Throughout the offseason, I’ll be sharing a series on Tribe Strengths, highlighting one area in which each player excels. Up next is Tribe newcomer Yonder Alonso.
A lot of people were skeptical about Yonder Alonso’s breakout season in 2017, during which he more than doubled his career high in home runs. And while there likely was an element of luck in his power numbers, his production was also the result of the development of his approach at the plate.
Alonso is not a perfect hitter as Tribe fans will soon find out. He can’t hit lefties and he really struggles versus breaking balls. However, Alonso has become a more patient hitter and has found a way to zero in on his pitch and make opponents pay for mistakes.
Over the past four seasons, Alonso has lowered his chase rate against breaking balls dramatically—from 28.8 percent in 2013 to 18.7 percent in 2017, which ranked as the fourth lowest rate in the American League.
At this stage of his career, Alonso is well aware of the fact that he can’t hit breaking balls—he has a .196 career batting average against them. So by improving his patience and not chasing those pitches out of the zone, he’s been able to lower in the rate at which those pitches impact his performance.
As long as Alonso remains patient at the plate, he will be a productive player in the Tribe’s lineup, even if his power numbers decline slightly.