Will Brice Turang find his first-half form down the stretch?
The Brewers’ success this season has been well earned from a variety of impact players.
Perhaps one of the more surprising stories has been Brice Turang’s breakout season.
Of course, manager Pat Murphy made it well known they expected a “quantum leap” from the defensive maestro. He was proven correct when Turang was batting .292 with a 117 wRC+ by the end of June. Not only was Turang displaying an improved plate approach from his rookie year, but he continued to provide his sterling defense and speed on the bases.
Turang’s rousing style made him an integral piece of the Brewers’ lineup. But since the start of July, that offensive production tailed off. From July 1 to August 13, Turang slashed .161/.211/.202 (16 wRC+).
That’s hardly tenable from a player so often batting leadoff, but the Brewers didn’t lose trust. Turang has looked much more in rhythm over the past week. In his past 20 plate appearances, he has six hits for a .400 batting average while striking out just three times compared to four walks.
That’s the profile that had become expected of Turang after his first half breakout. Low strikeouts, few whiffs, and making things happen by getting the ball in play.
According to Adam McCalvy of MLB.com, Murphy described Turang’s influence:
“I’ve been saying it: I thought he was an All-Star, but you can’t control those things. This kid’s been incredible. If you look at the batting average you’re going to say, ‘Well, he’s fallen off.’ But this kid plays virtually every day, the way Willy [Adames] plays every day and William [Contreras] plays every day. They show up to compete every day. Turang is sincerely underrated. He’s been a big part of this.”
While this recent hot streak is too small of a sample to write off the past month two months of struggles, are there signs pointing to Turang’s rebound?
Turang isn’t a power hitter, but he still makes the most of his production with his proclivity for opposite-field, extra-base hits. It shouldn’t be expected for Turang to rock the hard-hit rate or barrel charts, but he makes enough consistent contact that he could reliably be a high-impact performer.
Here’s a quick look at his BaseballSavant page:
His hard-hit metrics are all really low, but that’s not how he thrives. He rarely whiffs and relies on a high squared-up rate to get balls in play.
In recent weeks, Turang is finding that consistent contact again. On July 14, his 15-game rolling average for hard-hit rate was at a poor 18.8%. That has since jumped up to a season-high on August 17 of 36.6%.
This ability to find reliable contact is a key factor in Turang’s success. He’s taken on a more judicious plate approach, similar to what made him so valuable earlier this year, by chasing less and spraying the ball to all fields. Tack that on to the skill of simply making contact so frequently, and Turang is starting to be that dynamic threat again.
The adjustments Turang must make are similar to what any player must go through while adapting to the big leagues. He was the worst hitter against fastballs by Pitch Type value last season among batters with at least 300 plate appearances. That was a -15.1 mark. He’s now in the top half of the league with a +1.4 value.
This complete transformation was an important change for Turang’s viability long term. Rather than simply being a star defender, he can be a standout at the plate, too. When Turang was at his best this season, pitchers were throwing over 42% fastballs. Pitchers then heavily dropped their fastball usage to just 26.1% at one point. That’s when Turang was tangled in the worst of his struggles.
His continued adjustments will be a telling sign in his production throughout the rest of the season. Not only did he overhaul his approach to fastballs, but he’s been much better against breaking balls this season, too. Turang’s exceptional defense will earn him an everyday spot no matter what, but his potential at the plate shouldn’t be overlooked because of his summer slump.