Jackie Bradley Jr. might want to take credit for a pair of hot streaks at the moment.
The first belongs to him. Bradley has hit in 19 of his last 22 games, going 23-for-76 with four doubles, five home runs and 10 walks. He was 3-for-3 and scored three runs in Tuesday’s nightcap of the doubleheader against the Phillies.
The second belongs to rookie infielder Bobby Dalbec, who has received a bit of an assist from the Red Sox center fielder on his way to history. [...]
Jackie Bradley Jr. might want to take credit for a pair of hot streaks at the moment.
The first belongs to him. Bradley has hit in 19 of his last 22 games, going 23-for-76 with four doubles, five home runs and 10 walks. He was 3-for-3 and scored three runs in Tuesday’s nightcap of the doubleheader against the Phillies.
The second belongs to rookie infielder Bobby Dalbec, who has received a bit of an assist from the Red Sox center fielder on his way to history. Dalbec has slugged each of his last four home runs using one of Bradley’s bats. The latest two occurred at Citizens Bank Park as Boston split a pair of games with Philadelphia.
"I picked it up in the cage one of the games I was sitting and couldn’t put it down," Dalbec said. "Just tried it out and it’s been going pretty well."
Dalbec is the first Red Sox rookie to homer in four straight games and the youngest player to do so for the club since Ted Williams in 1941. Dalbec and Sam Horn are the only two Boston players to collect five home runs in their first nine games. Dalbec’s latest was a two-run shot to the opposite field that propelled the Red Sox to a 5-2 victory.
"We talk about just putting the ball in play more often and he’s doing it," Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke said. "Also got a big base hit for us. That’s really fun to see."
Dalbec homered in his debut against the Nationals on Aug. 30 and went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts against Atlanta the following night. The contrast between his enormous power and his helplessness at times is striking. Putting Dalbec in the lineup on a daily basis, like Bradley at some points during his career, is declaring a willingness to ride along with his occasional highs and lows.
"We know the ball comes off his bat in a special way," Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said Tuesday in an interview with NESN. "Not too many guys are capable of hitting the baseball when they square it up like him.
"We also know there is some swing-and-miss there. He’s done a great job as a pro of tightening that up."
Dalbec’s first homer Tuesday was a 425-foot shot to left-center against Tommy Hunter. That tied the opener in the sixth, but the Phillies struck last in a 6-5 walkoff victory. Dalbec’s second homer was achieved against David Phelps and carried 408 feet to the opposite field, snapping a 2-2 tie.
"I just want to have good at-bats," Dalbec said. "Obviously, I had a rough stretch and am still striking out a bit but I feel really good up there. Staying confident and staying aggressive and hopefully things work out."
Dalbec struck out in 123 of his 284 at-bats at Class-A Greenville in 2017. He cut that down to 130 strikeouts in 344 at-bats at Class-A Salem in 2018. Dalbec fanned 110 times in 359 at-bats at Double-A Portland in 2019, earning a late promotion to Triple-A Pawtucket.
"Coming out of college, I think he was a very controversial player in the draft because of the possibility for strikeouts," said Bloom, noting how Dalbec lasted until the fourth round out of Arizona in 2016. "I think he’s exceeded in some ways what people thought he would do — maybe not the scouting staff here, but around the industry — to this point in his career.
"This time is going to be essential for him to get a taste of what life is like for a hitter at the major league level — how your weaknesses are exploited. You come up here and they already have a report on you because of the data that’s available on minor league players today."
Pitch data and exit velocity being what they are, there is no accounting for how a player feels at a certain point. Dalbec has found his confidence early in his career, and he has a certain weapon — one that’s not so secret anymore — to thank at least in part.
bkoch@providencejournal.com
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