The Los Angeles Dodgers broke out the bats in Friday’s 5-0 win over the Washington Nationals, accumulating nine hits and three home runs in the contest. Joc Pederson accounted for two of those against Anibal Sanchez, which marked his first multi-home run game since April 21.
Pederson’s 2-for-5 showing at the plate was surely a confidence booster, as he had been mired in a dreadful 3-for-30 slump dating back to April 23. During that stretch, he compiled just one extra-base hit and two walks while striking out 11 times.
While some label Pederson in the feast-or-famine category, he insisted that he isn’t solely looking to hit home runs whenever stepping up to the plate.
The 27-year-old admitted, however, that his swing is power-based and that he tries to hit the ball as hard as possible, per SportsNet LA:
“Yeah, that’s fair to say. I think I have an overly aggressive swing. I definitely try to hit the ball really hard because I think good things happen when you hit the ball hard. But, yeah, the goal is to hit the ball on the barrel as much as possible.”
Pederson followed up his multi-homer showing by going hitless with one walk and two strikeouts over the final two games with the Nationals.
While Pederson’s .219 batting average represents a steep decline from last season, he is compensating for that in other categories. Pederson is currently sporting career-highs in slugging percentage (.579), on-base plus slugging (.912) and OPS+ (140).
Noting the importance of hitting the ball on the barrel, Pederson’s 14.0 barrel percentage on the year is well-above the Major League average of 6.2. Likewise, his hard-hit percentage of 43.8 is nearly 10 points higher than the average Major League hitter (34.2).
Though he has endured multiple rough stretches this season, Pederson believes he is seeing the ball well and will remain optimistic amid trying times. Beyond striving for consistent results on the field, playing time is somewhat of a contentious point.
The Dodgers continue to utilize Pederson as a platoon in left field. It can make for several starts in a row or see the pendulum swing the other direction if the Dodgers run into a stretch of left-handed starters.
