Mind management key for Blue Jays’ Grichuk
DUNEDIN, Fla. – When guest instructor Dante Bichette first started talking to Toronto Blue Jays centre fielder Randal Grichuk last month, the message was simple: “I’ve been there.”
By that the former all star — and noted sire of Jays shortstop Bo — meant that he knows what it was like to strike out more than walk, to be an occasional sucker for the curveball, and often flummoxed in a two-strike count.
And the more the two talked, the more Grichuk could relate and eventually gather confidence to what he hopes will propel him to a much faster start than he typically has had in his career.
“It’s nothing mechanical,” Bichette said, when asked how he has approached his counsel with Grichuk. “I guess you could say approach. Mind management. How to categorize pitchers. How to find some tricks with two strikes to give yourself a chance to beat a good pitcher.
“Old experience stuff that I learned later in my life. He may be the veteran on this team, but he’s still very, very young. Hopefully some of my experience can help him.”
So far, Grichuk believes it will. Quietly optimistic for a strong launch to the 2020 season, the 28-year-old has tried to alter his way of thinking. His crawling beginnings at the plate in recent seasons are well-documented and injuries certainly have played a part. But Grichuk also knows he needs to be more discerning in the box and more versatile in the type of hitter he wants to become.
In other words, instead of trying to launch moon shots into orbit, drive the ball instead of lifting it, and learn to slap a curve ball or two for a base hit.
“I’m starting to open my brain mentally when it comes to the approach and feel for things,” Grichuk said in an interview. “I think this camp has been really good from that aspect of buying into the two-strike approach. You can put a ball in play and your numbers are going to go up.
“I’ve put more emphasis on understanding the mindset of it and what you see as success and not success. Trying to pick out little things when it comes to that has been my main focus this spring and for this season.”
In Grichuk, Bichette sees a hitter that so resembled himself early in his career that he’s eager to help. Brought in by the Jays for just that reason — not to replace hitting coach Guillermo Martinez, but to be another sounding board — he has found an attentive ear in Grichuk.
“This guy does everything well,” Bichette said. “He’s a good defender, he’s got the power. The last little thing is to be more consistent with two strikes. Consistency is the thing that comes eventually with these guys. He’s been so good and so powerful his whole life, he’s really never had to go there. He’s very willing to go there now. Some of his (struggles) were absolutely in his head. And now he’s learning.”
If he continues to learn, father of Bo believes Grichuk can become an elite-level hitter.
“No matter what he does this year, he’s going to go through a couple weeks here and a couple weeks there where he absolutely crushes it,” Bichette said.
“That’s him. Then he’s going to go through a couple of weeks where he’s got no chance. It’s that grind in between survival mode, getting that tough hit off a tough pitcher, that’s going to take him from a .230 hitter to a .275 hitter.
“And once he gets up around there, he’s going to believe he can go higher.”
Bichette is renowned for his work with his son and certainly was a factor in Bo’s terrific rookie season. And Grichuk could immediately relate.