Royals’ Hunter Dozier appears poised for bounce-back season after COVID-derailed 2020
Hunter Dozier lost almost an entire season of his professional career to forces outside his control. An injury-riddled 2017 that included three broken bones and a strained oblique limited him to just 33 minor-league games.
Perhaps that’s part of the reason the Kansas City Royals’ third baseman seems very intent to want to view 2020 as a “lost season.”
Whether that’s just a reflection of a glass half-full approach to life or the 29-year-old Dozier simply realizing a lot of high-caliber players hit a speed bump last year, he isn’t reading too much into the drop-off in offensive production.
“I definitely don’t think you throw it away,” Dozier said. “It’s a learning experience.”
Two things conspired against Dozier’s 2020 season after he enjoyed a career year in 2019.
First, he contracted COVID-19 just before the Royals started their 60-game slate. The effects of the virus lingered even when he returned to the field.
Second, Dozier admittedly pressed at the plate after getting a late start to an already shortened season.
“Honestly, yeah I definitely felt a difference after COVID,” Dozier said. “I hate saying it because it’s not an excuse, but it definitely took a toll. It kind of kicked my butt for a little bit. It took me a little while to get my lungs back, get my energy back.”
The virus sidelined the 6-foot-4, 220-pound Dozier for the first 16 games of last season. He returned after a brief stint at the Royals’ alternate training site in an attempt to get him back up to game speed.
In 44 games last season, Dozier posted a slash line of .228/.344/.392 with six homers, 12 RBIs and 29 runs scored. His average exit velocity and barrel percentage were both down from their previous levels according to MLB Statcast data.
In 2019, Dozier posted a .279/.348/.522 slash line along with 26 homers, 84 RBIs, 10 triples, and 75 runs scored in 139 games.
It’s easy to forget that through the first stretch of the 2019 season, Dozier’s offensive production surpassed even that of designated hitter/outfielder Jorge Soler, who went on to lead the American League and set a franchise record for home runs.
Through Dozier’s first 52 games of that season, Dozier registered the same number of RBIs (33) and just one fewer home run (11) than Soler. Dozier also hit for a higher average (.314 to .249), on-base percentage (.398 to .302) and slugging percentage (.589 to .497) than Soler did through his first 52 games.
Of course, having produced at such a high level in the recent past may have worked against Dozier mentally in 2020.
When he got back on the field, he tried too hard to make up for lost time.
“I was looking at the season and I was like, ‘Man, I’m only going to have about 40 games to play unless we get in the playoffs,’” Dozier said. “I definitely put more pressure on myself. I think a lot of guys put more pressure on themselves because it is a 60-game season. You didn’t have time to work through some slumps that everyone goes through over the course of a normal season.”
Dozier described 2020 as “the hardest mental season” players have gone through.
His pressing may not have shown up any more vividly than when he batted with men on base.
With runners on base in 2020, Dozier slashed .169/.306/.254 after he’d gone .289/.367/.518 in the same scenarios the previous year. With runners in scoring position in 2020, he slashed .195/.327/.220 compared to the previous year when he smashed his way to .273/.351/.503 slash line.
He finally felt like he’d begun to get his feet under him in September, but by then the season was winding down.
“We’re used to a marathon, and last year was kind of a sprint,” Dozier said. “Right when the last game ended it was like, ‘Wait, I go home? We just started.’”
Royals manager Mike Matheny wasn’t at the helm for Dozier’s torrid 2019 season, but Matheny has been continually impressed by Dozier’s athleticism, work ethic and the ability to perform well in multiple positions.
A former player, Matheny certainly doesn’t overlook the impact the disjointed nature of Dozier’s 2020 season, particularly the late start, had on his production.
“I don’t think enough can be said about that,” Matheny said. “It’s almost like a guy who misses a good bit of spring training. Many people will say you could put too much value in spring training. But I put a lot of value in it, not necessarily in just the evaluation, but in the preparation. I think it’s extremely important that guys have the entirety of spring training to prepare. When you have those hiccups, they seem to somehow affect what kind of rhythm you get into from the beginning.”
Dozier has at least a staunch proponent in the front office. General manager Dayton Moore spoke optimistically about Dozier’s bounce-back potential throughout the offseason.
“When you look at what he did in 2019, we feel that he’s going to be a lot closer to that player than he was in 2020,” Moore said recently of Dozier. “There’s still a lot of upside in him as well.”
This story was originally published February 25, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
