So, on what side of the fence did you sit entering the 2019 season in regards to Max Muncy? On one hand, you had the doubters who said Muncy would face regression after his breakout 2018 campaign. Then, you had those folks (like me) who were bullish on Muncy entering 2019.
Now with the dust settled, Muncy didn’t miss much of a beat from his first season with the Dodgers to his second.
Furthermore, he finished with 101 runs, 90 walks, 35 home runs, and a .374 on-base percentage. He was named an All-Star for the first time. Therefore, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com is writing about Muncy’s follow-up act to his breakout initial season.
Max Muncy talks about his 2019 break-out season/follow up act https://t.co/yYgQvj9Lei
— Clint (@DiamondHoggers) November 6, 2019
Notably, Muncy says that 2019’s success came with a little more satisfaction.
“There is definitely a little more satisfaction because coming into this year, all I heard people talking about was, ‘Oh, teams are going to make the adjustment. You’re not going to be able to do what you did last year. Why can’t it work on both sides? Why can’t hitters make the adjustment? It kind of aggravated me a little bit to hear all these people saying all these things. I wanted to go out and prove I can still be a very productive player that I was [in 2018].”
Not only did Muncy prove to be a productive player, but he proved to be versatile for Los Angeles in 2019. For example, Muncy logged 70 games at second base. Then add another 35 at third in addition to 65 at his old ‘primary’ spot first base.
Finally, Muncy is cementing his legacy as a special Los Angeles Dodgers player. Now a mainstay on the roster and fixture in the middle of the lineup, we saw fans create a mural devoted to Muncy that could someday turn into more of a fancy thing. Also, Muncy showed out in the NLDS against the World Champion Washington Nationals by homering three times in the five game series.
Without question, you should know what you’re getting with Max Muncy as we enter 2020.