Seager's left-handed swing is a thing of beauty. But the constant feeling that it could desert him is what turned him into MLB's new Mr. Clutch.
is a puzzle, an ever-changing riddle. Even for the best hitters in the world, the fragility of the swing is palpable. Every minuscule detail matters. Batters are not machines, built to replicate the same action countless times before they are replaced. They are human beings aiming to be their most machine-like and grappling with the defect of the endeavor.. Seager obsesses over his swing."I love the process," he says.
On the cusp of 30 years old, Seager is figuring out who he is and what he can be. And for all the help he receives, all the support offered, hitting is ultimately a solo endeavor. It's just him and himself, raging against the fear and seeking the peace of the perfect swing and things beyond. "Even with good vision, if you're in a bad spot you're not going to be able to dictate your at-bat how I would prefer to," Seager says."So I've learned that it always comes back to how I move."
Seager's early work with Wooten consumed him, even at the oddest times. In the minor leagues, Seager lived with current Oakland A's right-handerand Stripling's future wife, Shelby. Once, when Seager and Shelby were eating breakfast, he stood up from the table, handed her his phone and asked her to take video of him pantomiming a swing. The boundaries of swing enlightenment are anchored to neither place nor time.
Getting on plane -- lowering the barrel of the bat to the same level as the incoming ball -- is perhaps the most important element of the swing to Wooten. To achieve that, Seager's back elbow drops into the slot, tucked toward his body. His back knee stays underneath his body to prevent him from lunging. His posture remains upright to allow him to hit high, inside fastballs.
By 2023, because Seager had added weight and strength over time, warping his body into angles he previously achieved was no longer an option. So going into the season, he kept what he did well -- his back leg -- and overhauled the rest. Ecker learned the language and served as boots on the ground to translate, forging a partnership with Wooten, now an independent hitting coach, that thrived on collaboration and brought out the best in Seager.
Seager hammered the 93.2-mph fastball 418 feet into the right-field stands, stared into the Rangers' dugout and emitted a primal scream.Seager says he does not remember anything about the home run, and as unbelievable as that sounds -- an iconic moment for the world was fleeting for the person who made it -- his friends and teammates believe him. They see what he turns into in October. The tunnel vision. The attention to detail on every play.
For Seager, the names, the comparisons, the accolades -- they land with all the impact of a snowflake hitting the pavement. He considers the idea of being clutch and believes there's something to it, but it's nothing innate, he thinks, not something he was lucky enough to have inherited. It's a positive consequence of his process, the routine of which allows him to take advantage at any time -- including, yes, those most opportune.
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