Austin Maddox is hoping his sophomore slump doesn’t follow him into his junior year.
After batting .333 and leading the team in home runs (17) and RBI (72) as a freshman two seasons ago, Maddox struggled to find his swing last year.
The 6-foot-3, 235-pound junior hit just .280 last season — the lowest mark by any of the Gators’ everyday players — while knocking just six home runs and reaching base at a .327 clip, which was also the worst among regular starters.
“You can’t make excuses for yourself,” Maddox said. “I don’t think it was the [new bats introduced last season]; I think I just had a rough year. It happens to everyone, and I’m looking forward to this year and moving past it.”
In the offseason, Maddox said he worked heavily on his swing to help him get over last year’s hump. He spent a lot of time during the off months with assistant coach Craig Bell, who is entering his fifth season at Florida. Bell helped Maddox work on staying back through his swing and not drifting forward in the batter’s box.
Most importantly, though, Maddox has worked on his patience at the plate — a facet of the game that hindered his production at times last season. After striking out 42 times as a freshman, he struck out 33 times last year, which was fourth most on the team.
While he improved his strikeout rate from 15 percent in 2010 to 12.6 percent last season, Maddox said he would still chase too many pitches out of the strike zone, particularly early in at-bats.
“I’ve been working on being a little bit more patient early in the count,” Maddox said. “It’s really hard; it’s kind of who I am, it’s what’s built into me. I’m aggressive, and that’s what I am, but I’m making adjustments and it’s working out.”
Maddox’s aggressiveness at the plate may have negatively affected his offensive numbers last year, but that same attribute helped him on the mound. As a freshman, Maddox played exclusively in the field, but entering last season, Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan used Maddox out of the bullpen, too.
The move paid off. Maddox was one of the Gators’ most reliable relievers, making 21 appearances and surrendering just two earned runs while holding opponents to a .198 batting average.
Although his numbers on the mound were more impressive than those at the plate, the righty not only spent time in the offseason adjusting his swing mechanics, but he worked on fine-tuning one of his pitches, too. Fellow reliever Steven Rodriguez helped Maddox tweak his slider, and now Maddox said he is locating the pitch much more effectively and feels comfortable throwing it in any situation.
That, in turn, should make O’Sullivan that much more at ease with the back end of the Gators’ bullpen. While O’Sullivan said he feels good with Maddox, Rodriguez and Greg Larson late in games, Florida’s skipper is unsure if the team will go into the season with one set closer.
That doesn’t matter to Maddox, though.
“I’m going to get on the mound and give it my best effort,” Maddox said. “I’m going to go right at you; I’m aggressive. I guess I just have the closer mentality already built into me.”
Contact Tom Green at tgreen@alligator.org.
After hitting .333 and leading the team in home runs as a freshman, Florida first baseman and relief pitcher Austin Maddox slumped to hit .280 as a sophomore.
