For Yankees' Jazz Chisholm Jr., less is more
Jazz Chisholm Jr., #13 of the New York Yankees, follows through on his second inning RBI base hit against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on Friday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Aaron Boone didn’t make much of Jazz Chisholm Jr. saying after Friday night’s game that he was playing at a “70%” clip.
Asked about it before Saturday night’s game against the Red Sox, Boone started smiling before the phrasing of the question was complete.
“Any time you guys start asking Jazz questions, I just pull up a chair and listen,” Boone said, still smiling. “I think he’s a tremendous interview.”
But more important than Chisholm’s considerable abilities in front of the media when it comes to answering questions — he has almost no filter — Boone understood the comments had nothing to do with effort.
“I think we all know exactly what he meant, and I think he’s right,” Boone said. “A lot of times, less is more.”
Chisholm returned earlier in the week from a stint on the injured list with an oblique strain that cost him 28 games. Chisholm, who had a scheduled off day on Saturday (though he was available off the bench), went 8-for-16 with two homers, six RBIs, three runs and three stolen bases in his first four games since coming off the IL.
“Just go at 70%. That’s what’s been working for me,” Chisholm said Friday, with the “70%” a figure that came out of the mouth, and at the suggestion, of assistant hitting coach Pat Roessler. “Play at 70%: defense, offense, running, everything. Stay healthy. You don’t overswing. You don’t swing and miss as much, and you’re a great player at 70%.”
Roessler, it should be pointed out, is as old-school as they come, a highly respected coach at each of the organizational stops in his career. That includes the Nationals; he mentored a young Juan Soto, with whom he still has a close relationship.
“Like my coach Six said, he said: `At 70%, you’re one of the best out there,' ” Chisholm said, referring to Roessler by his long-time nickname. “At 100%, I might be dog crap.”
Chisholm, known for his aggressiveness in the batter’s box when it comes to the torque of his swing, continued: “I’ve really heard that, all my life, that I need to tone down the way I play, because . . . it’s electric, but you can be electric while being controlled at the same time. My 70% running is probably faster than a lot of guys in the league, too. So if at 70% I’m hitting balls 108, 109 [mph], playing great defense and out-running [people] and having stolen bases, I think that’s where I should stay at.”
The “less is more” Boone referenced is something Aaron Judge has talked about during his career: being smart over the course of the 162-game season when it comes to energy expended.
Really, it’s about conservation.
“He’s been very successful in his baseball career to this point, but there’s also an evolution to everyone’s career,” Boone said of the 27-year-old Chisholm. “You’ve got to learn how to do it. Hopefully you’re always learning how to get a little bit better, especially when you’re in your prime years. So I think you see players, with experience, hopefully know how to maximize their gifts. And I think he’s right in saying, ‘For me, it’s backing off a little bit.’ Especially at the plate sometimes.”
Erik Boland started in Newsday's sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.
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