Manny Machado - Baltimore Orioles 3B

Good news, everyone. Manny Machado is back. I know, I’m excited too.

In his last 99 plate appearances, Machado is slashing .351/.384/.574 with six doubles and five home runs. His batting average has jumped 50 points, from .220 to .270, over that span.

Grantland’s Jonah Keri has some interesting tidbits about Machado’s recent performance.

Machado has belted five home runs since June 27, and four of those have come against pitches on the inner half of the plate; seven of his nine homers this season have been on inside pitches.

Keri also points out that 13 of Machado’s 18 hits since June 27 are on pitches on the inner half and adds that he has crushed three homers on off-speed pitches after hitting none prior to that date.

So why did it take so long for Machado to get going?

Last spring, Machado played 21 games and had 56 at-bats. This year in Sarasota, Machado spent his time recovering from knee surgery and relearning how to run. He didn’t record his 56th AB until May 14 and since then has slashed .295/.338/.472.

Welcome back, Manny.

Image Credit: Keith Allison