FORT MYERS, Fla. -- In recent weeks, the Red Sox showed interest in free agent first baseman Freddie Freeman, a clear indication that they believe the position could be upgraded.
The Sox' interest in Freeman caught some by surprise, especially considering the presence of Triston Casas in their system. Committing to Freeman on a long-term deal would have resulted in blocking Casas at his natural position.
But the pursuit of Freeman also seemed to ignore the existence of Bobby Dalbec, who saw the majority of playing time at the position last season.
Problem is, the Red Sox are understandably unsure of what they have in Dalbec. Is he the guy who had ridiculously high strikeout totals and and a minuscule walk rate in the first half? Or the imposing slugger who posted a .955 OPS in the second half while blasting 15 homers over his final 61 games?
Even Dalbec may not know for sure. But he's trying this spring to be more consistent.
At the very least, he comes into camp this spring knowing what he's capable of accomplishing. The trick is to do it more regularly.
The spring began well enough for Dalbec, who swatted a two-run homer to left in the first inning in the Red Sox' 14-1 thrashing of the Minnesota Twins in the Grapefruit League opener for both clubs.
"I think I was more worried about my mechanics last year,'' said Dalbec, "rather than being on time and seeing the ball. I was trying to have a good swing while being late, and that (doesn't work).''
While Dalbec spent the first half of last season obsessing about the technical aspects of his swing, he neglected other important aspects. In addition to timing issues, he needed to be more aggressive on pitches in the strike zone.
"Looking for the right pitches, looking for pitches I can handle and not trying to do too much with them,'' said Dalbec, running through his mental checklist.
Dalbec's season began to turn around in early August, when trade deadline acquisition Kyle Schwarber worked with him in the batting cage for an entire series in Detroit. Schwarber seemed to unlock something with Dalbec, and the big first baseman enjoyed his best month in the big leagues thereafter.
"He was a great teammate last year, great person,'' said Dalbec of Schwarber, who agreed to a four-year deal with Philadelphia earlier this week. "That cage session got me to isolate what's important and what's not important. That's what I took into the offseason to work on. (That tutorial) showed me that it was never a swing thing. It started out with us just talking and he kind of got me to realize it wasn't about the swing -- it's about the other stuff, like timing. Being slow and under control is more important than having a mechanically perfect swing every day.''
Even after just one game, Dalbec finds himself in a "way better'' position this spring than a year ago. He noted that his homer came off a 95 mph, a pitch he wouldn't have connected on last spring, or, the first three months of the 2021 regular season, for that matter.
"That's what I'm super pumped about, that my timing translated in the first at-bat,'' he said. "Now it's remembering to do it everyday and be consistent with it. That's the key for me. That big leg kick was something I thought I needed to do, but toning that down, I kind of know how my body works and it's way more consistent, with less movement, which is huge for me.''
On the other side of the ball, Dalbec also played far better defense as his offensive turnaround began. But while some might see a connection between the two, Dalbec doesn't.
"I'll never say that I'm hitting bad, I don't play good defense,'' he said. "I take pride in my defense. Last year, the first half was just a comfort thing. I had been on the left side of the infield my whole life except for my freshman year of college. I kind of unlearned first base, you might say. Last year, I started getting more comfortable around the bag,. Picking (low throws) has never been a problem for me, but footwork and how to attack certain balls (needed improvement).''
This spring, Cora is going to have Dalbec work in left field some and won't rule out giving him some time at second base, where Dalbec got an occasional opportunity last season.
That's fine with Dalbec, who considers himself athletic enough to help out almost anywhere around the diamond. The flexibility will add to his value.
Of course, if Dalbec can slug like he did in the final two months of last year, the Red Sox will find a play for him to be in the lineup.