Didi proving he has the power
Didi Gregorius says he is not a power hitter. There is a growing body of evidence to suggest the Yankees shortstop is mistaken.
Gregorius swatted a tworun home run over the wall in right field in the seventh inning of Wednesday’s 9-5 win over the Reds at the Stadium. It was the biggest blow in a five-run rally and is his fourth homer in the past three games.
“He’s not missing his pitch,” manager Joe Girardi said. “He’s just kind of locked in right now. You just want to keep him in it as long as you can. Hopefully he continues to roll.”
It’s a roll all right. Over his last eight games, Gregorius is hitting .517 with five homers, eight RBIs and no strikeouts. He credited relying on the quickness of his hands for the burst.
In 2016, Gregorius hit 20 home runs in 153 games. He missed the first 20 games of the season with a shoulder injury and now has 16 homers in 75 games this season.
“They keep asking every day if I am a power hitter,” he said. “I keep saying every day I am not a power hitter. I might hit a couple, but I’m not trying to hit home runs. I’m trying to hit line drives and if they go out then they go out.”
“Last year ... he hit 20? I thought he’d do it again,” Girardi said. “I didn’t think it was a fluke, him hitting 20 home runs last year. I’ve always thought he’ll continue to develop in that area.”