Guardians' Bo Naylor starting to feel confident after making offensive adjustment

Guardians' Bo Naylor starting to feel confident after making offensive adjustment originally appeared on The Sporting News

Cleveland Guardians' slugger Bo Naylor has struggled at the plate this season. Through 96 games, he is hitting .179/.276/.357 with 15 doubles, 11 home runs, and 29 runs batted in.

Naylor has made adjustment after adjustment this season, with not a lot of success. However, his most recent change at the plate resulted in a four-hit game on Sunday against the Atlanta Braves, giving him some of his confidence back. 

According to Cleveland.com's Paul Hoynes, Naylor has shied away from a traditional leg kick and has replaced that with a toe tap at the plate. This allows him to get his foot on the ground earlier and time up baseballs better. 

"Our hitting group, looking at video from a different angle, they figured my loading pattern was better suited for a toe tap - foot on the ground - as opposed to a leg kick," said Naylor. "I was a little inconsistent in getting to the same position with the kick, so they felt the toe tap would allow me to get to the ground earlier and let my body sequence the way it's meant to."

Bo Naylor is not the only Guardians slugger struggling offensively 

While Naylor blasted four hits in Sunday's game, he knows he is still not out of the hole. He understands there is still work that needs to be done, but he is happy to see the progress he is making. 

"It's been a good progression. There are some things to clean up and work on, but it's been going well so far."

An improved Naylor at the plate could be exactly what this club needs to get things going as the regular season continues to dwindle. The Guardians currently sit with a .227 team batting average, the worst in all of MLB.