The Secret Behind Connor Kopach's Power Surge: Comfort
June 25, 2022 - American Association (AA)
Chicago Dogs News Release
Connor Kopach stepped to the dish in a pivotal spot last Saturday.
Grant Kay had just tied the game with a solo home run, and it was up to Kopach to keep the momentum rolling through the bottom of the order. After two called strikes, the seven-spot hitter fouled one off. Just late.
The shortstop struggled up to that point, 0-for-2 with a groundout and fielder's choice. Yet on an 0-2 count, Kopach launched a line drive deep and off of the right center field wall for a double. A stark change in end result was attributed from a minor tweak in his swing.
"I told him before he hit that double that I noticed his top hand was dropping too soon, which caused the barrel to go down and make him late," Dogs hitting coach Joe Dominiak said. "I told him to relax the bat and throw the bat at the ball. When he did that, he hit it off the Vienna Beef sign."
Kopach eventually came around to score off of a sacrifice fly that gave the Dogs the lead and the eventual win. The first-year Dog struggled to gain offensive momentum early in the season, but has found a recent power surge to bolster the Chicago lineup.
On June 2, Kopach sat with a .179 average and just two extra-base hits for a .533 OPS. In the 19 games since, he's hit four home runs and seven doubles for a .309 average and .970 OPS. For Kopach to unlock this strength, all he needed to do was clear his mind.
"I've been going up to the plate and not thinking about my swing," Kopach said. "I'm more looking for a pitch to hit, instead of thinking about my hands or my legs and how to get on time with the ball. Now I'm just getting in the box and trying to get a fastball or something over the plate I can do damage with."
At Southern Illinois University, Kopach emphasized a clear mind once in the batter's box. He sang songs in his head while dialing in on each pitch, which acted as a way to distract him from micromanaging his swing. That mental karaoke translated to a .336 average and six home runs in his senior season.
The former Saluki was drafted to the Seattle Mariners' system and played there until the 2021 season, but was released following a .150 average through 147 at-bats. From the time of the 2020 season being canceled to the end of his time with the Mariners, Kopach was constantly working with coaches to change his swing. This eliminated the opportunity to relax as a hitter that led to so much success at SIU.
"They were trying to tinker with something every week, and so I never got comfortable because I was always thinking about what I was supposed to be doing during the pitch," Kopach said.
Dominiak didn't try to revolutionize Kopach's swing once in Chicago. The long-time hitting coach simply told him to calm his approach. He stopped moving his hands so much and he shortened his stride. He now rests his bat upon his shoulders and works with a quicker load to get on time.
"He needed to relax and have fun because baseball is a game of failure," Dominiak said. "You're gonna fail seven out of ten times you hit, and that's when things are going real well."
Connor Kopach is known around baseball for having one of the slickest gloves in the game. Dogs manager Butch Hobson recalls one Atlantic League coach describing Kopach as a "wizard at shortstop." His mellow demeanor plays into his defensive work appearing second nature.
It was about bringing that serenity into the batter's box to open up Kopach's offensive skill set. The Chicago coaching staff knows that Kopach possesses power in his swing, it's now about making Kopach believe himself.
"I think sometimes his approach is trying to hit the ball over the fence as opposed to just making contact and letting it happen, which it will because he has power in that swing," Hobson said. "It's a working process, but he's got a good hitting coach leading him the way and he's going to have a monster season for us."
American Association Stories from June 25, 2022
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