video is a great example. Look at where his head and stride foot start, and where they end up. Here are some stills to give you a better perspective. The first still is where his head starts, and the second still is where is head as his hands are about to explode through the zone. As a result of these mechanical flaws, Hosmer is simply just not hitting the ball hard.

His line-drive percentage is a measly 15.3%, which is good for the seventh-worst percentage of all qualified hitters. This stat should not be taken out of context either. Guys like Yasiel Puig, Josh Donaldson and even Royals All-Star Alex Gordon all have lower LD% than Hosmer. However, guys like Puig and Donaldson that have HR/FB of 13.5 and 18.2 respectively, aren’t hitting line drives because they are hitting fly balls out of the yard. A guy like Gordon, predominantly a doubles guy who will hit 17-20 homers, doesn’t hit a lot of line drives, but is driving fly balls (41.1 FB%) into the gaps and over the fence. Hosmer isn’t hitting line drives or hitting balls over the fence. His GB% of 53% is the 16th highest percentage among qualified batters, which is not ideal for a guy who is supposed to a middle of the order type of guy.

Is Hosmer Fixable?

All of this being said, yes, Eric Hosmer is fixable. In fact, it could be happening as we speak. Hosmer is currently riding a 13-game hitting streak in which he has posted a slash of .412/.492/.627, which gives him an OPS of 1.119 during the streak. His homer from July 10th gives us hope that he is slowly improving his mechanics. His home run swing still saw his head move a little, but his stride foot was much more under control. Compared to the swing you saw earlier, it is much improved.

His plate discipline during the 13-game streak has also improved drastically. His O-Swing% is 31.6% during the stretch, which isn’t great, but it is better, as well as his Z-Swing% slightly increasing from 67.6% on the season to 69.6% during this stretch. It is not surprising that a few tweaks to his mechanics and some better plate discipline have led to not only a 13-game hitting streak, but to an uptick in power, something the Royals desperately need. If the Royals are going to have a shot at winning the AL Central or even just nabbing a Wild Card, Hosmer is going to have to be a major contributor. Over the last 13 gams, he has contributed more than his fair share. However, for the Royals to be contenders, he is going to have to hit like this for the next two and a half months.