After his second home run in two days, Washington Nationals second basemen Brian Dozier is finally showing signs of life at the plate.
When the Washington Nationals signed second basemen Brian Dozier to a one-year nine million dollar deal this offseason, there was much excitement about what he could provide to the Washington lineup.
Dozier was coming off a down year in which he was traded from the Minnesota Twins to the eventual National League champion Los Angeles Dodgers. In 2018 with both teams combined the second basemen hit just .215 with 21 home runs.
Despite his low average, Dozier did still have the power that led him to a 34 home run, All-Star caliber season in 2017, and many believed injuries played a role in his struggles.
So when Dozier signed on with the Nationals to be their starting second basemen, many were excited and believed he would bounce back in a big way in 2019.
Through the first 21 games of the season, Dozier has not bounced back one bit. He started off about as bad as you could imagine going 2 for his first 25 with nine strikeouts.
The optimism that Nationals fans had to start the year was all but gone, and many started to question if Dozier would be able to hold the starting second base job over veteran Howie Kendrick who has gotten off to a red-hot start.
Despite the slow start, Dozier has started to heat up as Washington has neared the end of April. The veteran has recorded a hit in five of the Nationals six last games, including three home runs. His average and on-base percentage are still sitting at .188 and .268 respectively, but if you watch the games there have been signs that he is starting to swing the bat much better.
In his carrer, Dozier has always been a slow starter. He is a career .222 hitter in March/April and a .236 and .261 hitter in May and June.
The Nationals do not need Dozier to hit for a high average, what they need is what we have seen the past week, his power. At this point in his carrer, Dozier may be a high strikeout but high home run guy, and Washington can live with that.
The Nationals do not have a lot of “strikeout” guys in their lineup, and even if Dozier hits around .230 but can give you around 25 home runs on the year, Washington would take that every time.