PHILADELPHIA — Ke’Bryan Hayes learned a long time ago to enjoy the ride.
It was back in high school, actually, which is when Hayes began riding mountain bikes with his oldest brother and mom. It’s one of the Pirates third baseman’s favorite activities in the offseason, something he feels helps his knees and mobility while also providing a way to relax.
This, however, isn’t about Hayes’ affinity for bikes, though we’ll get there. It’s about Hayes’ 2021 season and how it hasn’t exactly been a smooth ride.
The defense has been great, sure, but Hayes injured his left wrist in the second game of the season, suffered a setback and didn’t play again for two months. When he did, much of the explosive power he flashed last season was gone.
Nobody expected Hayes to maintain the .376 average or 1.124 OPS that he produced in September last season, but it’s also unlikely that anyone is willing to accept .256 or .686, either, the player included.
“The injury kind of threw some things off,” Hayes said. “Whenever I came back, I felt good hitting, then I kinda struggled for a month and a half, two months. It’s all learning. Just seeing what I did, what I changed to feel more comfortable in the box, noting those things in my head for next season. That way whenever I’m not feeling good, I know what to resort to. Just some little cues to help me get back on track quicker.”
The wrist has caused Hayes some periodic issues throughout the season, he said. Nothing major, mind you. Hayes certainly doesn’t expect to have offseason surgery or anything like that, but “there have been a few games where I felt it.” So Hayes has kept with the rehab work he did while he was out.
Looking back, Hayes thinks he might have been a little fatigued or not quite at full strength when he came back, causing him to start doing some different things or losing his mechanics a little bit in his swing.
The numbers bear that out. While Hayes has always played Gold Glove-caliber defense — his 18 defensive runs saved lead all third basemen — he has not lifted the ball as much as he has in the past.
Among hitters with at least 200 balls in play, Hayes’ average launch angle of 2.2 was second-lowest in MLB and represented a big drop from his mark of 7.4 in 2020. Hayes has hit the ball hard, with his average exit velocity (90.2 mph) in the 69th percentile and his hard-hit percentage (45.9%) in the 74th; it simply hasn’t been lifted enough.
This offseason, Hayes plans to hit off velocity a little more, the focal point to get his body in a position to where he can drive balls that are middle-in on the pull side. That’s definitely a part of Hayes’ swing that lacked.
“I knew I wasn’t going to hit .380,” Hayes said. “It would be cool if I did that, but I kind of knew I wasn’t going to hit .380. I only faced a couple teams last year. I got to face a lot of new guys this year, a lot of new bullpen arms. Next year I’ll have a better idea of how they’re going to pitch me.”
He’ll lift and ride his bike, too, the same as always. After starting out on trails, Hayes has gradually shifted more toward road biking, careful to avoid injury. He owns two bikes, a Cinelli single speed and Scott road bike.
Although Hayes said it’s tough to do much riding during the season, he and his girlfriend will usually ride for about 20-30 minutes in the morning, mostly through the Strip District and on the Three Rivers Heritage Trail.
“I like doing it,” Hayes said. “It’s good for my knees with the heavy lifting that I do in the offseason. You ride and relax, clear your mind, listen to music. That’s kind of what helped me get into better shape. But now that I eat a lot better, I don’t ride as much. That way I don’t lose too much muscle.”
When Hayes reports to Pirate City next spring, the Pirates’ rebuild will theoretically have taken another step forward, with plenty of players in Class AAA Indianapolis or Class AA Altoona this season trying to make a push to make the big club.
Although it hasn’t been the offensive year that he wanted, Hayes has been keeping an eye on stuff happening in the minor leagues. With Bradenton winning the Low-A Southeast League title and Greensboro competing for a championship in the High-A East League, and Hayes said that gives him hope for the future.
“We had two minor league teams in the finals this year,” Hayes said. “When you’re building that winning culture, it’s good for our organization whenever you have minor league teams making the playoffs. The High-A team is really stacked. The Class AA team, the whole infield got called up to Class AAA. There’s a lot of good guys down there. It’s going to be really fun in a couple years.”
Jason Mackey: jmackey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @JMackeyPG.
First Published: September 26, 2021, 4:55 p.m.
