Former New York Yankees Star Took Hitting Production to New Level With This Tweak

A former New York Yankees star became an even more dangerous hitter with this tweak to his swing.

Oct 28, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto (22) walks during the sixth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers in game three of the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The New York Yankees would have loved for their partnership with star right fielder Juan Soto to have continued beyond one year.

They did everything they could in free agency to re-sign him, but ultimately, he decided to sign a historic 15-year, $765 million deal with the New York Mets instead.

General manager Brian Cashman did a good job of pivoting after his departure, spreading the money that Soto would have received around to several areas of the roster. Former MVPs Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt were two of the sluggers added to help offset his loss.

Of course, replacing a player of Soto’s caliber is no small task. It will take a complete team effort to get the job done as he is coming off arguably the best campaign of his career.

Hitting in front off Aaron Judge certainly helps, as he had the MVP as protection in the batting order.

But, there was one tweak that he made with his swing that helped him elevate his game to new heights in the power department.

Soto hit a career-high 41 home runs, taking advantage of the Yankee Stadium dimensions, along with increased bat speed that led to more damaging production at the plate.

As shared by David Adler of MLB.com, When it was first announced after the All-Star game in 2023, Soto had a bat speed of 74.6 mph. In 2024, he upped that number to 75.5 mph, with the +0.9 increase ranking No. 7 in baseball.

That is part of the reason he is so difficult to strikeout as he has the bat speed to wait on pitches a little longer and fight off the tough ones. But, if a pitcher makes a mistake and he gets a ball in the zone where he is looking for it, he demolishes it.

Blending elite bat control and contact skills with increased speed led to Soto having the second most “blas swings” in baseball behind Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

A “blast swing” is when a player squares up the ball and does so on a fast swing, with 75 mph being the threshold to reach for a fast swing.

When it mattered most Soto upped his game, as his swing speed was taken to new heights in October during their playoff run.

His average swing speed was an eye-popping 76.5 mph, his highest for any month since this data has become available. It paid off as he hit four home runs in the postseason and recorded a 1.102 OPS, helping offset the struggles of Judge.

Only 26 years old, we may not have seen the best that Soto has to offer in terms of swing speed. 

New York is still amongst the legitimate World Series contenders in the sport, but it is going to be hard for some within the organization and fan base to watch Soto crosstown potentially take his game to another level in orange and blue and not pinstripes.