Spencer Torkelson has found a groove, and it’s coming with a different kind of damage.
The Tigers first baseman has been locked in over his last 13 games, hitting .404/.475/.519 with a .994 OPS. The home run total in that span is only one, but that’s not the point anymore. Torkelson said before Friday’s series opener against the Chicago White Sox at Comerica Park that he’s focused on a simpler, sturdier mission.
“Just trying to be a hitter first,” he said before Friday's series opener against the Chicago White Sox at Comerica Park.
That approach hasn’t come out of nowhere. Torkelson said he’s heard the same message from the Tigers’ hitting coaches, his agent Scott Boras and his father: stop chasing only the long ball and become a more complete hitter.
“My agent is always harping on me,” Torkelson said. “He says, ‘You are a great hitter, not a power hitter. You are a hitter with power.’”
The results have shown up in the way he’s working at-bats. Torkelson said he’s been handling pitches in different parts of the zone and driving the ball to both gaps.
“It just being a little more disciplined and trusting it,” he said. “Trying not to do too much with the fastball has helped me see the off-speed better and helped me stay back and stay on time and hit every pitch.”
His father’s advice, he said, comes from a different baseball era - one where the batting average mattered most.
“My dad grew up in an era where batting average was the only stat they cared about,” he said. “He probably looks at my average (.232) and he’s like, ‘Ah man, my kid stinks.’
Nah, he just roots for my success. He didn’t play past high school so he’s like, just use the whole field.
“I’m like, ‘It’s actually not easy to hit fastballs the other way.’”
When asked whether he feels extra pressure to help cover for Riley Greene, who is on the IL with a hamstring injury, Torkelson pushed back on the idea.
"Definitely not," he said. "I feel like we all, just as a collective group, need to stick to our plans and to the next-man-up and hopefully he comes back as soon as possible. He only makes us a lot better."
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