The quieter Mike Napoli gets at the plate, the more he starts to make noise.
A new approach has Napoli looking more comfortable at last, and the results are slowly starting to come. Hitting coach Mickey Hatcher instituted the changes last week on the last homestand.
While the changes seem subtle, to Napoli it represented a drastic overhaul. Instead of cocking his hands as a timing device to start his swing, he now holds his hands still and back toward his right shoulder.
For a new timing device, Napoli stands in the batter’s box with his left heel off the ground. When the pitcher begins his delivery, Napoli then adjusts his feet.
I had so much movement with my hands and I always had them cocked a certain way, Napoli said. It was so easy for me to do something wrong that way. Now I’m just simplifying it. With my hands, I’m doing little movement and then I get my foot down. I’m seeing the ball and hitting the ball.
Napoli is on a season-high seven-game hit streak after a ninth-inning double.
