Adrian Gonzalez Offers Portrait of Consistency Few Hitters in Game Can Match

If every one of Mark McGwire's pupils were as astute as Adrian Gonzalez, the Dodgers' hitting coach would be an unnecessary luxury instead of a necessary component.

Indeed, in a recent conversation with B/R, Mac did not focus on the brightness of Gonzalez's torrid start but on the wattage of his candlepower.

"It's huge," McGwire says. "I think it's what separates good players from great players. Your mind. And he's one of the best."

Maybe you've watched Gonzalez's bus-schedule-like consistency over the years until he's practically blended into the background, and you don't even think much about it anymore. Easy thing to have happened. He played in 159 games last year and 157 the year before that, and from 2007 to 2012, he never played in fewer than 159.

Like chalk baselines and the protective net behind home plate that separates fans from screaming foul balls, Gonzalez is always there.

And, ever productive. He led the National League with 116 RBI last year, was tied for the league lead at midweek with nine home runs and led the NL with a .752 slugging percentage and 1.200 OPS.

Yes, guys such as Gonzalez can make a hitting coach seem extraneous.

But hitting coaches aren't about to go the way of the rotary telephone anytime soon because few in the game possess Gonzalez's skills for analysis.

Take the home runs.

A couple of years ago, Gonzalez declared he was not a home run hitter. By the time that made it through the spin cycle, outraged armchair general managers were wondering why, then, was he earning $21 million a year? It was almost as if, following the shoulder surgery that derailed him for a brief time in Boston, he was surrendering part of his game.

Which was neither his intent nor what he meant by the "not a home run hitter" statement.

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"His power is still the same because he's so smart, and he really knows what he's doing," McGwire says. "He has a great game plan every night, and because he centers so many balls and hits so many line drives, the home runs are going to come.

"His purpose each at-bat is to hit line drives in the gaps, and he's doing it. He is a great guy to follow if you are a young kid and want to learn how to hit."

Which is what Gonzalez, who turns 33 on Saturday, meant: He is a line-drive hitter, not a home run hitter. Granted, it has been several summers since his peak home run years of 40 (2009) and 36 (2008).

Still, take the approach he has, along with his hand-eye coordination, strength, conditioning and focus, and it all blends together into, more often than not, hard line drives that often become home runs.

It's like trying to describe a zebra: Black with white stripes? White with black stripes? Whatever, it's still a zebra.

Gonzalez's on-base percentage of .447 through midweek ranked fourth in the NL.

"It is very rare that he comes out of the strike zone," McGwire said. "But if he does, he makes an adjustment the next at-bat.

"He understands when he's not going to get stuff to hit. He's even dropped down a couple of bunts against the shift this year."

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Gonzalez's April launched the reconstructed Dodgers into first place in the NL West: By month's end, he led the NL with eight homers and a .790 slugging percentage, and he ranked third in runs (19), hits (31), doubles (nine) and RBI (19). In an opening-series slaughter of the Padres, Gonzalez also became the first slugger ever to smash five home runs through a team's first three games.

The man who has been a steady, behind-the-scenes calming influence on Yasiel Puig for the past couple of years also has been a steady mentor to Joc Pederson as the rookie center fielder has burst into the national spotlight.

"When you have experience like Adrian does, and you're so willing to pass it on," McGwire said. "He is so willing to talk with guys, to offer them help, and that's helped our team a lot.

"It's helped out Joc. Maybe he's facing a left-handed reliever late in the game, and Adrian will give him some tips.

"It's just a joy to work with him, and to watch him play."

Scott Miller covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist for Bleacher Report.

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