J.T. Realmuto’s adjustment to his swing could be a ‘game changer’ for the Phillies

PHOENIX — Next to J.T. Realmuto’s stall in the visitors’ clubhouse at Chase Field was a cluster of celebratory balloons.

They were meant to honor Realmuto’s 10 years of service in the major leagues, a milestone that coincided with the Phillies’ series-opening win on Thursday against the Diamondbacks. He joined an exclusive club that only about 7% of players in the history of the game have ever reached, so by all accounts it was a big day.

But leading up to the game, the Phillies catcher was focused on something else.

During a film session this week with hitting coach Kevin Long, Realmuto thought they had made some progress with his hitting mechanics. Across the Mariners and Dodgers series, Realmuto mustered a .105 batting average. And he had been struggling to generate power far longer than just this road trip: He had not hit a home run since May 23, and had not had an extra-base hit since May 28.

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“My bat just wasn’t staying in the zone very long, kind of losing my barrel here, and then coming up over the ball a lot,” Realmuto said. “So I was late on fastballs, early on off-speed, so just kind of in between.”

He took extra batting practice on the field Thursday afternoon before the game, focusing on cleaning up his bat path to keep his barrel in the zone.

In the past, he said, when he deviated from his routine to fit in extra batting practice, it didn’t always immediately translate to the game. And that was true on Thursday, too — in his first three at-bats, he grounded out twice and flied out.

When he checked the video of his swing, Realmuto realized he hadn’t been executing what he had worked on in batting practice. So he made another adjustment before his fourth at-bat, and he was rewarded right away.

Realmuto fouled off three straight fastballs before connecting with a slider left up in the zone, launching it to center field to end his home run drought. Two innings later, he barreled up a fastball for a double.

“I know he’s been a little frustrated and he wants to play better,” shortstop Trea Turner said. “Those last two at-bats were him. So he seems to be back on track and driving the ball. He’s a big part of part of this team, with him being back and healthy, and he does so much behind the plate, but if he can hit like that, it’s a game changer.”

Realmuto returned from the injured list on July 20 after undergoing right knee meniscectomy surgery in June. Before his injury, he was hitting .261 with a .720 OPS.

It was serendipity that Realmuto’s breakthrough at the plate happened on the same day his team was celebrating his longevity in the game. He is the fifth player in the clubhouse to reach the 10-year mark, joining Bryce Harper, Zack Wheeler, Nick Castellanos, and Taijuan Walker.

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“He is one of the finest catchers I’ve ever been around,” manager Rob Thomson said. “His toughness, physically, mentally, emotionally, is second to none. It really is. He cares about his pitching staff. He prepares like nobody else. ... He does everything, run the bases, steal bases, hits, hits for power, catches, throws people out. He’s just a complete catcher.”

And it was after he’d started to get back to his regular self at the plate that the 33-year-old Realmuto, standing next to his balloons, reflected on those 10 years.

“Miami gave me a chance when I was 18 years old. They drafted me, they brought me to the big leagues,” he said. “They developed me, partly into the player who I am now. And then Philly took a chance on me and traded for me, and I’ve been blessed ever since just to be here and be a part of this amazing organization.

“It’s crazy, how 10 years sounds a lot more than what it feels like to me. I feel like I still have a lot of my career left, and a lot of baseball left to play.”