Hitting his stride
Suddenly sizzling Lugo provides spark for Sox offense
MLB. Red Sox shortstop Julio Lugo has been described by his coaches and teammates as a “man on a mission” this season.
Exactly one year ago, the lithe middle infielder was hitting a measly .246 en route to his most disappointing offensive season in the big leagues, and Sox followers wondered where the actual four-year, $36 million shortstop was hiding.
Lugo revealed during spring training that he had been weakened throughout last season by an intestinal parasite that sapped him of his strength, and the .237 batting average and woeful .295 on-base percentage were — in part -— byproducts of his illness.
The 32-year-old infielder seems to have put the health and batting woes behind him this season, however, as he entered last night’s game against the Angels riding an eight-game hitting streak and hitting a robust .324. He stretched his streak to nine straight last night with a second-inning single off Angels’ starter Jon Garland.
“He’s finding ways to get hits,” said Sox manager Terry Francona. “If he’s getting on base, then he’s really got the ability to wreak a little havoc from the bottom of the lineup.”
Sox hitting coach Dave Magadan thinks that Lugo’s surge has as much to do with batting mechanics as anything else, and that his hitting pupil’s hot streaks are intrinsically linked with his footwork.
“With Julio, there are really two big things: he has a little jab step that he does before the pitcher delivers the ball, and if he does that early and softly then he tends to get ready to hit the ball at the right time,” said Magadan.
“When he takes that stride too late and his body gets too fast, he comes around the ball and tends to chase pitches out of the zone.
“When he’s going good you’ll also notice that he’s getting inside the ball and he’s getting a lot of balls in the air,” added Magadan. “When he’s struggling a bit, he’ll hit a lot of balls on the ground particularly to the left side.”
With his mechanics and health all in order, there’s been a lot more good than bad from Lugo this season.