Chicago — The two things seem unrelated right now.
Shortstop Trey Sweeney has been struggling at the plate and while he’s working through some subtle adjustments, his playing time has been cut into. And Colt Keith, who has played exclusively on the right side of the infield the last two years, has been taking reps at third base in recent days.
Sweeney has started just once in the last four games including Wednesday night. Zach McKinstry has been getting more playing time at shortstop. Plus, with center fielder Parker Meadows back, Javier Báez has been playing more in the infield, at third base, shortstop and second base.
“We’ve got to get Trey back to balance,” manager AJ Hinch said. “We’ve got to get him back to controlling his upper body and making better swings at pitches he can hit. It’s a little bit of an adjustment.”
On May 14, Sweeney was slashing .265/.333/.720. He’s been in a 5-for-48 skid since with no extra base hits and 16 strikeouts.
“It’s hard,” Hinch said about making adjustments on the fly against big-league pitching. “Some of his playing time is starting to be limited. And as we’re getting healthier, it’s hard to stay with the every day at-bats for a lot of those guys.”
Nobody is saying a Triple-A stint is imminent for Sweeney. But, you can see the Tigers are putting scenarios in place should that have to happen. And that includes having Keith available to play third base if needed.
“I think we’re curious about how we can maximize the roster,” Hinch said. “I don’t know if it’s something that is primary or if it’s something you’re going to see a lot of. But there are a lot of times during games where we do use our whole roster. And being able to put Colt over there can be very advantageous.”
Keith played third base in the lower levels of the minor leagues until he injured his right shoulder diving back into a base. When he got to Triple-A, he was moved to second, partly because of that shoulder injury.
“After three years of shoulder program and shoulder work, it’s been feeling good,” Keith said. “I’ve been throwing it over there a lot and it’s coming out really well.”
Keith is all in on adding third base back to his resume.
“I want to get to the point where I’m good at all the positions I play so I can help the team,” he said. “I’m not worried about hitting. I feel like I’m always comfortable there. I just go up and hit. But my biggest focus is getting good defensively at all three positions.
“I think it can only help. It will help the team and it will helps myself as a player down the road.”
Hinch was asked how soon Keith would be ready to play third if needed.
“You could see him tonight,” he said. “I don’t know if he’s ready or not. But if the game lent itself that way, I am going to put him in there. In a perfect world, he’d get a few more reps of practice.
“But I’m willing to do anything to try and put these guys in a good position.”
Sweeney’s struggle
One of Sweeney’s most admirable traits as a player is his calmness. He is a steady person and a steady performer. And that is serving him well as he goes through this stretch.
“I’m not overreacting,” he said. “I feel fine. Just keep battling, keep grinding. That’s baseball. It’s a tough game and this stuff happens. I’m staying positive. Just keep seeing pitches and competing. That’s all it is.”
His posture at the plate has been part of the issue and it seems to be manifesting itself in his swing not being on time. He’s hitting a lot of balls on the ground (49%) and his average exit velocity is down to 88 mph from 91 mph last year.
“There’s not really a specific adjustment,” he said. “Maybe simplify my swing. But more so it’s knowing how I’m going to get pitched and being able to handle the good pitches that are in the zone and quit fouling them off. That’s the main thing.
“Maybe some it’s being late and maybe some I’m getting under (the pitches) and I’m fouling too many off. The adjustment is being on time.”
Hinch said it’s not any one pitch or any style of pitching that’s giving Sweeney problems.
“With a lot of hitters, just the general body posture and being able to maintain that is really important,” he said. “He has a lot of moving parts where he gets out of rhythm, out of sync and not on time. I can see that start to creep in on him.
“He’s fouling off a lot of pitches or missing some pitches, and he winds up in tough counts and they’re making really tough pitches on him with two strikes.”
Carpenter down
Kerry Carpenter was a late scratch from the starting lineup Wednesday. He has been playing through tightness in his right hamstring.
“He’s been dealing with this for a couple of days,” Hinch said. “He’s been trying to navigate through the typical wear and tear of the season.”
Carpenter has been the designated hitter the last two days and was off on Sunday. Hinch removed him from the game in the eighth inning Tuesday.
“We’re just being cautious,” Hinch said.
When asked if Carpenter would undergo any tests, Hinch said, “No. He’s probably going to pinch-hit in the seventh inning tonight.”
Around the horn
… Keith was painfully aware that Tigers’ prospect Bryce Rainer on Tuesday suffered the same shoulder injury that he did three years ago. “Literally the same thing,” Keith said. “It sucks. He’s in for a grueling rehab but he’ll be fine.” The Tigers announced that Rainer was still be evaluated.
… The Tigers did some roster shuffling before the game. As expected, reliever Dylan Smith was optioned to Toledo to make room for Sawyer Gipson-Long, who was expected to make his first start since September of 2023 Wednesday. To make room for Gipson-Long on the 40-man roster, reliever Jason Foley was recalled from Toledo and placed on the Major League 60-day IL. He will be earning big-league service time while he rehabs from shoulder surgery.
Tigers at White Sox
First pitch: 2:10 p.m., Thursday, Rate Field, Chicago
TV/radio: FDSD/97.1
Scouting report
RHP Casey Mize (6-1, 2.82), Tigers: He’s coming off his shortest outing of the season (3.1 innings in Kansas City), a rare night where he didn’t have his usual life on his pitches or command. His issue with right-handed hitters has been constant, though. Their .294 average is 75 points higher than lefties, and their OPS is 98 points higher. And they have hit five of the eight homers he’s allowed. Righties are doing most of their damage against is four-seamer (.294 average, .529 slug) and sinker (.296 average, .579 slug). They are also hitting his splitter (.316).
RHP Sean Burke (3-6, 4.20), White Sox: He’s coming off two straight quality starts against Texas and Baltimore (12 innings, 3 runs, 12 strikeouts, 4 walks). When he’s been in the zone, he’s been good. But his 11.7% walk rate indicates he hasn’t been in the zone enough. His fastball is sneaky good. It registers 94 mph but with his 7-foot extension, it plays up, holding hitters to a .195 average. He’s been tougher on lefties (.198 average, .713 OPS) than righties (.270, .791), mostly dominating them with the heater (.136).
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