Sunday Notes: Kristian Campbell Broke Out After Learning To Lift

Kristian Campbell shot up the rankings last year, and elevating was a big reason why. Known primarily for his athleticism and bat-to-ball skills when he was drafted 132nd overall by the Red Sox in 2023, the Georgia Tech product transformed his right-handed stroke to the tune of 20 home runs and a 180 wRC+ over 517 plate appearances across three levels. Flying under most radar as recently as a year ago, Campbell is now one of the game’s top prospects. Moreover, he has a legitimate chance to break camp as Boston’s starting second baseman.

I asked the 22-year-old infielder about his swing change when the Red Sox held their annual rookie development camp at Fenway Park earlier this week.

“It’s been all about bat path,” explained Campbell, who had a 90% contact rate but just four home runs in his lone collegiate season (he’d been a freshman redshirt in 2022) . “Instead of being flat, or straight down, I’m trying to hit the ball at a good angle. That’s what I lacked coming into pro baseball, hitting the ball in the air. I never really hit for power before last year.”

The proof is in the numbers, and not just ones that can be found on the back of a baseball card. In 2023, Campbell went deep once in 84 professional plate appearances while logging a 48% ground ball rate with a minus-2 attack angle. This past season, the aforementioned 20 home runs — eight each in High-A and Double-A, and four in Triple-A — were accompanied by a 39% ground ball rate and a plus-9 attack angle. His xwOBAcon jumped from .327 to .422.

According to Campbell, his conversion didn’t require a complete revamping of his mechanics.

“Everybody is super unique in how they move, and I’ve been moving the way I move since I was five,” Campbell told me. “It’s hard to change that, but it’s not hard to change, or correct, your bat path. You just change your hands, and maybe your posture a little bit, so that you can go through the zone as clean as possible. I didn’t really change my load, or what I do with my body, but I’ve kind of changed the direction that I want to hit the ball.”

Red Sox hitting coordinator John Soteropulos had a more nuanced take when addressing the youngster’s career-altering adjustments.

“His development program focused on two key objectives, improving ball flight and increasing bat speed,” said Soteropulos. “On the ball flight front, we identified specific bio-mechanical markers in his swing that needed refinement. The most significant factor affecting his bat path was the way his torso moved throughout the swing. Since the bat rotates around the spine, his excessive forward lean toward the pitcher created a steep bat path with low attack angles.

“We implemented a structured training program designed to address these inefficiencies, alongside other areas of focus.” continued Soteropulos. “While the program, drills, and framework provided a solid foundation, KC’s exceptional work ethic, consistency, and attention to detail were what truly drove his success.”

Success is an understatement. Campbell slashed .330/.439/.558, while both his 180 wRC+ and .447 wOBA were tops in the minors among hitters with at least 400 PAs. Thanks largely to the transformed swing and approach — pull-side power is now a calling card — Campbell’s ceiling is that of an impact bat at the big-league level.

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RANDOM HITTER-PITCHER MATCHUPS

Curt Flood went 13 for 33 against Don Sutton.

Keith Hernandez went 15 for 34 against Orel Hershiser.

Kenny Lofton went 16 for 49 against Pedro Martinez.

Bill Freehan went 19 for 52 against Tommy John.

Jim Edmonds went 20 for 40 against Tom Gordon.

Lou Whitaker went 22 for 65 against Roger Clemens.

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Elijah Pleasants was one of the more interesting arms in the Arizona Fall League this past year. Signed by the San Francisco Giants in June, 24-year-old right-hander had not only been toeing the rubber for the Oakland Ballers, his time in the unaffiliated Pioneer League had been preceded by an up-and-down collegiate career. Initially at the University of Tennessee, Pleasants moved on to Dallas Baptist University, and then to Division II Trevecca Nazarene University. Moreover, his ERA across the three stops was an uninspiring 4.57, as were his 65 walks over 130 frames.

The 6-foot-5 hurler attributes his late-bloomer ascent to changes in both his mindset and his mechanics.

“I kind of took a step back and realized the difference was just me being in the zone more consistently,” Pleasants said during his AFL stint. “It was developing a feel for actually going out there and pitching, instead of just throwing. Before, I really didn’t have an idea of what I wanted to do. The goal was just to throw it to the catcher. I wasn’t really pitching.”

Mechanically, the erstwhile Clarksville, Tennessee prep used to have more of a straight up and down leg kick — “it was super fast to where I wasn’t really gathering all my energy” — whereas now his kick is more out-to-in. It is also more deliberate. Pleasants explained that a primary focus is to not go down the mound until his hips are fully under him. From there, “everything else flows naturally.”

