There is a Twins player on the current 25-man roster who has a slugging percentage over the past 2 1/2 months that is 70 points higher than any other teammate.

 

Check out these numbers since May 28, and know that the player in question is not;

Joe Mauer (.428)
Justin Morneau (.423)
Ryan Doumit (.416)
Oswaldo Arcia (.389)
Trevor Plouffe (.348)
Josh Willingham (.347)

Those gentlemen have all batted in power spots in the order at one point or another and are generally counted on to supply the pop for the Twins when healthy and in the lineup.

But the man who has more consistently delivered the those types of hits in that span? Brian Dozier.

Granted, leading the Twins in slugging percentage is akin to having the best tan during an Alaska winter, but Dozier has been impressive nonetheless.

Dozier bottomed out on May 27 with a .197 batting average. He looked clueless at the plate, and his future in the majors -- he had just turned 26 -- had to be in question.

Since then, however, Dozier has put together this line in 219 ABs: 19 doubles, 2 triples, 9 homers, 32 RBI and 24 walks. His on-base percentage in that span is a nice .351 and his slugging is .498.

He clubbed a leadoff home run Tuesday after a deep at bat and cracked a triple to start Wednesday's game after a similarly deep at bat. His biggest adjustment seems to be this: Knowing when to be aggressive and take a healthy pull cut, but knowing when to shorten his swing and take the ball the other way. His game-tying and game-winning hits against the Astros over the weekend were of the latter category.

Time will tell if Dozier has turned a corner for good. For now, though, he is the Twins' most potent offensive threat.
 

Older Post

Sage Rosenfels on Brett Favre and the Vikings-Saints title game

Newer Post

Ichiro would be closing in on Pete Rose's MLB hit record with a full career here