A few hours before George Springer became a World Series champion, he lounged in front of his assigned locker in Dodger Stadium listening to an ‘80s mixtape and explained the dramatic change in his numbers last season: his reduction in strikeouts, from 178 to 111, and in his swing-and-miss rate, from 12.4 percent to 9.5 percent.
“I just made up my mind I wasn’t going to strike out as much,” said Springer, who owns real estate in our top 10 list of center fielders.
Joey Votto, the best and smartest hitter in baseball, offered a similar take in the midst of his incredible 2017 season, as he cut his strikeouts from 120 to 83.