Bobby Dalbec arrived in Pittsburgh 0-for-2024. In his first 20 big league plate appearances of the season, the Red Sox infielder was 0-for-19 with a walk and 12 strikeouts.
Dalbec’s hitless streak had grown to 35 plate appearances, with his last knock coming Sept. 26 of last season. In the meantime, he had been 0-for-33 with two walks and 21 strikeouts.
Dalbec got off the proverbial schneid in the second inning of Friday’s 8-1 Red Sox win, driving a 357-foot double to right-center for his first hit of the season. And in doing so, finally had something to show for the work he has put in since cracking the Opening Day roster in late March.
“I wouldn’t call it a slump, man,” Dalbec said. “It’s (expletive) 18 at-bats or something. I’ve always been a slow starter, too, which is frustrating. There’s always next year to get off to a hot start. Trying to take my walks and do damage when the opportunity presents itself. I’m not trying to chase hits or get three hits in one at-bat. I’ve been there and it’s not easy.
“It’s awesome to get on the board with a hit.”
It was somewhat surprising that Dalbec, who was exiled to Triple-A Worcester for almost all of 2023 with Rafael Devers, Triston Casas and Justin Turner covering the corners at the major leagues, was part of Boston’s big league plans entering the spring. But with Turner gone, the Red Sox envisioned him as a right-handed hitting complement to Casas at first base and an insurance option if Devers ever got hurt. So far, with Devers missing nine of Boston’s first 21 games due to nagging shoulder and knee injuries, he has been called upon frequently. And while he hasn’t hit, he has stabilized the shoddy infield defense a bit with strong glovework in his five starts at third.
“Bobby’s one of the best defensive third basemen in the organization, if not the best,” said manager Alex Cora. “We know that. We made plays. He had a good game today.”
Dalbec has prided himself on playing well in the field even when hits haven’t been coming.
“I’ve always taken pride in my defense,” he said. “(Former Red Sox minor league instructor) Darren Fenster said my bat would get me to the big leagues and my defense would keep me there.
“I’m not worried about my bat coming around. Everything feels really good. I’ve felt good throughout this whole thing, too.”
In the first three weeks of the season, Dalbec has worked on a couple of swing-related tweaks but said he has generally felt good at the plate, despite his high strikeout rates. The major adjustments, he said, have come due to having to embrace a new role. Dalbec was an everyday player with the Red Sox for most of three seasons after making his debut in 2020 and saw everyday action in a very strong season with the WooSox a year ago. This year, he has only played 14 total games between the Red Sox and Triple-A, where he spent four days in the middle of the month.
“It’s been tough with a couple days off here and there to just get a rhythm,” he said. “I’ve been changing some preparation stuff to not worry about that and always be in a rhythm to be able to be on it. This is a learning curve for me doing this role with Raffy not being able to play right now.”