Mechanical adjustments proving fruitful for Carroll at the plate
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Corbin Carroll is always searching for little improvements that could help his game, and the Diamondbacks outfielder has made a slight mechanical adjustment at the plate this spring that has so far paid dividends.
Carroll went 2-for-2 with a grand slam, a single, a walk and two stolen bases in Wednesday afternoon¡¯s 7-1 win over the Brewers at Salt River Fields.
¡°I mean, it's the best outcome, so it¡¯s got to be in there,¡± Carroll said of whether hitting a grand slam entered his thought process when he stepped in the box. ¡°But I mean, the bigger thing is just trying to get something deep enough to score that runner from third and hopefully get that runner from second to third as well.¡±
Carroll had never hit a Spring Training home run prior to Monday, but he's now hit two in his past two games.
Spring stats don¡¯t mean much, but to Carroll, the homers represent something he¡¯s trying to do.
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¡°I think it¡¯s great from the standpoint of hitting two balls hard,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m just trying to dial everything in, but I¡¯m happy with how things are feeling so far.¡±
In previous seasons, Carroll had the end of his bat tilted downward over his left shoulder when he set up in the box. This spring, the bat is upright while his hands start out a little lower before they move up as he loads.
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It was on his ground-ball single the other way in the fourth inning that he showed the adjustment might be paying off. Carroll was able to stay on the pitch.
¡°My last at-bat today is a great example of what I think that having those hands stay up does for me,¡± Carroll said. ¡°I was able to take a good, clean swing at [the ball], I didn¡¯t have to work back up to it. So I was happy with that.¡±
Game notes
? Jordan Lawlar, MLB Pipeline's 2025 No. 11 overall prospect and the Diamondbacks¡¯ 2024 No. 1 prospect, also homered Wednesday, driving a fastball from Tyler Alexander halfway up the grass berm in left field.
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¡°Young player coming up and clipping a fastball just right where he's looking for it and didn't miss it,¡± D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. ¡°Just a really good player, who's going to do that a lot over the course of his career.¡±
? Drey Jameson pitched in a game for the first time since July 6, 2023, and worked a 1-2-3 inning.
Jameson, who had been sidelined following Tommy John surgery, is competing for a spot in the D-backs' bullpen.