Ten months ago, Brennan Boesch burst onto the scene for the Detroit Tigers and was the story for the team in the first half of 2010.
A middling minor league prospect, Boesch slugged his way into the middle of the Tigers lineup and helped provide protection to Miguel Cabrera, making him an early Triple Crown candidate.
Unfortunately for Boesch and the Tigers, the league figured him out at the All-Star break. Boesch went from likely Rookie of the Year candidate, to hitting behind the likes of Gerald Laird last season.
He was abysmal in the second half of 2010, hitting just .163 with 18 RBIs despite playing almost every day.
More than any other factor, Boesch's slide should be credited for the Tigers second half collapse last season.
Not only was his production removed from the lineup, but Cabrera tailed off in the second half most likely due to opposing pitchers avoiding him with no other threats in the lineup.
Heading into the 2011 season, Boesch's second half slide meant that he was in battle for his major league life.
Ryan Raburn's second consecutive hot finish meant that he was the starting left fielder. Right handed hitter Casper Wells played well enough in his second half call-up to also secure an outfield spot.
That left Boesch in a battle with rookie Andy Dirks for a left handing backup outfielder spot. Dirks is a slick fielding, versatile player who had one of the greatest springs for a Tiger in recent memory.
Ultimately, Boesch played well enough to just barely beat out Dirks and win the roster spot.
With no expectations, it was expected that Boesch would play little and could continue to grow in his major league career.
However, injuries and ineffectiveness by Magglio Ordonez and Victor Martinez have forced Boesch back into the everyday lineup, and just like last year, Boesch is starting off hot.
Through April 19th, Boesch is hitting .302 and near the top of the league leaders in runs and RBIs and has been one of the only bright spots in the lineup during the Tigers mediocre start.
Even though Boesch is once again hitting, it's hard to draw comparisons with this start to his 2010 season as he's doing it differently this time.
In 2010, Boesch's mantra was crushing first pitch fastballs to the right center gap. Once pitchers realized this, they stopped throwing him that pitch and Boesch's slump ensued.
This season, though, Boesch has been completely different. While still striking out nearly one in five at bats, Boesch has been much more patient in the at bat.
He's walked 9 times already and if he plays regularly the entire season, is on pace to at least double his walk total of 40 for last season.
In addition, Boesch has been spraying the ball better with more opposite field hits and also pulling the ball more often.
If, and after last season that's a big if, Boesch can continue to show the hitting ability and plate discipline he has thus far, he could be a huge, unexpected contributor to the lineup this year.
He's already proved to be a huge lift to the slumping offense and whether or not it's merely another fluke or a sign of a maturing pro baseball player remains to be seen.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com
- Login to post comments