PHOENIX – It’s the basic advice given to any hitter – see the ball, hit the ball.
Max Muncy figured if he could do the first better, the second would also improve.
“Guys are throwing so hard now with so much movement. Sliders are coming in at 93, 94 mph. Even curveballs are coming in at 88, 89 mph,” Muncy said. “It’s not like the ball’s moving slow for you to see. I know the analogy that it feels like a beach ball coming in when you’re going good. It never feels like that. It might feel like a regular baseball coming in instead of an aspirin tablet.
“The game’s not easy. Anything you can do to give yourself a better chance you’re going to take it. That’s kind of where I was at with the glasses.”
Muncy was picking up contact lenses for his wife when the same eye doctor that prescribed glasses for Kike’ Hernandez last season suggested Muncy have his own eyes examined. Muncy said he has never needed any prescription eyewear in the past but didn’t see any harm in sitting for an exam.
The doctor found astigmatism in Muncy’s right eye – a curvature of the cornea that makes every eye unique. But it can also cause blurred vision or issues with glare in certain lighting conditions. Muncy always knew he was “left-eye dominant,” not the ideal situation for a left-handed hitter whose right eye does most of the work tracking pitches.
So Muncy got a set of prescription glasses (and sunglasses) and began wearing them around home to get used to the effect and tried them in the batting cage.
“I see no harm in doing that,” said Muncy, who reports his vision has been measured at 20-12. “For me, the biggest thing was if I could get my eyes to even out, that could change some things. I don’t know. But if you feel like one eye is starting to take over, that could mess with things. I’m not stubborn enough to not try anything.”
Muncy’s openness was certainly enhanced by his struggles at the plate this season. He went 105 plate appearances into this season without hitting a home run – a disturbing length of time for a player who averaged one home run every 17.6 plate appearances the previous seven seasons.
Muncy wore the glasses in a game for the first time on April 30 – and hit a home run in his first at-bat. After hitting .180 without the glasses, Muncy has improved to .242 (8 for 33) with the eyewear.
Muncy said he sees things more sharply with the glasses but doesn’t feel he needs them. Still, he isn’t willing to go against it.
“Coincidence or not? I don’t know,” he said. “But in baseball, if something works whether it’s a coincidence or not, you tend to roll with it.
“You put your left sock on first one day and you get a couple hits. Well, the next day you’re going to put your left sock on first. “
DOCTOR VISIT
Left-hander Blake Snell joined the Dodgers for the 10-day road trip to Atlanta, Miami and Phoenix with the expectation that he would start a throwing program at some point. He did not.
Snell and Tyler Glasnow (who did begin throwing this weekend) will visit with Dr. Neal ElAttrache again on Monday. The visit was previously scheduled.
Snell has been on the Injured List since April 3 with shoulder discomfort. Glasnow has been out since April 28 with shoulder inflammation.
REHAB DUO
Left-hander Clayton Kershaw completed his rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Sunday and will join the Dodgers’ starting rotation when he is eligible to come off the 60-day Injured List next weekend.
Kershaw went four innings for OKC Sunday, allowing two runs on two hits and three walks and hitting a batter while striking out two. He threw 57 pitches, 35 strikes.
Right-hander Michael Kopech also made a rehab appearance with OKC in the same game. Kopech gave up a double but retired three of the four batters he faced, two on strikeouts.
After walking all five batters he faced and throwing 20 balls in 23 pitches in his first rehab outing, Kopech threw 14 pitches this time, 10 strikes. His fastball velocity held at 98-99 mph topped out at 99.7 mph.
JUST VISITING
A number of pitchers recovering from surgeries joined the Dodgers at Chase Field during the weekend series. Michael Grove (shoulder), Brusdar Graterol (shoulder), River Ryan (Tommy John surgery), Kyle Hurt (Tommy John) and Gavin Stone (shoulder) all checked in at one point or another.
Along with Emmett Sheehan (Tommy John) who threw to hitters at Camelback Ranch this week, Hurt and Graterol have the best chance to pitch at some point this season. Hurt threw his first bullpen session this week. Graterol began throwing long toss out to 90 feet and is aiming for a minor-league injury-rehabilitation assignment in August.
ALSO
Right-handers Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki will pitch on five days’ rest again this week. Yamamoto is scheduled to start Wednesday against the A’s and Sasaki on Thursday.
UP NEXT
The Dodgers are off Monday.
Athletics (TBA) at Dodgers (RHP Landon Knack, 2-0, 4.61 ERA), Tuesday 7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, 570 AM