In terms of delivery and style, the righty throws from a low three-quarters slot and relies on a low-to-mid-90s sinker to induce ground balls. His repertoire also includes a changeup and gyro slider. Most importantly, he’s learning to be less of a thrower.

“That’s something I take pride in,” Pleasants told me. “I’ve always been athletic, but like I said, I didn’t really have an idea of how to pitch. I didn’t know what to throw in certain counts to get hitters out. I didn’t know the nuances of the game. So, while there have been a few mechanical things, it’s mostly been the mental side of the game where I’ve gotten better.”

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A quiz:

Ichiro Suzuki holds the MLB record for most hits in a single season (262), while George Sisler (257) has the second highest total, and Bill Terry (254) is tied for third. The player tied with Terry isn’t in the Hall of Fame. Who is he? (A hint: he was a left-handed hitter.)

The answer can be found below.

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NEWS NOTES

The Minnesota Twins have promoted Alex Hassan, Sean Johnson, and Josh Kalk to assistant general manager. Hassan been serving as VP, Hitting Development & Acquisitions, Johnson as VP or Amateur Scouting, and Kalk as VP of Baseball Operations Strategy & Innovation.

Roy Smalley is stepping away from the broadcast booth after two-plus decades as a TV analyst for the Minnesota Twins. The 72-year-old former shortstop spent the majority of his 13-season playing career with the AL Central club.

The Toledo Mud Hens announced that Matt Melzak will be their play-by-play announcer in 2025. Part of the Triple-A club’s broadcast team since 2010, Melzak takes over the lead role from Jim Weber, who died in August at age 78.

Tommy Brown, an infielder/outfielder whose career spanned the 1944-1953 seasons, died on January 15 at age 97. Just sixteen years old when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brown went deep for the first time at 17 years and 257 days, making him the youngest player in MLB history to hit a home run.

The 53rd annual national SABR convention will be held at at the Westin DFW Airport hotel in Irving, Texas from June 25-29, 2025. More information can be found here.

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The answer to the quiz is Lefty O’Doul, who logged 254 hits (while slashing .398/.465/.622) with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1929. All told, O’Doul played parts of 11 seasons and had 1,140 hits to go with a 143 wRC+.

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Who was better, Dustin Pedroia or Jimmy Rollins? I asked that question in a Twitter poll earlier this week, with the former garnering 59.4% of the votes cast, while the latter received 40.6%.

Yes, the level of subjectivity for this particular poll was high. The longtime Philadelphia Phillies shortstop played in 2,275 games, whereas the Boston Red Sox second baseman played in just 1,512 games due to a career-shortening knee injury. Much for that reason, Rollins has a clear edge in counting stats. Conversely, Pedroia fares better in rate stats. As for career WAR, one has a slight advantage with our version, the other with B-Ref’s version.

Poll results aside, this is great example of why filling out a Hall of Fame ballot is challenging. Which statistical parameters do you weight more heavily? Moreover, how do non-quantifiable attributes factor into the equation? Subjectivity is inherently part of the process.

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Another poll yielded both expected and surprising results. The question was which of four pitchers — Max Fried, George Kirby, Logan Webb, and Zack Wheeler — you would take for the next three seasons. Not surprisingly, Kirby received the highest percentage of votes, a solid 54.8%. Wheeler polled second with 22.6%, while Webb garnered 14.8%, and Fried a paltry 7.7%.

Fried’s finishing last was presumably due, at least in part, to perceived injury risk. While his getting so little support did my raise my eyebrows a bit, the fact that he landed at the bottom seems reasonable enough.

What surprised me was Wheeler’s polling ahead of Webb, for two reasons. One is that Wheeler turns 35 at the end of May, while Webb celebrated his 28th birthday two months ago. Again, the question was which pitcher you’d take for the next three seasons. That’s not to say I expect Wheeler’s wheels to fall off anytime soon, but his inevitable decline phase isn’t necessarily years down the road either.

The other reason is that the nearly-seven-years-younger Webb has been one of the game’s top pitchers for four years running. Since the start of the 2021 season, the San Francisco Giants right-hander has thrown the second-most innings in the senior circuit (behind Aaron Nola), and is tied for second in WAR (also behind Nola, with Wheeler ranking at the top). Webb is also fourth in FIP, and third in xFIP. Moreover, he has been a paragon of consistency. His WAR totals over the last four seasons have been 4.1, 4.2, 4.9, and 4.4.

Frankly, I’d be inclined to take him over any of the three pitchers in the poll, including Kirby. Logan Webb is a bona fide ace, and likely will be for years to come.

