Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson has struggled at the plate this season. He’s slashing .220/.287/.358 after the Cubs’ 5-0 victory Sunday against the Brewers.
Because of Swanson’s proven track record, however, hitting coach Dustin Kelly said the staff can help him with his approach and maintain his movements.
The tough part is keeping his confidence up.
‘‘We’re also human, and nobody wants to perform better than us,’’ said Swanson, who hit his first home run since April 24 on Sunday. ‘‘At times, you can get so lost in results and numbers that you forget that your main job is to show up as yourself and be committed to who God made you to be. And it was kind of like my message to myself the last couple of days.’’
Kelly said coaches will watch video with Swanson to try to correct some aspects of his swing. The coaches also have specific markers they look at for each player.
‘‘For a lot of our guys, it’s stride length, stride height and hand placement,’’ Kelly said. ‘‘We have a bunch of things that can measure that. A lot of times, it just boils down to using your eyes, like, ‘Hey, am I on time for the fastball? Did I get a good pitch to hit?’ ’’
Swanson hadn’t had a hit since Wednesday.
‘‘When you’re struggling at the plate, just getting good results, helping your team win, taking a really good swing and getting rewarded for it just feels good,’’ manager Craig Counsell said. ‘‘It’s a total weight off your shoulders.’’
On Sunday, Swanson was generating hard contact and hitting more line drives. He’s starting to see signs that his hitting is coming around.
‘‘The last few days, there have been moments here and there where you start to feel a bit better and say, ‘OK, I’m picking it up bit by bit,’ ’’ Swanson said. ‘‘And it’s a good feeling to carry that momentum into the rest of the season.’’
Crow-Armstrong’s Team USA experience
Swanson first learned about Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong through Brooks Webb, the vice president of baseball operations for Excel Sports Management and former general manager for Vanderbilt baseball. Webb oversaw the younger U.S. baseball teams, and that experience helped Crow-Armstrong in the field.
‘‘[Webb] said he’s always been like this; he’s just always had a good feel for routes, defense and pace of play,’’ Swanson said. ‘‘He’s just born with it.’’
With Team USA, Crow-Armstrong said he grew from the tryout process, where he was surrounded by future major-leaguers in Tigers outfielder Riley Greene, Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams and Diamondbacks center fielder Corbin Carroll. Through tryouts, he developed a feel for defense that made him a highly touted prospect.
‘‘You call it a kinesthetic feel,’’ Crow-Armstrong told the Sun-Times. ‘‘But that feel gives me the most confidence with my routes because I don’t feel that I have to be perfect on my routes.’’
This and That
Right-hander Kyle Hendricks threw a bullpen session Sunday as he recovers from a strained back. Center fielder Cody Bellinger and right fielder Seiya Suzuki hit and ran the bases.
