San Diego Padres outfielder Jurickson Profar had an abysmal 2023 season. And that is likely to be a beneficiant description.
Profar signed a one-year, $7.75 million contact with the Colorado Rockies on March 21 – simply 9 days earlier than Opening Day on March 30. Nonetheless, he didn’t even be part of the staff till their fourth sport on April 2 in opposition to the Padres. And sadly for Profar, he by no means actually caught up earlier than being finally launched on August 27. By way of 111 video games with the Rockies in 2023, Profar hit simply .236/.316/.364 with 25 doubles, two triples and eight dwelling runs. He struck out 18.2% of the time and walked simply 9.5%, ending with a bWAR of -1.7 and rating him useless final in Purple Row’s 2023 Rating the Rockies collection.
2023 was not a great yr for Jurickson Profar.
However 2024 has been an excellent yr for Jurickson Profar.
He’s presently slashing .283/.382/.466 via a career-high 155 video games and boasts a career-high 3.7 bWAR. He was chosen not solely as a first-time All-Star, however a vote chief within the Nationwide League outfield. Each he and Fernando Tatís Jr. have been elected as All-Star starters – the primary Padres outfielders to earn the excellence since Tony Gwynn in 1999 – however Profar was the one one of many pair to really begin the sport since Tatís was on the 60-day injured record with a stress response in his proper femur and didn’t see MLB motion from June 21-September 2.
So what sparked the change from 2023 to 2024?
“I all the time count on myself to play like this,” Profar informed the San Diego Tribune in Could. “I didn’t do it earlier than. However proper now I’m. I’m this participant, man. I’m.”
Rockies hitting coach Hensley Meulens has identified Profar for a very long time, and he additionally make clear why he thinks Profar is performing higher.
“Nicely, I believe he was embarrassed by the yr he had final yr,” Meulens mentioned. “He thought he was a a lot better participant general than he performed [in Colorado]. However we additionally need to keep in mind that he had no spring coaching. He was not signed till the final week of camp. In truth, he didn’t even break with [the Rockies]. He stayed in Arizona for a few days till he met us in San Diego for the final couple of days of the four-game collection. So he was type of delayed from the start, and he by no means caught up with enjoying the best way he might.
“After which he went all the way down to the Dominican [Republic], performed Winter Ball, labored with Tatís and his dad fixing his swing, and it labored,” Meulens continued. “I imply, you set within the work for months within the offseason, and I believe that’s the primary motive why he circled.”
The changes to Profar’s swing appear to be paying off, as he’s hitting profession highs in dwelling runs (24), hits (156), singles (103), RBI (85) and wRC+ (141). He ranks amongst NL leaders in video games performed (155, seventh), batting common (.283, tenth), runs scored (91, ninth), on-base share (.382, third), and complete OPS (.848, eighth).
Defensively, Profar can be excelling. Take a look at these two net gems simply from this week:
However past bodily and mechanical changes, one other factor that each Profar and Meulens cited was Profar’s capacity to chill out extra this yr. He signed with the Padres final August after being launched from the Rockies, however then re-signed with the Friars in February – properly earlier than the beginning of spring coaching.
“He had a traditional offseason,” Meulens added. “He labored further on his hitting, and he wasn’t grinding and signing the contract. All of that stuff is psychological for guys, so all of that was behind him. He got here into camp usually from the start, had a great camp, after which was an All-Star this yr. We additionally simply voted for the Silver Slugger.”
Profar additionally alluded to this in Could whereas speaking about a few of his younger teammates.
“I believe they’re placing a little bit little bit of strain on themselves,” he informed the San Diego Tribune. “They need it so dangerous. I’ve been there too. You need one thing dangerous, and it doesn’t occur. I would like all of them to only tone it down a little bit bit and simply let it occur. As a result of we’re gifted. You are able to do it, however you set a number of strain on one thing, it’s not going to occur.”
He laughed and mentioned, “I realized that.”
With a brand new swing and a brand new relaxed psychological state, the celebrities have aligned for Jurickson Profar in 2024. All the things has seemingly gone proper, and it’s very potential he might obtain NL MVP votes behind the mighty Shohei Ohtani. He’s undoubtedly the Padres’ MVP as they head into the playoffs with an opportunity to unseat the Los Angeles Dodgers on the prime of the NL West. And it’s additionally fairly potential he wins his first-career Silver Slugger.
Jurickson Profar could not have been the very best addition to the 2023 Rockies, however his turnaround for the 2024 Padres is really nothing wanting exceptional.
