Machado believed the moment was deserved for both players.
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