Brandon Hyde has prevented these kinds of matchups these days. The Orioles supervisor has sat outfielder Cedric Mullins in opposition to the final 5 left-handed starters Baltimore has confronted, and Hyde mentioned Wednesday that Mullins hasn’t seemed as “comfortable” in opposition to southpaws this season.
But with left-hander Yusei Kikuchi popping out of the bullpen Friday for the Toronto Blue Jays, Mullins strode to the plate in opposition to a southpaw within the fourth inning. And after six pitches, Mullins stood on third base, having pushed a triple into the right-center hole for simply his ninth extra-base hit in opposition to a left-hander this season.
Putting an excessive amount of inventory into one at-bat generally is a idiot’s errand; in spite of everything, Kikuchi has been relegated to a bullpen position for Toronto due to how erratic he’s been. But when rookie catcher Adley Rutschman hit his first residence run from the appropriate aspect of the plate within the 6-3 loss, the breakout performs from the pair of stars supplied one thing lengthy unseen.
For a lot of this season, Mullins and Rutschman — two of the Orioles’ finest hitters — have struggled in opposition to left-handed pitching. With consecutive blasts, one discovering the hole and the opposite leaving the yard, there’s an indication of hope. As the Orioles embark on the ultimate 19 video games of a postseason push, any enchancment in opposition to southpaw pitching might go a great distance.
“We’ve had our struggles against left-handed pitching in general,” Hyde mentioned. “It would be big if we could get those guys going against left-handed pitchers.”
Entering Friday, Baltimore’s .229 batting common in opposition to left-handers is the sixth lowest within the majors. The group’s .678 OPS in opposition to southpaws is the eighth lowest. And the Orioles’ weighted runs created plus (wRC+) of 94 is under common throughout the league. Few groups strike out as a lot as Baltimore does in opposition to lefties (24.9%).
That extends to Mullins and Rutschman, who typically lead the lineup and have generated essentially the most wins above substitute on the group.
Yet their numbers are vastly totally different in opposition to left-handers, with Mullins adapting to his second yr of dealing with left-on-left matchups after giving up change hitting and Rutschman nonetheless discovering his footing from the appropriate aspect as a change hitter.
It’s an fascinating growth after Rutschman raked from the appropriate aspect on the Double-A and Triple-A ranges in 2021, posting a .350 common as a right-handed hitter in contrast with a .256 common as a lefty.
When Rutschman turned on a fastball from Kikuchi and lashed it down the left subject line to provide the Orioles a 2-1 lead Friday, it marked the rookie’s first main league homer as a right-handed hitter. He entered Friday with an .886 OPS in opposition to righties and a .517 OPS in opposition to lefties, offering simply 5 extra-base hits in opposition to southpaws earlier than that lengthy ball.
Mullins has struggled similarly, hitting .812 in opposition to righties but .554 in opposition to lefties. Those splits have led Hyde to sit down Mullins, a 2021 All-Star, in opposition to left-handed starters of late; the final time Mullins began in opposition to a lefty was Aug. 8 in opposition to Kikuchi.
“I’ve been working on it the entire year, regardless of whether I get the start or not,” Mullins mentioned. “Just always being prepared, and I was able to get a good swing on it.”
Hyde has additionally credited outfielder Ryan McKenna as a motive he feels extra snug to depart Mullins on the bench in opposition to a left-hander. McKenna performs plus protection in heart subject, and he holds a .792 OPS in opposition to lefties this yr.
“I think that Ced going forward could go back to being able to stay on left-handers a little bit better,” Hyde mentioned. “Seems like there have been a lot of sliders away that he’s had trouble with, but I think he’s going to be fine going forward.”
In Mullins’ second matchup in opposition to a left-hander Friday, Tim Mayza compelled him to groundout to first base. Rutschman struck out. But their first matchup in opposition to Kikuchi is a glimmer of what’s potential.
While it got here in opposition to lesser competitors within the minor leagues, Rutschman has proven he can excel on both aspect of the plate. And Mullins, who hit .277 in opposition to lefties final yr, is experiencing the struggles that come when pitchers make changes. But Mullins is satisfied he’ll catch up quickly.
“I feel like I’ve been slowly making progress,” Mullins mentioned. “And regardless of how the year finishes left-on-left, I know what I’ll be focused on and just go from there.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com