Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports
Zack Cozart has yet to establish himself as a major hitting threat for the Cincinnati Reds. It’s unlikely he ever will.
The Reds shortstop is trying to make enough noise with this bat to keep opposing pitchers off stride as much as possible.
Saturday night, Cozart put his bat to good use in a 5-4 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Excellent defensive shortstops that aren’t hitting very well usually find themselves in the bottom part of a batting lineup. Cozart doesn’t care as long as he can gets the job done offensively.
In a tight one-run win over the Pirates, Cozart’s bat was huge. He needs to keep swinging a solid bat, especially with runners on the basepaths.
Cozart had two hits, an RBI and run scored against the Pirates. So far this season, he has seven home runs and 34 RBIs. He’s batting very similar numbers compared to a year ago when he finished at .246 with 15 home runs and 35 RBIs.
Cincinnati fans might as well realize now, if they haven’t already, that Cozart’s numbers are probably as good as they’re going to get. Anyone thinking he might have a breakout season this year or next and hit near the .300 mark is simply dreaming. He’s shown in this second season that he doesn’t hit for a high average. What he does want to do is swing a consistent bat that will produce the Reds key runs as he did Saturday. In a tight game, anything Cozart can do with his bat is going to be huge.
