Spring Training is in full swing, and the New York Yankees are preparing for the season with a lot going on. Ryan McMahon acknowledged he has made a subtle change intended to help him cut down on strikeouts, according to Greg Joyce of the New York Post.
“Just things I've done in the past and things I kind of got away from. They pointed them out, and we worked on them. Trying to find a way to give myself the best chance every single time and be consistent with it,” McMahon told Joyce.
When McMahon was at the plate last season, he averaged 42.7 inches between his feet. These numbers are taken from Baseball Savant, which stated that it was the fourth-highest distance among players in the majors. It was not an open stance compared to the top 10 hitters in baseball.
McMahon hit .223 with 16 home runs, 39 RBIs, and 134 strikeouts in 105 combined games for the Yankees and Colorado Rockies. Comparatively, he hit .242 with 20 home runs, 65 RBIs, and 165 strikeouts in the previous season. As McMahon attempts to help the Yankees, he also hopes to get back to what he used to be.
McMahon's strikeout rate was 32.3% last season and 28.8% in 2024. In 2023, he had a 31.6% strikeout rate. McMahon had a 26.5% striekout rate and a 24.7% strikeout rate in 2021. Ideally, he is striving to get to that rate. In addition to improving his strikeout rate, McMahon will also focus on defense, as he attempts to help the Yankees improve their spot in the standings after they fell in the Divisional Series to the Toronto Blue Jays last season. Cutting down his strikeout rate would be a great first step.
