Chicago White Sox catcher Yasmani Grandal has been an above-average offensive catcher during his entire career and was particularly good in 2021.
He has a career .785 OPS with 177 homers, and hit .240/.420/.520 with 23 round-trippers in 2021.
Everything went south in 2022, though.
He slashed a meager .202/.301/.269 with just five dingers in 376 plate appearances; and had a putrid .570 OPS.
Part of his struggles could stem from the fact he was affected by back, knee, and leg injuries almost all year.
He would return from a stint on the 10-day injured list only to require another one for a different issue.
It was a tough year injury-wise for the catcher.
The White Sox’s Twitter account itself admits it: Grandal is entering the 2023 campaign with something to prove.
“Yaz is heading into Spring Training with a chip on his shoulder,” they tweeted with a short video of him training at max effort.
Yaz is heading into Spring Training with a chip on his shoulder. 😤 pic.twitter.com/xzUkMBqGBr
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) February 10, 2023
It actually looks like a vintage Rocky scene: the man is lifting weights, doing pushups, agility drills, and several other exercises.
He wants to make sure to be in top shape come the start of the season.
Lots of players use spring training to get in shape.
This time, Grandal will already be in tip-top physical shape when camp opens next week.
That’s music for White Sox fans’ ears.
After last year’s disappointing performance, they needed to see him making that extra effort to be ready.
It obviously doesn’t hurt that he will be playing for a contract next season.
That gives him all the motivation he needs.
We may witness one of Grandal’s best seasons in his MLB career.
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