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A little patience pays off at the plate

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Times Staff Writer

Bill Mueller doesn’t want to take credit for the Dodgers’ offensive surge in recent weeks, but the empirical evidence indicates that the team has been more patient at the plate since he became hitting coach.

The Dodgers hit .260 and slugged .382 when Eddie Murray held the position from April 2 to June 14. Those numbers increased to .310 and .440, respectively, over Mueller’s first 33 days on the job.

The reason can be found in the details.

The Dodgers took 54.9% of first-pitch strikes under Murray, a figure increased by nearly 5% (60.4% from June 15-July 17) since the change. The most significant increases in this category were by Luis Gonzalez (58.7% to 80.8%), Juan Pierre (62.0% to 74.7%) and Wilson Betemit ( 60.3% to 72.2%).

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The Dodgers are also chasing fewer pitches out of the strike zone. They swung at 21.5% of such pitches in the pre-Mueller part of the season, compared to 19.5% post-Mueller. Pierre (25.9% to 16.4%), Andre Ethier (26.2% to 16.8%) and Tony Abreu (40.0% to 32.1%) improved most in this area.

Pierre, Ethier and Abreu also changed their first-pitch approaches and the effects on their averages were very clear. Pierre is hitting .306 with Mueller as coach, Ethier .415 and Abreu .306. Abreu was optioned to triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday.

But Manager Grady Little says that patience is something the coaching staff has tried to instill in the players all season.

No one is more skeptical of Mueller’s impact than Mueller himself. Mueller said the players are more comfortable at the plate at this stage of the season, which translates to increased discipline and production.

“What Manny [Mota] and I try to do is facilitate them to better their mechanics and give them the ability to work whenever they want to,” Mueller said.

But the feeling that they can work whenever they want, Betemit said, is important.

“Hitting is like eating,” Betemit said. “It’s something you need to do every day.” Russell Martin said it was a “pure coincidence” that he was hitting more than 70 points higher under Mueller, but that Mueller probably had a role in the team’s cumulative success.

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“He talks to every guy different,” Martin said. “He can relate to different types of hitters.”

dylan.hernandez@latimes.com

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Take that

The Dodgers have dramatically changed their habits taking more first-pitch strikes since Bill Mueller took over as hitting coach.

Several hitters have benefited greatly from the change in approach (statistics through Tuesday):

*--* First-pitch First-pitch strike take % strike take % Avg. before Avg. with Mueller Hitter before Mueller with Mueller Mueller Mueller Tony Abreu* 47.5% 62.5% 275 306 Wilson 60.3% 72.2% 223 231 Betemit Andre Ethier 55.6% 65.9% 261 415 Nomar 30.3% 36.5% 273 276 Garciaparra Luis 58.7% 80.8% 287 287 Gonzalez Russell 59.5% 63.8% 291 367 Martin Juan Pierre 62.0% 74.7% 279 304

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*sent to triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday

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Source: Inside Edge

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