Nick Sogard is heating up for WooSox
The WooSox played their first Wednesday matinee of the year yesterday. They have four remaining for the rest of the year, and these are games we heard WooSox manager Chad Tracy mentioned some guys “might need a couple cups of coffee” for.
Worcester ended up losing 10-3 to Lehigh Valley, and the offense was only able to supply five hits all game. One of those hits came from Nick Sogard, who extended his one base streak to 12 games.
Sogard was going through a bit of a rough patch earlier in the season. Tracy described him as “the most unlucky hitter in the lineup” due to his quality at bats he was taking that were not resulting in hits.
Lately, the results have started to show.
“He is getting the results now.” Tracy said about Sogard’s hot streak. It’s funny because he really couldn’t buy a hit and it ended up being three little bloops that fell in that started him up again. He definitely deserved those.”
The former Loyola Marymount star has now seen his batting average rise to .286, his on-base percentage rise to .421, and his OPS rise to .795. His ability to work counts and draw walks has been on full display this season. His 19.3 walk percentage is the highest it’s been in his entire minor league career. He has 22 walks in 29 games, which is another reason his manager raves about the quality at-bat he takes every time he is up at the plate.
“He just kept taking good at-bats and swinging the bat and they started to fall.” Tracy added. “If you keep taking quality at-bats like he does, the hits will come. He’s been a tough out all year.”
Sogard’s versatility is keeping him in the lineup almost on a nightly basis. He was back in right field on Wednesday, as we have seen him in left field as well recently.
“I think he looks great in right and left field.” Tracy noted on Sogard’s defense. “He runs the ball down with confidence. I haven’t seen him stuttering with his steps, so really no uncertainty for him. He knows where the ball is going, runs right to the spot, makes the catch, and hits the cut off man. He does exactly what we need him to do.”
The ability for Sogard to slot in at almost any position gives Tracy the luxury of getting his bat in the lineup on a nightly basis and get creative with his lineups. We have seen this already this year with Bobby Dalbec playing a new position at shortstop, and we have seen David Hamilton play in centerfield once as well.
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