WASHINGTON — Slugger Seth Beer can be the talkative and gregarious sort in the Diamondbacks clubhouse, but teammates say they see a different side of him when the game starts — something they think helps explain his hot start at the plate.
“Once the game starts, he really locks in,” right fielder Pavin Smith said. “He focuses on what he needs to do. … He hangs out, relaxes and then once the game starts it’s time to lock in. You can tell the flip of the switch with him.”
In a lineup filled with mostly struggling hitters, Beer has been a shining bright spot for the Diamondbacks’ offense. Since connecting for a walk-off home run on Opening Day, Beer has not slowed down. He entered Friday hitting .400. He attributes his early results to a focus on having good at-bats.
“That was my No. 1 goal,” Beer said. “Leaning on that same approach now and looking for a good pitch to hit and just putting the best swing I got on it. I’ve had some chances and I’ve had some times when I’ve put the barrel on the ball. I’m just trying to dumb it down as much as I can. At the end of the day, this game can get really hard if you overthink it.”
Those with the D-backs suggest there’s more to Beer’s approach than he might suggest.
“(Beer is) very intense (during games),” manager Torey Lovullo said. “But paying attention to the game. He’s a student of the game. He understands the game. He’s a good baseball player and a good hitter, but he’s a smart baseball player and a smart hitter, so that’s why he’s having success.”
Fellow rookie Cooper Hummel marveled at the metronomic nature of Beer’s routine and at-bats. He sees it as evidence that Beer “always has a plan.”
“He looks like he’s been up here for a long time,” Hummel said. “There’s a presence and a calmness to him. He knows what he’s going to do. He doesn’t care one pitch to the next. His timing, tempo, rhythm, they’re all the same, every time. He doesn’t look like he’s ever amped up, never too high, never too low. It’s impressive.”
For the first time this season, Beer was in the lineup on Thursday against a left-hander starting pitcher. Lovullo said he liked that particular matchup for Beer, stopping short of saying he would begin to start regularly against lefties, despite having entered the day 4 for 8 off left-handers.
“I don’t know,” Lovullo said. “I’ll have to lay it out and see what types of lefties we’re going to be facing.”
Lovullo has tended to be conservative with young players, going out of his way when possible to get them into advantageous matchups and not to ask too much of them early in their careers. Beer went hitless in three at-bats against left-handed pitchers on Thursday and reached base against right-hander Erasmo Ramirez on a hit by pitch.
Beer, who was acquired as part of the Zack Greinke trade three years ago, couldn’t have timed his arrival in the majors any better. Regarded as a shaky defender, he is a natural fit for the designated hitter’s role, which just so happens to have been recently adopted in the National League.
“I’m definitely seeing it as an opportunity to get at-bats and help drive in runs,” Beer said. “To me, the ultimate goal is to do whatever I can to help the team win. For me it’s another opportunity, another bridgeway for me to do that.
“This has always been my dream, since I was a kid, is to play in the big leagues. For me, it’s just taking it one step at a time and putting everything in perspective. I’m just so happy to be here and happy to be given the opportunities to get at-bats in big situations. For that, I’m just extremely grateful.”
