McMahon's 2023 mantra: Keep it simple, slugger

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- The road to simple and clear thoughts was cluttered for Rockies third baseman Ryan McMahon in 2022.

McMahon entered the season with internal and external expectations that came with the six-year, $70 million contract he signed before the season. He had a 20-game stretch during which he uncharacteristically committed eight errors. He also struggled to find the power the Rockies needed.

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But McMahon’s defense returned, and National League managers and coaches voted him a finalist for the Gold Glove Award at third base for the second straight year. Most important, he homered 12 times in his final 52 games to bring his season total to 20. McMahon finished with advanced stats that suggest more power and run production are possible.

A hard-hitting bat was the sign of a freed mind.

“The thing that I had going at the end of the year that made my swing feel shorter was the sequencing of it -- step, hips, hands -- basic stuff like that,” McMahon said. “I dove into that. I continue to work on that, work on pitches up in the zone, and I ended up feeling pretty good.”

McMahon must be that simple and effective throughout the 2023 season for the Rockies’ offense to produce. Functioning properly, McMahon offers lefty production behind righty sluggers Kris Bryant and C.J. Cron.

Last year, injuries limited Bryant to 42 games and Cron had an All-Star first half but sustained a right wrist injury in July and struggled in the second half. McMahon’s strong finish gave him a .741 OPS, but that was still a 39 point drop from the previous season.

McMahon is one of several Rockies players who need to rebound for the club to improve on 68-94.

“We don’t care what’s being said outside of this clubhouse,” McMahon said. “It’s about believing in each other and getting the best out of each other. I know we have high hopes and high standards for ourselves. It’s about going out there, doing it and being better than last year.”

The Cardinals’ Nolan Arenado, McMahon’s predecessor at third base with the Rockies, has a 10-year stranglehold on the Gold Glove. But merely returning to normal will give McMahon a chance to give Arenado a run for his gold statistically, as he did in '21.

Statcast metrics from 2022 paint McMahon as a player who had the components of a better year than the results of the traditional statistics. His average exit velocity put him in the top 10% among MLB players, and his hard-hit rate landed in the top 17%.

McMahon’s 495-foot launch against the Cardinals’ T.J. McFarland, in a left-on-left matchup, was an example of possible damage. Even with the errors, McMahon rated at 9 outs above average, which tied for third among MLB third basemen.

Manager Bud Black saw a player who, at least in the beginning, pressed to justify the contract. In offseason interviews, general manager Bill Schmidt echoed the sentiment.

“No doubt -- that’s my opinion,” Black said. “I don’t know what Mac has said, but I just sensed that he did. And that’s an admirable thing to happen, because he cares -- his place on the team, new contract, his own personal expectation, what he viewed as outside expectation. He tried awful hard. He tried too hard.”

Said McMahon: “I think those guys [Black and Schmidt] are more just protecting me. That’s how they are. They’re great dudes like that. They’re always going to have my back.

“It’s a tough game. I might have been putting pressure on myself. But I’ve got to stay out of my way with this game.”

While some metrics point to production, others must be improved. McMahon walked a healthy 60 times, but his 158 strikeouts and 26% whiff rate must be improved. But during the strong finish, Black saw McMahon recognizing general situational hitting principles -- growth for a player who debuted in 2017 and grew into a regular over the next two seasons while playing first base and second base.

“Having a feel for the game, that’s improving offensively -- what’s expected of him from a team standpoint,” Black said. “And he’s understanding that and actually is taking a lead on that, as far as his conversations with the guys and what we’re trying to accomplish.”