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FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Jarryd Dale is slashing .381/.428/.508 with three home runs in 141 plate appearances for the Australian Baseball League’s Melbourne Aces. The 24-year-old infielder, a native of Melbourne, spent parts of six seasons in the San Diego Padres system before being released this past August.

Max Durrington has 15 hits in 67 at-bats with the ABL’s Brisbane Bandits. A 17-year-old native of Tweed Heads, Australia, the son of former MLB infielder Trent Durrington was signed by the Oakland Athletics last July.

Johan Rojas has 23 stolen bases in as many attempts to go with a .295/.382/.390 slash line over 111 plate appearances for the Dominican Winter League’s Gigantes del Cibao. The 24-year-old outfielder had a 68 wRC+ in 363 PAs, and 25 steals in 29 attempts, with the Philadelphia Phillies last year.

Pedro Strop has a 2.55 ERA in 19 relief outings for the Dominican Winter League’s Aguilas Cibaenas. The 39-year-old right-hander has now pitched in 900 professional games, including 561 in MLB.

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A random obscure former player snapshot:

Clay Kirby is best known for hurling eight hitless innings for the San Diego Padres on July 21, 1970, only to be lifted for a pinch-hitter (Cito Gaston struck out). The reliever who replaced Kirby proceeded to surrender multiple hits in the ninth, and it wasn’t until Joe Musgrove turned the trick in 2021 that the franchise had its first no-hitter. Kirby’s 1969 rookie campaign also bears mention. A rotation mainstay in the expansion team’s first-ever season, Kirby went 7-20 — he was the senior circuit’s only 20-game loser that year; Luis Tiant lost 20 with Cleveland — while posting a 3.85 ERA over 35 starts. His career did have some noteworthy positives. In 1972, he finished 15-13 with a 2.83 ERA, and in 1975 he won a World Series ring with the Cincinnati Reds.

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LINKS YOU’LL LIKE

Can a professional women’s baseball league launch in softball’s shadow? Hannah Keyser delved into that question at Front Office Sports.

The Minnesota Twins have had a lot of coaching-staff turnover, including the poaching of coaches and coordinators from the minors. Seth Stohs has the story at Twins Daily.

Athletics signee Shotaro Morii is charting a new path for Japanese baseball players. Chad Jennings and Cody Stavenhagen teamed up to write about the 18-year-old, two-way player for The Athletic (subscription required).

Shepherd Express’s Kyle Lobner presented us with No Baseball For (Relatively) Old Men.

MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy gave us the inside story of Bob Uecker’s final game.

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RANDOM FACTS AND STATS

Bob Uecker’s first big-league at-bats were against Don Drysdale and Juan Marichal. His last at-bat was against Bob Gibson.

Luis Arraez has played for three teams over the past three seasons, while the New York Mets will be Juan Soto’s fourth team in as many years. Brooks Robinson played all 23 of his seasons with one team, as did Carl Yastrzemski.

In 2005, Carlos Delgado played in 144 games and had 616 plate appearances, 115 RBIs, 72 walks, and 121 strikeouts, In 2006, he played in 144 games and had 618 plate appearances, 114 RBIs, 74 walks, and 120 strikeouts.

Bobo Newsom had three 20-or-more-win seasons and three 20-or-more-loss seasons over a 20-year career that extended through the 1953 season.

The San Francisco Giants signed Gary Carter as a free agent on today’s date in 1990. The Hall of Fame catcher spent one season with the NL West club, appearing in 92 games and logging a 104 wRC+ with nine home runs.

Ernie Banks was elected to the Hall of Fame on today’s date in 1977. A two-time NL MVP who had 11 All-Star seasons with the Chicago Cubs in a career that spanned 1953-1971, Banks played 1,259 games as a first baseman, 1,125 games at shortstop, 69 at third base, and 23 in left field. He hit 512 home runs.

Players born on today’s date include Scott Little, who went 1-for-4 while appearing in three games for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1989. The East St. Louis, Illinois native’s lone big-league hit came in the 17th inning of a contest the Pirates won an inning later on a Jeff King walk-off homer against Chicago Cubs righty Scott Sanderson.

Also born on today’s date was Arlie Pond, a right-hander who went 35-19 with a 3.45 ERA for the National League’s Baltimore Orioles from 1895-1898. A native of Saugus, Massachusetts who grew up in Rutland, Vermont, Pond finished medical school prior to playing pro ball, later became a surgeon during the Spanish-American War, then founded a hospital for lepers in the Philippines. His given name was Erasmus Arlington.