Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Jason Heyward has rediscovered his swing, which he struggled to do for years as a member of the Chicago Cubs.
Jason Heyward slashed .204/.278/.277 last season — a truly putrid slash line — in just over 40 games for the Cubs. By midseason, he fate was sealed in Chicago.
Heyward was signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers this offseason, where he reunited with former Braves teammate Freddie Freeman. It was Freeman, in part, who helped convince Los Angeles to bring Heyward in, but even he couldn’t have foreseen the 33-year-old’s hot start.
“When I talked to Jason in the last couple months of the season, I went straight to Andrew Friedman and Brandon Gomes, and was like, ‘Hey guys, it’s a perfect fit. He’s a wonderful human, there’s a lot left in there,’” Freeman recalled. “I stayed on them for a little bit. As the offseason went on, I talked to Jason pretty much every day, and things just kind of fell into place.”
Clearly, whatever Freeman said worked.
“I got my friend back and I’ve just been telling him how wonderful the Dodgers have been for me. He’s really excited. He’s already worked out at Dodger Stadium, he’s been at my house this week, he’s going up to L.A. and Pasadena to work with Robert Van Scoyoc and Aaron Bates, running with Travis Smith, our strength guy,” Freeman said. “He’s going to be in L.A. the next two weeks, spending time with them, and he’s really excited to be a Dodger.”
Jason Heyward’s Dodgers career off to a great start
Heyward made some changes to his swing in spring training thanks in part to the Dodgers staff. For far too long he’s been a liability at the plate, but that hasn’t been the case to start this season.
Heyward already has two home runs on the season, and hit his second on Tuesday night.
Not only is Heyward seeing the ball better than he has in years, but his advanced stats suggest his barrel rate and exit velocity are higher than they’ve been in quite some time.