Alonso Coming Out Of His Slow Start…As Usual

When the Padres acquired Yonder Alonso from the Reds as part of a package of prospects for Mat Latos prior to last season, they believed they had received a MLB ready hitter.  However, when the left hand hitting first baseman hit a limp .226 with 7 strikeouts during his first 32 plate appearances of the spring, some eyebrow’s were raised.

Where was the pure hitter everyone had been raving about?  But all concerns were put to rest once the butterflies settled, and he got his rhythm going and hit a crisp .370 over his remaining 46 at bats of spring while striking out only twice.

Once the season started the adjustment period again showed itself, with Yonder getting only 11 hits in his first 56 AB’s as a Padre for a .196 average.  Then, once again as he got settled in he showed the hitter he can be, ending the season with a .273 avg. and a team leading 39 doubles.  In fact, when the dust settled at the end of his first full MLB season that doubles total would set a new Padres rookie record, and lead all MLB rookies in the category, while coming in second in hits (155) among all MLB rookies behind only Mike Trout (182).

So, when the 25 year old Cuban started this spring hitting .138 through his first 30 plate appearances, there was no reason to panic.  Just another slow start, but sure enough it’s looking like he’s starting to find his groove, and hitting .320 over his last 20 spring AB’s with 3 home runs.  Despite his rookie success, he spent a lot of time working during the off-season on some changes to his approach to the ball that Phil Plantier and Alonzo Powell spoke to him about at the end of the season.  He spent hours in the batting cage, and reviewing video comparing last year’s stance at the point of contact to his new approach that he’s brought with him into this spring, which he’s hoping will provide even more consistent contact and power.

If all goes as planned, the Sophomore Jinx that affects so many young players will be exorcised by Yonder’s preemptive strike to improve on what was already pretty darn good.  Slow start?  No problem, El Cubano has shown he knows how to heat it up.

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