On MLB Network, reigning American League MVP Award winner Josh Donaldson joined former major leaguer Mark DeRosa in Studio 42 to explain his swing mechanics. It’s quite fascinating.
Donaldson explains things very simply yet thoroughly and even goes against some baseball orthodoxy. DeRosa interjects early on and points out that he’d never heard a baseball hitting coach tell him to get the weight into his hips. Donaldson says his method allows him to transfer his weight.
Even more interestingly, Donaldson explains why he focuses on hitting the ball in the air, which leads to doubles and home runs. “If you’re 10 years old and your coach says, ‘Get on top of the ball,’ tell him no,” the Blue Jays’ third baseman says. “Because in the big leagues, these things that they call ground balls are outs. They don’t pay you for ground balls. They pay you for doubles. They pay you for homers, unless you’re going to go out there and steal 80 bags a year like Billy Hamilton.”
Donaldson would seem like a pretty good source from which to take advice. Since the start of the 2013 season, only five batters have slugged more home runs than his 122: Chris Davis (150), Edwin Encarnacion (142), Nelson Cruz (141), David Ortiz (129), and Mike Trout (127).