How Reds outfielder Wil Myers fits on a young team
PITTSBURGH –– Right fielder Wil Myers signed a one-year prove it deal with the Cincinnati Reds in December, and then the 11-year veteran opened his first year with a new team in a terrible slump.
Myers, 32, was hitting .175 with a mere .483 OPS. He struck out in 15 of his first 40 at-bats. The Reds had made Myers their biggest offseason acquisition in three years to be a power bat in the middle of their lineup, and Myers’ first impression at the plate was a poor one.
Very early in the season, Myers’ young Reds career was at a potential turning point. He worked with the Reds’ hitting coaches on making quick, significant adjustments at the plate, and Myers made a point to keep a positive attitude and lead by example on a young Reds roster.
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“I definitely want to be a major contributor in this lineup because if I can swing the bat the way I’m capable of, we can win more games,” Myers said. “Everyone here cares a lot about winning every day. I like everything that’s happened, and I’ve really enjoyed my time here. I love the group of guys we have here. This group of players is a lot of fun to play with. There’s a scrap and a fight that this team has.”
Since April 13, Myers is hitting .260 with a .790 OPS with seven of his nine RBI on the season entering Saturday’s game. He has been the Reds’ best defender during that stretch, and Myers has settled into his role on a new team.
Myers’ experience sticks out on the rebuilding Reds’ lineup. Every other player in the starting lineup is trying to prove who they can be in MLB. Jonathan India and Tyler Stephenson are trying to become All-Stars. Jake Fraley, TJ Friedl, Nick Senzel and Spencer Steer are trying to prove that they can be long-term starters on the Reds. Jose Barrero and Jason Vosler are trying to stick in MLB.
Then there’s Myers, the former Rookie of the Year who’s now the only player over 30 in the Reds’ regular lineup.
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“He has experienced a bit of everything in his career,” Reds manager David Bell said. “Being a top prospect. He has struggled at times. If you look at his career, it’s been an excellent career. He’s experienced all of it. He shares that with all our younger players. He has had that role on our team. He’s in it for all the right reasons. He really wants to be a part of this team being as good as it can be. He’s invested.”
Bell said Myers is the type of veteran who doesn’t talk a lot but “sees everything.” India and Stephenson have been the Reds’ vocal leaders this year, but Myers is usually the veteran who the young players have turned to for advice.
“First and foremost, he’s a really good guy who has played for a long time,” Reds outfielder Stuart Fairchild said. “He has done this at a really high level for a long time. He’s a leader on the team. Watching him go about his work, he does it the right way.”
Myers can answer just about every question that a Reds player could have. He was the AL Rookie of the Year in 2013 with the Tampa Bay Rays, struggled during his sophomore year and got traded to the San Diego Padres.
He saw an all-in push by the Padres flop, was on the ground floor for a total rebuild and saw the Padres develop into one of the best teams in baseball last year.
Myers had a down year offensively with the Padres in 2022, hitting .261 with a .713 OPS. He signed with the Reds for an opportunity to get consistent at-bats, and he didn’t know much about the team he was joining.
“It’s been eye-opening because I didn’t really know much coming in,” Myers said. “There’s a lot of really good young players here on both sides of the ball. Everyone knows about the young starters that we have. But a lot of people don’t know about TJ Friedl, Jake Fraley or Spencer Steer. They’re very good ballplayers and are really starting to find their way in this league, which is a lot of fun to watch.”
Myers’ investment in the Reds’ future motivated him during his early season slump. He stepped up in the batter’s box to become more consistent against low-and-away pitches, and Myers said he’s making a few more mechanical tweaks to hit for more power.
Myers said his strikeout rate is too high this season, and he’s trying to hit more home runs and become the power hitter the Reds signed him to be. Myers has historically been a streaky hitter who has tweaked his batting stance and his swing over the years. But Myers has always been at his best against fastballs that he drives right down the middle of the field.
He’s excited to show his new team what it looks like when he’s in a rhythm at the plate. Bell sees Myers becoming an even bigger part of the 2023 Reds and a potential catalyst for an offense that has been struggling.
“We expect Wil to be the player that he’s going to be, and he has shown plenty of signs of that,” Bell said. “Offensively, like any hitter, he’s constantly making adjustments daily to get to where he knows he needs to be and be consistent. He’s still working on that. He has had really good days. He moved up at the plate which helped him. He’s right on track.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: How Reds outfielder Wil Myers fits on a young team
