Doc gets Juan back in swing
PORT ST. LUCIE – Juan Lagares, like so many Mets, seemingly has had a standing medical appointment for the past few years to deal with the various injuries that have kept him out of the lineup.
But the former Gold Glove-winning center fielder went to a different doctor, of sorts, this offseason with the plan to earn more playing time in 2018, especially with Michael Conforto likely to open the season on the disabled list following shoulder surgery.
Lagares spent time in California over the winter with noted swing doctor Craig Wallenbrock, trying to alter his stroke to take advantage of the launch-angle craze throughout baseball in recent years.
“I’ve been working on a lot of things. I think I just need to keep working and try to put everything together for the game. Try to hit the ball more in the air and see what happens,” Lagares said after several Mets worked out on Saturday at First Data Field. “I feel a little different and I feel way better.”
Lagares’ defensive prowess never has been questioned, but his offensive numbers have declined the past few years since he batted a strong .281 over 452 plate appearances during his breakout Gold Glove campaign in 2014.
That’s where the noted hitting gurus come in for Lagares. Wallenbrock most notably helped turn around the career paths of Chris Taylor, who had 21 homers with an .850 OPS last year for the NL champion Dodgers, and J.D. Martinez, the free-agent slugger who belted 45 home runs for Detroit and Arizona last year.
“Yeah, that’s why I come over there,” Lagares said. “Like I said, I feel better, but I feel a little weird, you know? I need to keep working and make sure when the games start I just do my thing out there.
“For a couple years I hit the ball like pretty hard, but on the ground. Now I try to do the same, but in the air. Like I say, it’s all about keep working and try to get better.”
Lagares, 28, added that teammates such as Yoenis Cespedes already have noted the difference in his stroke so far in batting practice.
“They say I look like way better,” Lagares said. “It’s hard to tell right now.
“In batting practice, you can feel good but in the real game, it’s a little harder. Keep working. Probably, I need to see a couple pitchers before I get ready, but that’s why we’re here working, to get better.”
With Conforto still not swinging a bat — and targeted by the organization to return around May 1 — Lagares and Brandon Nimmo figure to share time in center field to start the season, flanked by Cespedes and Jay Bruce.
“I just come like every year – ready to do my job and whatever happens, it’s in their hands,” said Lagares, who has two years and $15.5 million remaining on his contract.
Despite suffering multiple thumb injuries going hard after fly balls in the outfield, Lagares added that he has no plans to alter that part of his game. “You know, it’s the way I play. I always go after everything 100 percent,” he said. “Let’s hope nothing happens this year. I want to do like I always do. Play hard and leave everything in God’s hands.”