MLB trends: Enrique Hernández's magic fix, the clutch MJ Melendez and Manuel Margot's big problem

All eyes are on a September stretch run but we have to get through August first

By Mike Axisa Aug 14, 2024 at 9:00 am ET• 6 min read

The dog days of summer have arrived. Teams made their moves at the July 30 trade deadline and now the postseason races (and awards races) are heating up. Less than seven weeks remain in the regular season. With that in mind, here now are three MLB trends worth knowing as we enter the stretch run.

Hernández turning season around with new glasses

Enrique Hernández LAD • 3B • #8 BA0.215R31HR7RBI26SB0 View Profile

For much of the first half, Dodgers utility man Enrique Hernández was pressed into action at third base because of Max Muncy's oblique injury. The results were not good. Hernández took a .191/.258/.299 batting line into the All-Star break, and both the defensive metrics and the eye test say his glove at third base is OK. Certainly not stellar, and certainly not enough to carry the bat.

Hernández has been a different hitter over the last few weeks though, slashing .276/.336/.434 in 21 second half games. As he tells it, there is a tangible explanation for his improved performance: Hernández got fitted for eyeglasses. At the behest of longtime friend Martín Maldonado, Hernández had his eyes checked earlier this year, and the exam revealed an astigmatism.

The Los Angeles Times has the details:

"(Maldonado) told me that him and a couple of his teammates needed glasses, and they didn't really know through the spring training test," Hernández said.

...

"They went through a more thorough test [to learn they needed glasses]," Hernández said, referring back to his discussion with Maldonado. "So I was like, 'All right, I'm gonna try it out.'"

The astigmatism is in Hernández's right eye, and in the final series of the first half, he began wearing glasses with a prescription right lens. He'd never worn glasses in his life prior to that. The slash line speaks for itself, but beneath the surface, Hernández has also shown improvement in his contact and chase rates with his new glasses:

	No glasses	With glasses	MLB average
Contact rate	76.6%	79.8%	77.0%
Chase rate	25.7%	24.4%	28.4%
Chase rate vs. breaking balls	26.9%	21.4%	31.0%

Mookie Betts returned Monday and Muncy started a minor-league rehab assignment this past weekend. He's inching closer to a return and the Dodgers need him. When Muncy does return, Hernández will slide back into a traditional utility role, and it's for the best. Even with his new glasses, he's stretched as an everyday player. Hernández is most effective in moderation.

For much of the first half, Hernández's bat was essentially unplayable, but the Dodgers had little choice but to play him given their third base situation. The eye exam, the astigmatism diagnosis, and the new glasses have helped Hernández get his season on track. It sort of makes you wonder why we don't hear about more struggling players going for rigorous eye exams, no?

The incredibly clutch Melendez

MJ Melendez KC • LF • #1 BA0.205R33HR13RBI36SB3 View Profile

There's no two ways about it: MJ Melendez's .205/.267/.403 slash line entering play Tuesday is ghastly. It's 28% below league average once adjusted for ballpark, and it's far below the .243/.314/.398 league average for left fielders. That .267 on-base percentage ranks 204th among the 210 hitters with at least 300 plate appearances this season. Yuck.