Pepe Madrid didn’t perform like he needed to for Boise last year. In every sense of the word, it was a career-low for the Dominican first baseman: 480 plate appearances, .231 batting average, .306 on-base percentage, .399 slugging percentage. These totals all marked career-worst totals through Madrid’s first three full seasons in the majors, a far cry from his rookie season of .299/.366/.536 in 619 plate appearances in 2042.So over the off-season, at the team’s request, Madrid worked with Alex Landon, an outside hitting coach, to refine his swing. And while things like loft and launch angle may be the trendy terms du jour, that’s not how the 53-year-old Canadian hitting guru approaches his craft.
“The launch angle and loft, they’re the big buzzwords now. But hitters have been doing that forever. I think cleaning up of bat path is another way to put it,” Madrid said. “I don’t think Alex, and even (Boise hitting coach) Ben (Moore), they’re not big talking about launch angle. It’s just cleaning up your path. Hitters have always done it, but creating the launch angle and loft is a direct effect of cleaning up your bat path and how you enter into the zone.”
Landon’s work with Madrid, 24, was exactly that: “We’re trying to get Pepe’s bat in the zone later, trying not to be so direct and down to the ball, and try to get behind it a little more.”
The changes to his swing over the winter didn’t pay off immediately, according to Madrid. “I was very mechanical and so I was trying to be perfect with my swing instead of going out there and just swinging the bat like I have my entire life,” Madrid said. “You kind of lose track, so that’s something I’ve had to tone back a little this winter. I can’t think about perfecting my swing mechanics. It needs to be more natural so I can go out there and compete. Take good at bats, actually work counts, and get barrels.”
Baseball is all about adjustments. You find a swing that works, pitchers find a way to attack that swing, and you counter back. So while Madrid feels that his work has put him in a good place with his swing, the tweaks never really stop.
“I’m not only working on my swing, but re-tooling my entire approach, and that starts before the game even starts,” Madrid said confidentally. So what work does he expect to do before the game? “Drills in the cage, going through the rounds of BP, making adjustments off the flight of the ball, what I’m doing with certain pitches, to then translate into the game,” Madrid added. “It’s all making sure my hands are in the right spot, entering the zone the right place, my hips are firing right.”
The swing changes, along with an added strength program Madrid has started with teammate Félix Román, has the Boise front office excited for what everyone in the club is expecting a bounce-back season for Madrid. But while stories start to pour in about players getting into the best shape of their lives or finding some fix to their game, Madrid knows the real test starts Opening Day.
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Treasure Valley Sports recently caught up with Boise Spuds pitching prospects Gerardo López, Louis Martinez and Xi-wang Ti one morning in Ybor City, home of the Spuds Florida Prospect League team. Lopez and Ti are teammates on the winter league team and while Martinez is not officially on the roster, the 2044 draftee was allowed to travel to Florida and spend the short season with the team as he continues to recover from elbow surgery.
The three players couldn’t come from different backgrounds: Lopez, 21, was a scouting discovery in 2040 out of Puerto Rico; Ti, 18, was signed out of Taiwan at the age of 16 and arrived to the Boise system after a trade with San Fernando two seasons ago; Martinez, 19, was a first-round draft pick out of a Texas high school this past season.
Additionally, the three players have drastically different roadmaps to success in 2045: by all accounts, Lopez will be given a long look at starting this upcoming season in the Boise rotation; Ti, an extremely raw prospect, is expected to spend a third season in Rookie ball and while he’s appeared sparingly at that level for two years already, he’s still one of the younger players in the league; Martinez will likely remained sidelined as he rehabs from his injury but will see his professional debut at some point in 2045, likely in Short-A Hot Springs.
Despite all the differences, be it experiences, languages and upcoming expectations, the three “teammates” have formed a unique bond in Florida. Both Lopez and Ti have worked with Ybor Springs coaches on fine-tuning their game, including weighted ball exercises, morning hot yoga classes, and pitch design lessons. Martinez, still in a cast and sling, attends the same training as his fellow pitchers, and absorbs all he can from the sidelines. “It’s frustrating, I want to be out there getting better,” Martinez said. “But just being here learning and spending time with my new teammates has still be huge.”
“He’s our caddy,” Lopez said laughing, referencing not only Martinez’s following of the duo during the winter, but also in a literal sense: on days when the Ybor City Spuds are home, Lopez and Ti have a standing morning tee time at a local golf course where the two play nine holes before heading to the ballpark for workouts. With them every morning is Martinez, who follows the two around in a golf cart, reading scouting reports of that day’s opponents when he’s not laughing at his friends’ exploits on the course. “I’ve got one working arm and I think I would play better then those two,” Martinez said with a wink.
When the Florida Prospect League breaks next week, players will likely travel back to their homes to continue training or enjoy downtime with family and friends. Some will spend a few weeks in Arizona, Texas, Southern California or stay in Florida for additional workouts at esteemed baseball performance centers. For Lopez, Martinez and Ti, they will split up and go their separate ways. There is an excellent chance none of them will play at the same level at any point in 2045 but for now, the three have created a special bond and hope their paths will meet again one day in Boise.
