Mark Loretta was a strong 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 house runs, and a 129 wRC+ with the San Diego Padres. Contact was one in all his robust fits. The Northwestern College product had a 7.9% strikeout price to go together with an 8.2% stroll price 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 to visit seven-plus seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers, three with the Padres, two-plus with the Houston Astros, and one every with the Boston Purple Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers. Your prototypical “skilled hitter,” Loretta debuted in 1995 and performed his final sport 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: Trying again, what type of hitter have 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 method, 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 favored to see the ball get deep.
“About midway by means of my profession I made a concerted effort to be taught to tug the ball higher, and extra typically. I feel 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 additionally deal with the ball inside a lot better.
“My energy — extra doubles, extra house runs — got here once 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 method. I made a few changes with my swing and began trying somewhat bit extra in once 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 feel the strategy to hitting has modified. The purpose remains 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 once I was enjoying. My final 12 months was 2009, so it’s not prefer it was 40 years in the past, however the type has undoubtedly modified. You see much more guys go up there considering, I’m going to attempt to hearth off my A-swing for 3 strikes. We by no means thought that method, or a minimum of I didn’t. We have been extra involved with having a two-strike strategy and making contact. Putting out was type of a black eye. No person favored to do it, whereas it has develop into rather more acceptable. Sure issues are valued otherwise.”
Laurila: Let’s say you have been enjoying immediately. Do you suppose you’d be the identical hitter you have been?
Loretta: “I feel it will most likely rely upon what group I used to be in, fairly frankly. When it comes to bio-mechanically… I by no means actually broke down my swing by way of, Right here is leverage, right here is the best way 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 group you see as being stylistically just like who you have 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 totally different in our types somewhat bit, however I do suppose the pendulum is swinging again somewhat bit to placing extra emphasis, and worth, on contact and situational hitting. [Padres manager] Mike Shildt and our guys discuss rather a lot about that.”
Laurila: Are you able to elaborate on the way you and Arraez are related?
Loretta: “Simply actually brief to the ball. Not big bat pace. I wasn’t an enormous bat pace man as a result of I didn’t have an enormous 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 have been referring to? What’s the group in search of?
Loretta: “To make use of a golf analogy, we’ve kind of come to the conclusion that you just 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 house runs in there, however there have been additionally plenty of singles. It was a contact-oriented inning. For us, the thought is to be a multifaceted hitter.”
Laurila: How does the group strategy hitting from a coaching perspective?
Loretta: “On the participant improvement aspect, we focus rather a lot on coaching at excessive velocity. We’re taking much more batting follow off of high-speed machines, versus off of a coach’s arm or the kind of factor that actually doesn’t mimic hitting in a sport. There’s plenty of emphasis on biomechanics, getting your physique in the proper place. After which there may be clearly controlling the strike zone, pitch recognition. We chart that. We worth that. We have a look at all totally different metrics on that.”
Laurila: How is energy approached inside participant improvement?
Loretta: “I feel it begins with attempting to be a superb hitter first. One in every of my least favourite scouting phrases is ‘uncooked energy.’ That’s extra what you are able to do in batting follow, swing as exhausting as you may. Nicely, you may’t get to your uncooked energy except you make sufficient contact. So, I feel 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 type of like that. He began off simply type of placing the ball in play, after which the ability began to come back.”
Laurila: What you want is sport energy…
Loretta: “Sure. Uncooked energy is dumb to me. Who cares? You may get a bodybuilder out right here that would hit for uncooked energy, however if you happen to 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 price. And it’s not about simply swinging in zone, it’s swinging in particular zones. When you’re swinging on 2-0 and the pitch is down and away, even when it’s a strike, that’s not good. You have to be in search of one thing middle-middle or middle-in the place you are able to do somewhat bit of injury. I do suppose that exit velocity has worth. It’s essential to make contact, however you additionally wish to hit the ball exhausting.”
Laurila: You talked about eager to not strike out. When you work deep counts, extra strikeouts are inevitable…
Loretta: “It’s essential to have a two-strike strategy. You’ve acquired to surrender somewhat bit with two strikes, notably 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 totally different.”
Laurila: Who was the perfect hitter you performed with?
Loretta: “Amongst right-handed hitters, most likely Manny Ramirez. He was probably the most balanced. He had an unbelievable swing, however he additionally made good swing selections. He clearly had sport energy. However the perfect hitter of my era was Todd Helton. He was the perfect pure hitter I noticed throughout my time within the sport. He may make nice contact with energy. He may hit a number of pitches. He had a couple of device in his toolbox.”
Laurila: Any remaining ideas on hitting?
Loretta: “One is that I by no means wished to be ready the place I used to be mechanically taking or mechanically swinging. I see that rather a lot within the sport. I see plenty 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 plenty of gamers get caught up of their swings. To me, hitting shouldn’t be a lot about swinging. Clearly, it’s important to swing to hit the ball, however swinging isn’t hitting. Hitting is making the proper determination. It’s realizing the pitcher. It’s realizing what the state of affairs requires. The swing comes final.”
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Earlier “Talks Hitting” interviews can discovered by means 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