Mark Loretta was a stable hitter over 15 huge league seasons, and he was particularly good in 2003 and 2004. Over that two-year span, the right-handed-hitting second baseman slashed .325/.382/.469 with 75 doubles, 29 dwelling runs, and a 129 wRC+ with the San Diego Padres. Contact was one among his robust fits. The Northwestern College product had a 7.9% strikeout charge to go together with an 8.2% stroll charge in 2003-04, numbers largely in keeping with his 9.2% and eight.5% profession marks.
His general manufacturing was comparably modest. Loretta persistently put up excessive batting averages – they ranged between .280 and .335 throughout his 11 full seasons — however he went deep simply 76 instances and completed with a 100 wRC+. These numbers came visiting seven-plus seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers, three with the Padres, two-plus with the Houston Astros, and one every with the Boston Crimson Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers. Your prototypical “skilled hitter,” Loretta debuted in 1995 and performed his final recreation in 2009.
Now a particular assistant with San Diego, Loretta sat down to speak hitting when the Padres performed at Fenway Park in late June.
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David Laurila: Wanting again, what fashion of hitter had been you, and did that change over the course of your profession?
Mark Loretta: “That’s a superb query. I’d say that I used to be developed and got here up as [someone who hit] contained in the ball, hit the ball up the center, hit it the opposite means, hit it the place it’s pitched. I used to be very contact-oriented. I didn’t actually sit on pitches or promote out for fastballs, I primarily appreciated to see the ball get deep.
“About midway by way of my profession I made a concerted effort to be taught to drag the ball higher, and extra typically. I believe that’s when my profession type of took off. I used to be capable of get to maintain that contact-hitter, hit-it-where-it’s-pitched strategy, but in addition deal with the ball inside a lot better.
“My energy — extra doubles, extra dwelling runs — got here after I pulled the ball. For lots of my profession, pitchers would pound me in, pound me in, as a result of I hit the ball nicely the opposite means. I made a few changes with my swing and began trying just a little bit extra in after I was in hitter’s counts. I’d lay off the ball middle-away when it was 2-0 or 3-1.”
Laurila: How a lot has hitting modified because you performed?
Loretta: “Nicely, I believe the strategy to hitting has modified. The aim continues to be to supply runs — you’re both attempting rating runs or drive them in — however now the onus is extra on exit velocity. There are issues we didn’t essentially take into consideration when after I was taking part in. My final 12 months was 2009, so it’s not prefer it was 40 years in the past, however the fashion has positively modified. You see much more guys go up there pondering, I’m going to attempt to fireplace off my A-swing for 3 strikes. We by no means thought that means, or at the least I didn’t. We had been extra involved with having a two-strike strategy and making contact. Hanging out was form of a black eye. No person appreciated to do it, whereas it has grow to be rather more acceptable. Sure issues are valued in a different way.”
Laurila: Let’s say you had been taking part in as we speak. Do you assume you’d be the identical hitter you had been?
Loretta: “I believe it could in all probability rely on what group I used to be in, fairly frankly. By way of bio-mechanically… I by no means actually broke down my swing by way of, Right here is leverage, right here is the way in which to hit the ball. I by no means tried to hit the ball within the air. I used to be attempting to hit a line drive. Perhaps I’d have modified that strategy and tried to hit extra fly balls. I don’t know.”
Laurila: Are there any gamers on this Padres crew you see as being stylistically just like who you had been as a hitter?
Loretta: “Perhaps Luis Arraez? He’s a man with a brief swing. I used to be right-handed and he’s left-handed, and we’re completely different in our kinds just a little bit, however I do assume the pendulum is swinging again just a little bit to placing extra emphasis, and worth, on contact and situational hitting. [Padres manager] Mike Shildt and our guys discuss so much about that.”
Laurila: Are you able to elaborate on the way you and Arraez are related?
Loretta: “Simply actually brief to the ball. Not large bat pace. I wasn’t a giant bat pace man as a result of I didn’t have a giant load. I used to be extra attempting to be brief, compact, direct to the ball. I wasn’t promoting out for energy.”
Laurila: What are among the conversations you had been referring to? What’s the group in search of?
Loretta: “To make use of a golf analogy, we’ve roughly come to the conclusion that you simply wish to have a couple of membership in your bag. Let’s attempt to have balanced hitters, a balanced lineup to the place if we’re not hitting the three-run homer we’re getting a bunch of hits. As you noticed final evening, we scored 9 runs in a single inning earlier than making an out. There have been a few dwelling runs in there, however there have been additionally a number of singles. It was a contact-oriented inning. For us, the concept is to be a multifaceted hitter.”
Laurila: How does the group strategy hitting from a coaching perspective?
Loretta: “On the participant growth aspect, we focus so much on coaching at excessive velocity. We’re taking much more batting observe off of high-speed machines, versus off of a coach’s arm or the kind of factor that basically doesn’t mimic hitting in a recreation. There’s a number of emphasis on biomechanics, getting your physique in the precise place. After which there may be clearly controlling the strike zone, pitch recognition. We chart that. We worth that. We take a look at all completely different metrics on that.”
Laurila: How is energy approached inside participant growth?
