Michael Conforto has endured a rough start to his first season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but is beginning to see better results at the plate.
The veteran outfielder reached base three times in the Dodgers’ 9-5 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday, going 2-for-3 with his first home run since April 5.
The ball traveled 406 feet over the right-center field fence and left his bat at 105.9 mph, extending the Dodgers’ lead to 5-3 in the sixth.
Conforto believes the home run was a byproduct of all the hard work he has put in to get back on track, via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“To hit a ball hard and see it leave the park, it’s kind of everything that we’ve been working on,” Conforto said.
Conforto has made an effort to improve his pitch selection and bat path, among other parts of his offensive game:
That work has focused on “a lot of different things,” he said, starting with pitch selection and the “patterns” he has fallen into that have made him vulnerable at the plate.
“Then the other thing is, every single guy in here is working on their swing and trying to be more consistent and have the right path to the ball,” Conforto said. “That’s kind of a lot of what we’ve been working on.
“If you’re not swinging at the right pitches but you’re mechanically working well, it just might not show up on the field. It’s kind of a combination of both and there’s been a few things here and there, making sure I’m loaded up and trying to work to get the barrel of the bat out in front a little bit more. Move my contact point out a little bit. But overall I think it’s just been keeping my head down, working hard and just trying to bring a better approach to the plate. I think that’s kind of what’s been helping.”
The Dodgers have long maintained that Conforto’s adjustments would lead to more balls falling for hits, and his performance on Tuesday was certainly a step in the right direction.
Conforto is hitting just .172 with 12 extra-base hits in 50 games this season, but his .312 on-base percentage and high exit velocities suggest his at-bat quality has been better than the overall numbers show.
Despite his struggles, the 32-year-old has remained in the Dodgers lineup due to the progress he is making with his swing.
Michael Conforto’s bat path
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts previously stated that Conforto’s bat path has been a season-long issue and fixing it could go a long way.
“For me, it’s been the whole season,” Roberts began. “There’s some good swings in there, certainly, but I think overall, it’s a little bit of a bat path situation for me. Because I think he’s controlling the strike zone really well.”
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