Scooter Gennett on Hitting (But Not Pitchers’ Pitches)

Late last summer, Scooter Gennett talked about how improving his plate discipline would make him a more productive hitter. He echoed those words when I spoke to him a few weeks ago. The 25-year-old Brewers second baseman feels better selectivity will result in a higher one-base percentage and, hopefully, more extra-base hits.

Yesterday, Gennett went 2 for 3 with a home run — off Madison Bumgarner, no less — and a walk in Milwaukee’s opener. It was only one game, but it was a nice start and a step in the right direction. The left-handed hitter has a .287 batting average in three MLB seasons, but his .318 OBP and 4.0% walk rate are poor, while his .424 SLG is pedestrian. His track record against same-sided pitchers has left a lot to be desired, making Monday’s blast even more notable.

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Gennett on his all-fields approach: “Basically, I hit the ball where it’s pitched. On a pitch right down the middle, ideally I hit it straight up the middle. If it’s outside corner, I should hit it from the left fielder to the line. Middle away, left center-field gap. Middle in, right center. Inside corner, right-field line. That’s my approach.

“Normally, if I don’t hit the ball where it’s pitched, it’s because of the speed of the pitch. Your timing isn’t going to be perfect every time. If you’re late, you don’t want your normal swing. You got jammed and your bat will break. If I’m late on a pitch that’s middle in, I’ll try to keep my hands inside the ball and maybe punch it to the left side.”

On vision and reaction: “For me, it’s just a natural reaction. It’s almost impossible for someone to be, ‘OK, that pitch is starting there and it’s going to end up here.’ There’s just that split second. I think we’re just naturally gifted enough to see the ball and adjust our swings.

“Sometimes you get on first base and ask yourself, ‘Man, how did I do that? How did I hit that pitch?’ Conversely, there are times you ask yourself, ‘How did I miss that pitch?’ I don’t like to say there’s luck involved, but there are some at-bats where we’re just more fortunate.

“I don’t really sit on pitches. I just react, so if my timing is right, and my head is calm and not moving — my eyes are still — I’m able to see the ball better. If I’m out front, or if I’m drifting, or my head is moving up and down while I’m doing my leg kick, the ball is going to move as well. It’s like when you’re running for a fly ball and you’re not on your toes; the ball is going to juggle up and down. When you’re running on your toes, the ball stays still, because your eyes are still.”

On pitch recognition: “The more you face guys, and the more video you watch, the more you can have a strategy going in. I get information, but again, once I’m in there, I basically just react. A lot of guys throwing a four-seam fastball are gripping their changeups along four seams, too, so you can’t see laces. The pitches look identical out of the hand, which makes it really hard to hit. Or if a guy has a two-seamer, you can see those laces, but he’ll also throw his changeup with that two-seam grip.

“You can see the laces when the pitch is on its way. On a slider, sometimes you’ll see a dot. Cutter, you might see a dot. But the big thing is fastball-changeup, because they’re on the same plane and look the same out of the hand. Basically, the only thing you have is depth perception and what the spin is doing. When it’s a changeup, all you can do is adjust and fight it off.”

On being being more selective: “After I came back from being sent down last year, I hit around .300. I was more like my normal self. The only real adjustment was trying to swing at better pitches, and not at borderline pitches. That’s something I was upset with myself about yesterday. I swung at a backdoor slider with less than two strikes. There’s no reason to do that. With two strikes you need to battle, but before that you want a pitch you can handle.

“A lot of high-contact guys don’t walk as much. Guys who swing through a lot of pitches see more pitches than guys who put some of those same pitches in play. When I swing, I tend to make contact with the ball. Had I swung at that backdoor slider, I was probably going to make contact and not do much with it. I have to ask myself, ‘What am I swinging at?’”

On his goals for the year: “I want to start hitting the ball harder, and that equates to swinging at better pitches. When you’re swinging at pitchers’ pitches, your [BABIP] is going to be lower. Two things I want to do are draw more walks and have a higher on-base percentage. By being more selective, I think I can also hit for a little more authority.

“I’m definitely looking forward to having an opportunity to hit against lefties. That’s a big thing. When you’re playing every day, you’re seeing more pitches and your timing is on. It’s normal baseball.”