Marcus Semien’s Struggle at the Plate
ARLINGTON — With all due respect, Marcus Semien would prefer not to have this conversation. He’d prefer to be playing dominoes with his regular partners in the clubhouse. Or diligently going through his extensive daily fielding drills. Or maybe lunch. Or getting to the batting cage to work on more swings.
He’d prefer just about anything that would give him a break from this very conversation that rattles around in the head of just about every player at some point in their mid-30s: Is this merely a slump or a decline?
He may be deep into that talk in his head, but certainly not outwardly.
What he will acknowledge is the obvious: Things aren’t going well. And it hurts.
The Current Situation
“I’m not getting on base,” Semien said Saturday afternoon before a seventh-inning single preceded Joc Pederson’s two-run game-changing homer in a 5-1 win over Houston. “I’m not scoring runs. I’m not doing anything in most offensive categories. It hasn’t been fun. It hasn’t been fun on the mental side. I’m glad we’ve been playing well despite it. I’m trying to focus on the good things and the good things to come.”
The belief from Semien — and the Rangers — is that despite a troubling set of numbers that extend beyond this year, yes, there is more good to come for him.
But first, about the numbers. Semien, who turns 35 in September, began Saturday hitting .173, 144th of 145 MLB players with at least 150 plate appearances this season. His .491 OPS is also second to last. Trust us, Semien is painfully aware of the numbers. He can cite the walk totals of childhood hero Barry Bonds. He knows what he’s hitting and OPS-ing when it’s up in lights as he comes to the plate. Semien has had slow starts before (yes, into May) and recovered.
A Larger Problem
Here is where it gets tricky, though. This extends well past the start of this season. Consider this: Over 365 days before Saturday, Semien was slashing .208/.291/.327/.618. The slash line was 124th of 129 qualifiers. Semien, always a workhorse, had at least 100 more PAs than any of the bottom nine. It’s a significant sample size.
Joc trots: See photos from the Texas Rangers win against Houston Astros
Manager’s Perspective
It’s led manager Bruce Bochy to move Semien out of the leadoff spot to the No. 5 spot. He has no desire to move him lower at the moment. He believes Semien is still a contributor, and managing people also means believing in them. The Rangers had won six of seven entering Saturday. They had been playing well. It gives him the luxury to allow Semien to keep working through things.
“I know how important he is to this club,” Bochy said. “We need Marcus. I’m not going to show any doubt to the guy who has had the kind of steady career he’s had. He’s in great shape. He’s moving well. He’s a contributor, and we need him.”
Bochy would like to give Semien a few more days off this season. That was the plan entering the year. But, as usual, Semien has stayed healthy; others haven’t. And more than a few extra days of rest, Bochy would like to run the closest thing he can to a regular lineup out there.
Bret Boone’s Insight
Bochy also believes the addition of Bret Boone may ultimately be of more help to Semien than any other hitter in the lineup. Boone, like Semien, was a power-hitting second baseman. Boone, like Semien, dealt with a mid-30s drop. Unlike Semien, though, Boone has the wisdom of having already dealt with it. Actually, there is no shortage around Globe Life Field of former elite middle infielders who faced similar challenges in their mid-30s. Just this week, both of the All-Star special assistants to Chris Young, Michael Young and Ian Kinsler, happened to drop by the ballpark.
Boone knows all the potential pitfalls for a player besides just advancing age. He wishes he’d been more self-aware when he got to his mid-30s. Hitters sometimes have to change as their body does to prolong success. He knows the mental weight of seeing a woeful set of numbers night in and night out. He knows that age and lack of success can threaten to drown a hitter in self-doubt. Over the course of his first two weeks on the job, he said he’s seen no signs of those issues with Semien. Just prepare yourself. It’s a Boone quote. It’s going to be long.
“We’re all different, but around age 35, that’s a good test for the masses,” said Boone, who saw a precipitous drop in performance in his own career at age 35 and lasted one more year. “But I’m looking at Marcus and I still see that fast twitch. I don’t see that age is beating him. I see a more fundamental battle. Guys go through that even when their body is perfect.
”It’s just that he’s a little in-between on things. He’s too far out in front on the breaking ball, so now, you are fouling off fastballs because you are a little late. He’s not getting that load when the ball is in the hitting zone. You end up chasing more because you’re not seeing it. You are just stuck in the middle.
“I’ve watched a lot and we talk a lot and he’s close. His work is really good. I’m not just talking about work ethic. I’m seeing the barrel and the path to the ball. But you look up and you are hitting .175 and, after a while, it gets old and you want to change it. No, I want him to stay with it. Hang with me. We’ve to trust it. This is not the time to abandon it.”
Fastball Struggles
The issue has shown up most on fastballs, particularly those at the belt or above and from the middle in. Semien loves the pitch. Loves to drive it. Right
