After rocky start, Joey Wendle produced at the plate in June. Why that’s key for Marlins
Joey Wendle knew it was only a matter of time before he started going at the plate. The Miami Marlins’ shortstop wasn’t pleased with his production over the first two months. That’s understandable. He was hitting just .170 at the end of May and had missed 30 games at the start of the year with an oblique injury.
Not the way he wanted to start the season.
But since the calendar flipped to June, Wendle has begun to produce, giving the Marlins a trusted left-handed bat near the bottom of their lineup to give the offense some needed length.
His final stat line in 25 games (20 starts) in June: A .354 batting average (29 for 82) with six doubles, one home run and 13 runs scored. He had at least one hit in all but three starts and multiple hits in eight of the 20 starts, including a four-hit game on Tuesday against the Boston Red Sox.
Wendle had the seventh-highest batting average in MLB in June among players who had at least as many at-bats as him. The only players ahead of him: teammate Luis Arraez (.406), Angels two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani (.394), the Braves’ Michael Harris II (.372), the Guardians’ Josh Naylor (.370), the Rangers’ Corey Seager (.368) and the Braves’ Ronald Acuna Jr. (.356).
It bumped Wendle’s batting average on the season up 111 points from .170 to .281.
“His timing is back,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said. “When you come off the IL, especially after a core injury or an oblique injury, it just takes a little bit of time to get your timing back. ... Wendle has stepped up. His defense has been outstanding at shortstop. He’s a gritty player. He’s a hard-nosed player. Having that guy penciled in every day, especially against righties, has been big for us.”
Wendle said he is seeing the ball better as of late and has shortened his swing to improve his timing.
“Just constantly evolving, constantly making adjustments,” Wendle said, adding “I’m not trying to do too much. Just find a little bit of rhythm up there at the plate. When you do well, then you get a little bit of confidence.”
And Wendle being successful at the plate gives the Marlins another reliable bat at the bottom of the lineup. When at its best, Miami has four capable left-handed hitters.
Luis Arraez, leading MLB with a .390 batting average, is in the leadoff spot. Jazz Chisholm Jr., whose combination of speed and power makes him a dual threat, is in the cleanup spot. Wendle and Jesus Sanchez generally occupy two of the bottom four spots in the order when all four left-handed hitters are playing.
Getting production out of the bottom of the order benefits the Marlins — and any team, really — because it flips the lineup and then creates run-scoring opportunities for the top of the order.
“That’s the point,” Schumaker said. “Trying to get guys on base for [Jorge] Soler and Arraez and the middle of the order. If those guys at the bottom get on base, that’s a really dangerous recipe for our lineup and for our team. To get guys on base in front of a guy hitting .400 and a guy who has 20-plus home runs, that’s what you’re looking for.”
Wendle credits the team’s hitting staff, led by hitting coach Brant Brown and assistant coaches John Mabry and Jason Hart, for helping the lineup as a whole identify its strengths.
“They’re really good,” Wendle said. “They do a really good job of just talking a lot of different languages to different hitters. Everybody’s so different. Everybody’s built differently physically. Everybody has been taught different things. While there are some things that are consistent with all good hitters and successful teams, offensively, I think they do a really good job of getting to know each guy and what makes us all tick. Brant in particular has been really good just preparing us for the game and how we’re going to attack a starter and the bullpen — as a team, individual approaches, what we’re going to do to a guy as a whole — and that’s really starting to pay off.”
Marlins in June
While the month ended with a dud after a 16-4 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Friday, the Marlins still had an overall successful June, one that helped keep them among the top teams in the National League.
Miami went 19-8 in June. The 19 wins are their most ever in franchise history in June and tied for the second-most in any month in franchise history with August 1997 and behind only the 21 wins in May 2012.
The Marlins won six of their eight series in the month, including four series sweeps (the Oakland Athletics, Kansas City Royals, Washington Nationals and Boston Red Sox).
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