Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Brandon Lockridge helped lead the way for his team's 24-9 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Milwaukee Brewers’ offense caught fire in a 24-9 rout of the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday, and Brandon Lockridge was a catalyst for it.
Lockridge had a team-high three hits in five at-bats that included a grand slam that helped Milwaukee take the lead in a 10-run fifth inning after falling behind 7-0. This spring, Lockridge has four home runs, and he attributed his offensive production to his work ethic.
“I think the off-season work,” Lockridge said. “I was able to put some weight on, made some swing mechanics changes, trying to use my body a little bit better, and then I think the confidence I got from last year, a little bit, kind of played into there.
“Had a little bit more success here when I came over to the Brewers than with the Padres, and then obviously the team environment, it's a fun place to play," Lockridge said. "I think a lot of that goes into it as well, so comfortability, but a little bit of all that.”
Lockridge came to Milwaukee in a trade deadline move last season that saw Nestor Cortes, Jorge Quintana and cash considerations returned to the San Diego Padres. Lockridge appeared in 20 games for the Brewers after joining the roster last season and hit .261 in 46 at-bats.
The other part of Lockridge’s recent success has to do with his swing mechanics.
“Kind of the gist of it is posture-related,” Lockridge said. “Kind of getting my lower half working a little bit more than just hands. I've always kind of been a contact guy, so that's to my strength, and it should be to my strength.
“But being aggressive early in the count, especially in hitters counts and stuff, I've kind of been short-changing myself, I guess you can say, shooting singles the other way early, and counts when you get a good pitch to hit, try to do some damage with it, and yeah, I guess that's basically the gist of it,” Lockridge said.
Lockridge is not trying to change his archetype to become a power hitter, but the adjustments he has made have been beneficial for that area of his game.
“I mean, early in the minor leagues, I hit double-digit homers a couple years, like kind of tried to be somebody that I wasn't,” he said. “And by no means am I trying to hit home runs right now, but I think fixing some posture stuff and cleaning up bat path is a big thing, so I'm actually able to elevate the ball a little bit better.”
Lockridge began adjusting in recent seasons to lower his strikeout rate, which came at the sacrifice of his power.
“I've always hit the ball hard, it's just a matter of getting in the air,” Lockridge said. “So a couple years ago, I kind of adjusted and was like, OK, I got to stop striking out, so as a result, I got flat, just kind of tried to shoot the ball around, steal bases, and I think that helped me get to the big leagues, but it's just not very sustainable.”
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