Ryan McMahon has recently rediscovered his power zone. His next step is to stay in that zone more consistently.
“It’s not really about changing anything, it’s just getting (my swing) off the right way,” McMahon said Sunday after hitting a two-run homer in the eighth inning of the Rockies’ 12-6 loss to Arizona. “It’s about doing things the right way and not getting too big and trying to hit homers and things like that.”
McMahon hit three homers in the six-game homestand and has 16 this season, though he’s likely going to come up far short of the career-high 24 homers he swatted in 2019.
“I think you guys have seen this from me before, I’ve seen it for myself and my teammates have seen it,” he said. “The next step is to do it for a full season.”
Manager Bud Black and the staff have been trying to coax McMahon to shorten up his swing, something that would allow McMahon to drive the ball more.
“He’s working on it,” Black said. “It’s been kind of a constant for him, to try to get there and shorten that swing. He’s got power within that shorter swing. But it doesn’t happen overnight, and it doesn’t happen within months or even years sometimes, but he’s aware.
“You see, at times, shorter strokes. That’s where he needs to gain the trust; that it’s OK to have that type of swing.”
Stop, thief. The Rockies allowed six stolen bases for the first time since June 24, 2016, vs. Arizona. It marked the fifth time in franchise history that Colorado has allowed six or more stolen bases.
Black blamed it on a “combination of things.”
“We have some pitchers who have a little bit slow times to the plate, and (Arizona) has a handful of guys who have tremendous individual speed,” he said.
The Diamondback’s six stolen bases were a season-high and are tied for most in a game this season by one team. Cleveland also stole six bases on June 7 vs. Texas.
Cellar dwellers. Although the Rockies won the season series with Arizona, going 10-9, the Rockies (61-80) remain mired in the National League West basement, six games behind the D-Backs (66-73). Arizona’s 66 wins are already 14 more than last season when it finished 52-110.
