Delmon Young
had one of those spring training that makes on-lookers’ eyes pop. In 48
Grapefruit League at-bats, Young tagged three home runs and hit three most
doubles for good measure. At his Star Tribune blog this spring, LaVelle
Neal raved about the laser show Young was producing in the Florida
sunshine:
“Looks
like Young has decided to pull the ball more this year. He's stronger from the
waist up and look very confident after a good season in 2010. He's a litte bit
of a Albert Belle look to him this year. That means baseballs could be in
trouble”
A
substantial portion of Young’s success last year came from being able to pull
the ball with more authority. In fact, he had a 260-point increase over his
two previous seasons when hitting the ball to left field. Part of that power boost
was due to his improvement on handling pitches inside:
Well-Hit
Average (Swing-Inside)
2008
.084
2009
.099
2010
.124
League
Average
...
Original Story:
