Waters giving glimpses of powerful future

CLEVELAND -- Mike Matheny was standing in the outfield at Progressive Field on Friday afternoon, talking to a pitcher and watching batting practice ahead of the Royals’ series opener against the Guardians. Mid-conversation, he and the pitcher watched a ball hit -- crushed, really -- off the bat of Drew Waters soar deep into the trees beyond the center-field wall.

“Just wow,” Matheny said, remembering the scene Saturday afternoon. “It’s batting practice, I get it, but he’s hitting the ball where most guys can’t go, and that shows you what’s in there. So how do you tap into that to where you see it on more of a consistent basis in the game? Because it’s in there.”

Over these first two games of the season-ending six-game set in Cleveland, Waters is tapping into the power. He hit his second homer in as many days on Saturday in the Royals’ 7-1 win over the Guardians, helping snap their four-game losing streak and six-game skid at Progressive Field. Waters backed up Royals starter Kris Bubic’s five scoreless innings during a 2-for-4 night. The switch-hitter continues to show why the Royals pegged him as their center fielder of the future when they acquired him from the Braves earlier this season.

“Early in BP, usually you’re trying to groove the swing, but I don’t know what it is about Cleveland,” Waters said. “ I’ve started letting it fly a little bit, and it’s starting to take off.”

Friday’s homer was a two-run jack that traveled Statcast-projected 405 feet and registered a 107.8 mph exit velocity from the left side, which is where all his power has originated -- until Saturday. Against lefty Kirk McCarty and hitting from the right side in the sixth inning, Waters drilled a 1-0 cutter 106 mph off the bat and 380 feet into the left-field bleachers.

Don’t let Waters’ wiry, 185-pound frame fool you: There’s pop in his bat, and it’s loud.

“He looks super skinny,” catcher Salvador Perez said, smiling, after his own 4-for-4 night. “But he’s super strong.”

The pull-side approach is something Waters has worked on in the cage and in batting practice with the Royals’ hitting coaches, hoping to see it translate into games.

“The biggest thing we’ve been talking about is just contact point,” Waters said. “Where we’re looking to make contact. It’s kind of the more front-to-back approach. Focusing what you want to do out front and letting what happens on the back side of the swing just happen. It’s been good. I’m seeing it in results in BP, in the cage, and now in the game. It’s encouraging.”

Waters headlined the July trade that sent Kansas City’s No. 35 overall Draft pick to the Braves for three Minor Leaguers, and the Royals hoped that their hitting development team in Triple-A would help Waters unlock his toolsy swing that included raw power if he could just bring down his chase rate.

Waters and hitting coordinator Drew Saylor got to work in Omaha with drills and game-planning, and the results showed rather quickly. That earned Waters a promotion to the big leagues in August so the Royals could get a look at him in the outfield and at the plate as they begin to think about the 2023 roster.

“He’s been a joy to have around here,” Matheny said. “Loves to compete and really likes being in Royal blue right now. Feels like he’s welcome in a good way, and it’s a good home for him to put some things together. … I think he’s still figuring it out for himself, and meanwhile, we’re trying to give him an atmosphere to figure it out.”

The change of scenery hasn’t hurt Waters -- who grew up in Atlanta as a Braves fan before the organization drafted him in the second round of the 2017 Draft -- either. Eleven of his 17 hits since Aug. 28 have gone for extra bases -- six doubles, one triple and four homers -- and he’s slashing .266/.351/.578 with 12 RBIs in that span.

Waters has fit right in with the other rookies around the clubhouse and the big league hitting staff, including senior hitting coordinator Alec Zumwalt. The comfort Waters feels now has led to confidence.

“It’s cliche to say, but baseball is a mental game,” Waters said. “You see guys have the highs and lows, and it’s not because their swing changed. Most of the time, it’s between the ears.

“The entire staff, top to bottom, has done a really good job of making me feel comfortable. I’m starting to get comfortable to where I can look around and not let the third deck scare me off. So now I’m able to just really start focusing on my game.”