WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Jeff McNeil hasn’t had a Grapefruit League at-bat yet to examine his early-season progress.
He’s been experiencing various obstacles caused by a partially torn left UCL and soreness in his left bicep, meaning his hitting progress has only been gradual in recent days. dry swing. Tea work. Also batting practice.
But to Mets hitting coach Jeremy Burns, the second baseman seemed “like modern-day Jeff McNeil, in a good way.”
That means the Mets and McNeil’s efforts over the past 10 months are beginning to pay off. That means McNeil is inching closer to erasing the slippage in his swing, staying on the ball longer, and most importantly slashing line drives around middle infielders, which he hopes to do in 2022. It helped him hold the key to his breakthrough.
“He knows that and that was the secret for him in 2022,” Burns said of McNeil’s line drive before the Mets faced CACTI Park of the Nationals in Palm Beach on Tuesday. he told the Post.
That is what becomes central to his work after he returns.
Burns said McNeil is hitting more flies and pop-ups than last year, and they can be “tough” for hits, especially at Citi Field.
According to FanGraphs, McNeil’s line drive percentage dropped from 23.8 in 2022 to a career-low 20.1 last year. His fly ball percentage increased from 35.0 to a career-high 38.2.
Burns said his exit velocity has improved, which was a sign of development, but the contact that McNeil made in his old bats, over the heads of shortstops and second basemen, is almost gone.
McNeil has regressed to a shell of the player who won the National League batting title on a postseason team.
He hit .326 in 2022 with an .836 OPS.
There were nine home runs (more power than any hitting coach at times, teams taking away from players who don’t necessarily need to produce it) and 62 RBIs, but most importantly, McNeil was a threat to get on base. That’s what happened.
But instead of navigating a traditional spring to rediscover these results, McNeil’s camp was cut short.
He took a hiatus from hitting on March 2 and began hitting off the tee with a dry swing on Saturday. That turned into Tuesday’s batting practice.
The final result will be a Grapefruit League game before a camp break at the end of the month.
As such, his in-game cameo took place on the back field at Clover Park. McNeil started in defense and baserunning, bunting in his at-bat in the game on Monday, but manager Carlos Mendoza said the setup was for him to start tracking pitches again.
“It’s another positive day. We’re moving in the right direction and everything is fine,” Mendoza said Monday.
After a doubleheader against the Braves on May 1, his batting average remained at .302, but it skyrocketed to a .246 batting average in mid-July.
There were still flashes after August 1st when he hit .303 with an .809 OPS, especially leading up to his UCL injury.
Burns believes those numbers will come back.
His swing looked “really good” when he took regular batting practice on Tuesday, and the Mets will continue to accelerate his recovery until it culminates with a full game without restrictions.
For now, until that happens, and even after it happens, the key elements of McNeil’s return will revolve around the elbow.
Barnes and the Mets didn’t have to change anything because of the UCL injury or biceps discomfort. And they want to make sure injuries don’t force them into unnecessary pivots to protect them. “The last thing you want is to feel like you have to change your swing to avoid pain,” Burns said. .
Therefore, it will likely take some time for McNeil’s results to actually be reflected in the game. That could happen in the Grapefruit League as well. It may take until the regular season.
But early signs of McNeil’s hitting resurgence were already evident to those who witnessed his spring behind the scenes.
“If the batting line goes over the shortstop’s head, he’s one of the best,” Burns said.
