Friday, October 1, 2010

It's Pretty Simple, Really


You face the Blue Jays, you get lumped up.

Judging by the way Travis Snider is swinging the bat, it will remain this way well beyond the immediate future. Travis Snider, you see, is an offensive powerhouse in the making.

Watch the video of his home run last night. Pretty standard swing, finish high and watch it fly. Fraosorly Twins reliever Jeff Manship (!) left his pitch up and over the plate and Snider sure didn't miss it.

Compare that shot with the bombs from the previous two games. First he took big CC Sabathia deep on a high, inside fastball, whipping the bat through the zone with extreme prejudice. That is no mean feat, taking the Big Man yard on a pitch Snider struggled with much of the year.

The next night Snider faced Javy Vazquez and put a much different swing on the ball. Travis Snider possesses an uncanny ability to stay back on the ball, to seemingly "drag" the bat through the zone before flicking his wrists with explosive power.

When I think about sweet left-handed swings, I think about guys like Lyle Overbay or even Adam Lind - languid swings that use the whole field but generally have the same, "you're a really good golfer" appearance.

Travis Snider's swing is different in that it seems to change, he is able to do the things listed above - almost "laying off" the bat like he was trying to hit a massive draw with his 7 iron - as well as muscle up and show off his "Light Tower Power."

I don't want to completely ignore my personal vendetta against September results when feting Travis Snider as arrived or anything like that. There is, however, some pretty compelling evidence that he thrives as a hitter when given the chance to do so every damn day.

Getting back to Snider's swing for a brief moment, last year I noted it reminded me of Victor Martinez's left handed swing. I think I have to revise that assessment a little. Watching these home run videos, one other name keeps popping into my head. Another sweet left-handed pass powered by preternatural forearms and donkey-strong hands.

Around here, we call him the King.

4 comments:

  1. If you notice, Travis Sniders career numbers at this point are pretty much the equivalent of a full season with 607 AB's (662 PA's). In that period, he's totaled 40 doubles and 25 home runs, which ain't too shabby, in fact, only 7 players this season have amassed that many home runs and doubles combined:
    - Ryan Braun
    - Jayson Werth
    - Matt Holliday
    - Adrian Beltre
    - Josh Hamilton
    - Vernon Wells
    - Miguel Cabrerra

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  2. Are you saying King Carlos also had a tendency to "gangster all over" pittches? Because that's racist.

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  3. September matters. Jose Bautista taught us that. And, Ty, wasn't that the call of the year? Bless Tabler.

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  4. I thought Randy Ruiz taught us that September doesn't matter? Or maybe the lesson is that September might possibly not matter 100% of the time.

    Just as an aside, why isn't this web-site called 'Ghostrunner on 2nd'?

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