Ackley started in AA with a good eye and couldn't make the right contact.
I still don't think he's making quite the right contact, but his eye has gone through the roof. I agree with you that I want to see more power from him. That I WANT him making full contact with every swing and not skittering balls into the hole for lots of singles.
But that's not the league getting the better of him. That's not getting fooled by breaking balls.
He IS seeing the ball exceptionally well. He always has, but it's ridiculous right now. If you want to see some HRs before promoting him, that's your call. But if you're not there watching, how would you know if it was a wind-aided blast that's making you feel better, or if he's getting robbed at the wall on a pitch he crushed and you're not giving him credit for tagging the ball?
Like you said, you saw him. What did you think? I think the kid has a stroke that IMO needs some gentle tweaking to get him to stop burning worms and start doing serious doubles and HR damage.
I don't know if the batting coach for our AA team is the guy to do it. Or AAA. If our AA coach is the best one to take care of that, by all means leave him there.
But at this point the league is not giving Ackley any trouble. Ackley's low power is a product of his swing, not their overmatching him. So put him wherever you can give him the best instruction, because he's not flailing at curves and behind on FBs - his brain can already process what the league is throwing at him.
I wanted to see Ackley struggle, and he did. I wanted to see how he would handle it - he did perfectly. No stress, no wavering of the batting eye, he just rode it out and trusted that his hands would start doing what he told them to do soon enough.
I stand by the statement - he's solved AA. He hasn't got his swing perfected. Worry about that now, and not about whether a 95 MPH pitch thrown by a good prospect is a problem for him.
AA is now his personal rehab stint, and with his apparent disdain for swinging at any junk in the last couple of weeks (going on 6, but especially in the last 2) and holding out for only the drivable pitches, he seems to be thinking the same thing. Make better, more consistent contact and get promoted.
It'll happen soon.
~G
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