Dansby Swanson starting to see progress as he works through hitting slump
The Cubs’ Dansby Swanson has been in the middle of a hitting funk this season.
Quinn Harris/Getty Images
Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson has struggled at the plate this season. Swanson is slashing .220/.287/.358 after Sunday's 5-0 win over the Brewers.
Because of Swanson’s proven track record, Cubs hitting coach Dustin Kelly said they can help him with his approach and maintain his movements.
The tough part is keeping confidence up.
“We're also human, right, and nobody wants to perform better than us,” said Swanson, who hit his first home run on Sunday since April 24. "At times, you can get so lost in results and numbers that you forget that your main job is to show up as yourself and be committed to who God made you to be. And it was kind of like my message to myself the last couple of days.”
Kelly said the team incorporates video when they’re working with Swanson. The team will watch film with him to try and correct some aspects of his swing. The staff also has specific markers they look at for each player.
“For a lot of our guys, it’s stride length, stride height and hand placement,” Kelly said. “We have a bunch of things that can measure that. A lot of times it just boils down to using your eyes, like ‘Hey, am I on time for the fastball? Did I get a good pitch to hit?’”
Before Sunday’s game, Swanson hadn’t had a hit since Wednesday.
“When you're struggling at the plate, just getting good results, helping your team win, taking a really good swing and getting rewarded for it just feels good,” manager Craig Counsell said. “It's a total weight off your shoulders.”
On Sunday against the Brewers, Swanson was hitting more line drives and generating hard contact. He's starting to see signs that his hitting is turning the page.
“The last few days, there have been moments here and there where you start to feel a bit better and say, ‘Okay, I'm picking it up bit by bit,’” Swanson said. “And it's a good feeling to carry that momentum into the rest of the season.”
Crow-Armstrong’s Team USA experience
Swanson first learned about Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong through Brooks Webb, vice president of baseball operations for Excel Sports Management and former general manager for Vanderbilt baseball. Webb would oversee the younger Team USA baseball teams, and that experience helped Crow-Armstrong as a defender.
“He [Webb] said he's always been like this, but he's just always had a good feel for routes, defense and pace of play," Swanson said. "He's just born with it.”
At Team USA, Crow-Armstrong said he grew from the tryout process, where he was surrounded by future major-league players in Tigers outfielder Riley Greene, Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams and Diamondbacks center fielder Corbin Carroll. It was through tryouts he developed his feel for his glove that made him a highly-touted prospect.
“You call it a kinesthetic feel,” Crow-Armstrong told the Sun-Times. “But that feel gives me the most confidence with my routes because I don't feel that I have to be perfect on my routes.”
This and That
Pitcher Kyle Hendricks threw a bullpen session on Sunday as he recovers from a back strain.
Center fielder Cody Bellinger and right fielder Seiya Suzuki both hit and ran the bases on Sunday.