When the Los Angeles Dodgers traded for Yasmani Grandal at the 2014 Winter Meetings, he represented their most prolific catcher since Mike Piazza was with the organization. But for all of Grandal’s success with the team, came inconsistency and second-half slumps.
Last season, that amounted to Austin Barnes receiving more and more playing time behind the plate down the stretch of the year. And Barnes eventually unseated Grandal as the Dodgers’ starting catcher in the postseason.
Manager Dave Roberts said at the outset of Spring Training he anticipated Grandal reported to camp with the focus of winning his starting job back. He’s done just that and emerged as the Dodgers’ best hitter thus far.
It’s a byproduct of Grandal sticking with a process and evaluating his at-bats rather than becoming frustrated by not getting a desired result, via Jay Paris on MLB.com:
“It’s a process,” he said. “It’s sticking with what you work on and executing. I think the execution is the biggest thing and you knowing that there are going to be days when you feel [bad] and days when you feel really good. It’s, ‘How do you balance it out?'”
“I’m happy in the way my at-bats are going,” Grandal said. “If I’m getting six-plus pitches per at-bat, I know it’s not like that every single time, but if I’m able to work a count and able to get six or seven balls, even if I strike out, it doesn’t mean I’m walking back feeling bad about myself. I’m thinking what pitch I could have hit, how they attacked me and knowing somebody is going to pay.”
Grandal enters the series finale against the San Diego Padres batting .347/.429/.612 with four doubles, three home runs, 12 RBI, a .451 wOBA and 194 wRC+ in 13 games. He went 1-for-6 on Tuesday, with the one hit proving to be a game-winning two-run double in the 12th inning.
Grandal hit a grand slam in Monday’s series opener, and through the first two games against his former team has seven RBI.
Grandal’s batting average is second-highest in the National League, he’s tied for the team lead in doubles and home runs, and is pacing the Dodgers in on-base percentage, slugging and RBI. Manager Dave Roberts shuddered to think where the team would be without Grandal as they’ve struggled to start the season.
