Prior to this year, one of the biggest knocks on Neil Walker was that even though he was a switch hitter, he oftentimes struggled from the right side of the plate. However, he’s put those criticisms to rest and is thriving as a right-handed hitter.
Albeit in a smaller sample size, Walker, is batting to a .325/.372/.750 slash from the right side of the plate. Batting from the left side, he has hit to a .258/.319/.432 slash. It is worth noting that more than two-thirds of his plate appearance though have come from the left side of the plate. That said, his elimination of a toe-tap as noted early on in the season has seemed to make all the difference for Walker and his timing at the plate.
He provided the sole offense in Monday’s 1-0 victory with his 12th homer of the season off of White Sox starter, Jose Quintana. The blast was his fifth while batting from the right side of the plate. Entering this season, Walker had just six career homers batting right-handed. He’s currently on pace for 38 home runs this season – which also happens to be his walk year before heading into free agency.
“It’s probably the most home runs I’ve had to this point in the year in my career,” Walker said. “I guess it’s uncharted territory for me, but more than that, I’m happy to be stringing together good at-bats. Days like today when I’m able to give the team a lead late in the game feels pretty good.” (NY Post)
The Mets second-baseman has been a great addition to this team both at the plate and in the field. Walker is batting .342 in his last 11 games at a time when the offense needs him to begin to rake again with the injuries mounting to some of the team’s biggest offensive threats.