Loretta: “I believe it begins with attempting to be a superb hitter first. One among my least favourite scouting phrases is ‘uncooked energy.’ That’s extra what you are able to do in batting observe, swing as onerous as you may. Nicely, you may’t get to your uncooked energy until you make sufficient contact. So, I believe you begin off with a base — a good suggestion of the strike zone, good contact — after which as you get comfy with that, the ability can come. Jackson Merrill’s season has been form of like that. He began off simply form of placing the ball in play, after which the ability began to come back.”
Laurila: What you want is recreation energy…
Loretta: “Sure. Uncooked energy is dumb to me. Who cares? You may get a bodybuilder out right here that might hit for uncooked energy, however should you can’t hit a 97-mph fastball, how are you going to get to that uncooked energy?”
Laurila: What are among the metrics you care about?
Loretta: “Swing selections. In-zone contact charge. And it’s not about simply swinging in zone, it’s swinging in particular zones. In case you’re swinging on 2-0 and the pitch is down and away, even when it’s a strike, that’s not good. You ought to be in search of one thing middle-middle or middle-in the place you are able to do just a little bit of harm. I do assume that exit velocity has worth. It is advisable make contact, however you additionally wish to hit the ball onerous.”
Laurila: You talked about desirous to not strike out. In case you work deep counts, extra strikeouts are inevitable…
Loretta: “It is advisable have a two-strike strategy. You’ve obtained to surrender just a little bit with two strikes, significantly in conditions the place contact drives the run in. I imply, it’s one factor if it’s the third inning and nobody is on base. Each situation is completely different.”
Laurila: Who was one of the best hitter you performed with?
Loretta: “Amongst right-handed hitters, in all probability Manny Ramirez. He was essentially the most balanced. He had an unbelievable swing, however he additionally made good swing selections. He clearly had recreation energy. However one of the best hitter of my technology was Todd Helton. He was one of the best pure hitter I noticed throughout my time within the recreation. He might make nice contact with energy. He might hit a number of pitches. He had a couple of software in his toolbox.”
Laurila: Any closing ideas on hitting?
Loretta: “One is that I by no means needed to be able the place I used to be routinely taking or routinely swinging. I see that so much within the recreation. I see a number of, I’m making my thoughts as much as swing. The pitch all the time ought to dictate whether or not you swing or not. Hitting is a reactionary talent.
“One other is that a number of gamers get caught up of their swings. To me, hitting isn’t a lot about swinging. Clearly, you need to swing to hit the ball, however swinging isn’t hitting. Hitting is making the precise choice. It’s understanding the pitcher. It’s understanding what the scenario requires. The swing comes final.”
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Earlier “Talks Hitting” interviews can discovered by way of these hyperlinks: Jo Adell, Jeff Albert, Greg Allen, Nolan Arenado, Aaron Bates, Jacob Berry, Alex Bregman, Bo Bichette, Justice Bigbie, Cavan Biggio, Charlie Blackmon, JJ Bleday, Bobby Bradley, Will Brennan, Jay Bruce, Triston Casas, Matt Chapman, Michael Chavis, Garrett Cooper, Gavin Cross, Jacob Cruz, Nelson Cruz, Paul DeJong, Josh Donaldson, Brendan Donovan, Donnie Ecker, Rick Eckstein, Drew Ferguson, Justin Foscue, Michael Fransoso, Ryan Fuller, Joey Gallo, Paul Goldschmidt, Devlin Granberg, Gino Groover, Matt Hague, Andy Haines, Mitch Haniger, Robert Hassell III, Austin Hays, Nico Hoerner, Jackson Holliday, Spencer Horwitz, Rhys Hoskins, Eric Hosmer, Jacob Hurtubise, Tim Hyers, Connor Joe, Jace Jung, Josh Jung, Jimmy Kerr, Heston Kjerstad, Steven Kwan, Trevor Larnach, Doug Latta, Royce Lewis, Evan Longoria, Joey Loperfido, Michael Lorenzen, Gavin Lux, Dave Magadan, Trey Mancini, Edgar Martinez, Don Mattingly, Marcelo Mayer, Hunter Mense, Owen Miller, Colson Montgomery, Tre’ Morgan, Ryan Mountcastle, Cedric Mullins, Daniel Murphy, Lars Nootbaar, Logan O’Hoppe, Vinnie Pasquantino, Graham Pauley, David Peralta, Luke Raley, Julio Rodríguez, Brent Rooker, Thomas Saggese, Anthony Santander, Drew Saylor, Nolan Schanuel, Marcus Semien, Giancarlo Stanton, Spencer Steer, Trevor Story, Fernando Tatis Jr., Spencer Torkelson, Mark Trumbo, Brice Turang, Justin Turner, Trea Turner, Josh VanMeter, Robert Van Scoyoc, Chris Valaika, Zac Veen, Alex Verdugo, Mark Vientos, Matt Vierling, Luke Voit, Anthony Volpe, Joey Votto, Christian Walker, Jared Walsh, Jordan Westburg, Jesse Winker, Bobby Witt Jr. Mike Yastrzemski, Nick Yorke, Kevin Youkilis
