Yainer Diaz is changing his approach at the plate. Can it revive Houston Astros catcher's bat?
The Astros' catcher is focusing on pitches he can elevate after a career-high ground-ball rate limited his power for much of the season.
Houston Astros catcher Yainer Diaz is altering his approach at the plate, aiming to boost his power at the plate. Following a career-high ground-ball rate, which limited his power for much of the season, Diaz has been focusing on elevating pitches. On Tuesday, he hit two homers, one inside and elevated by right-hander Will Warren and the other outside and elevated by left-hander Brent Headrick.
Diaz said he's been working on hitting the lower part of the ball to elevate it better. His career ground-ball rate is 48.8%, but he's hit a career-high 55.5% this season. Diaz's OPS jumped to .712 after his two-homer night, which is above the .701 OPS he compiled last season. His offensive slump in August contributed to inconsistent Astros offenses.
Diaz's improved ground-ball rate could help the Astros, which had scored three or fewer runs in 10 of its previous 18 games before Tuesday.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
