It's still early in Spring Training, but the Braves new LF Jarred Kelenic is already showing off some adjustments. After working with Kevin Seitzer, it looks like the 24-year-old has implemented one of the coach's signature changes in his batting stance.
Jarred Kelenic has indeed lowered his hands. https://t.co/Yv0PFXOR07 pic.twitter.com/fwpc2E7wO6
— Min Sub (Mitchell) (@MinSub4) March 7, 2024
Kelenic seemed like a prime candidate to lower his hands considering the setup of his 2023 stance with the Mariners, which featured a lot of hand movement as he started with his leg kick.
But will this new stance actually help Kelenic?
Why did Jarred Kelenic change his batting stance?
Lowering hitters' hands has become a signature feature of Kevin Seitzer, the Braves Hitting Coach since 2015. Several of the Braves players have experienced instant success after Seitzer worked his magic.
When Michael Harris first came up in 2022, he held his bat much higher and more parallel to the ground. After being up for just a week, he lowered his hands, and took off, winning Rookie of the Year.
Interesting thing I noticed about Michael Harris II. He’s already made an adjustment to his batting stance. First pic is from rookie debut, the second is from last nights game. Dropped the hands perhaps to get more of a rhythm and alter the timing a bit when winding up to hit pic.twitter.com/7raEqg5qHz
— Ryan Gray (@RG1UnderTheSun) June 1, 2022
Four years earlier, Ronald Acuña Jr. came up with a similar stance, with the bat far behind his head. While he hit a few homers with this stance, like this bomb in Cincinnati, his season really took off when he introduced a new stance right after the All-Star Break.
In the first half of the 2018 season, Acuña Jr. slashed .249/.304/.438, good for a 97 wRC+. Immediately after moving his hands down, the then-20-year-old slashed .322/.403/.625, good for a 170 wRC+.
This included a 8 game span in which Acuña Jr. hit eight homers in eight games, and hit a leadoff homer in three straight games.
The Braves obviously don't expect Kelenic to explode in the same way their two most recent Rookie of the Year winners, but the team clearly believes that limiting the lefty's hand movement before the pitch can lead to more success.
But has it been successful?