With each game that goes by, it is becoming less and less surprising to see Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Max Muncy have the success he is having.
The breakout star has come out of nowhere to have an All-Star caliber season for the Dodgers, which is a similar path to success that Chris Taylor and Justin Turner have had in recent years.
For both Taylor and Turner, they made significant changes in their swings that took them from being traded and released, respectively, to star players in Los Angeles.
It appears Muncy took a page out of their book this past offseason, as he also credited changes in his swing to all the success that he is having, via Houston Mitchell of the L.A. Times:
“The changes in my swing are putting me in a better position to use the power that I have. I’ve always had the power there. My swing wasn’t built for hitting home runs before. Whereas now I just feel like I get myself into a better position to use it.”
Muncy was released by the Oakland Athletics before the 2017 season and signed a Minor League contract with the Dodgers. He spent all of 2017 with Triple-A Oklahoma City and then began this season there before being called up in April.
He was expected to fill in for the injured Turner at third base and be a bat off the bench for Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, but as May and June came around, Muncy heated up at the plate and has not slowed down, developing into one of the best hitters in all of baseball.
Muncy is among the league leaders in on-base plus slugging percentage (1.039), home runs (20) and walk percentage (18.75 percent), among many other offensive categories.
The All-Star teams are scheduled to be announced on Sunday, and it is likely that Muncy will be heading to Washington D.C. for his first career Midsummer Classic, something no one could have envisioned at the beginning of the season.
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