Ducks the latest chapter on Dustin Woodcock

The book on Dustin Woodcock doesn’t take long to read. That’s not always the case in the Atlantic League, where some players come with a map of past destinations so long that it takes five or ten minutes to read through it.  

Not so for Woodcock, who is only in his third season of professional baseball – his other two coming in the Frontier League.  It’s not a long book, but so far, the Ducks are enjoying it. Entering Saturday, Woodcock was hitting .333, good for fourth in the league and only two points behind Gastonia’s Joseph Rosa for third.

“I think we’re still rotating through guys and, luckily, I’ve been maximizing my opportunities and earning some more playing time,” said Woodcock, 26.

Here’s the other thing about the Woodcock book – it was filled with mystery. That was a bit of a challenge for Ducks manager Wally Backman, who couldn’t completely devote an everyday spot to the outfielder until he knew a little more about what he was getting into.

“I think he’s better than what I thought,” Backman said. “He’s come in here and played aggressively. I knew he could run a little bit. I didn’t know how he played the game. But, he plays the game hard.”

Backman brought Woodcock along slowly at first, monitoring his playing time until he could get a full read on him. He played a lot in the first month of the season – 23 games in May – but it took a little bit for Backman to commit to playing him regularly.

“I was just doing my best to maximize all the chances that I got,” Woodcock said. “I mean, I think I didn’t have many worries. I was just coming in with an optimistic mind and trying to earn a spot.”

Said Backman: “Early in the year, I tried to platoon him to make it an easier transition for him coming over from the Frontier League. He showed he could hit lefties. That’s really the turning point for him. He’s given us quality at bats. He’s earned the right to play on, pretty much, a regular basis.”

There were immediate clues that Woodcock was in for a successful first half. He hit a monstrous home run on opening night – one that brought back memories of David Washington, the Ducks slugger of 2018-2019 that Backman’s been trying to replace for two years. Woodcock’s past home run numbers – 12 in 2019, 14 in 2021 – didn’t indicate that he’d be quite the long ball answer that they were looking for, but it did give the Ducks a glimpse into the offensive piece that Woodcock could be.

“It always feels good to hit a homer, especially on opening night,” said Woodcock, who entered Saturday with three home runs. “I believe in my abilities and I knew that I could play here. I believe that I can play anywhere. But, I do think that hitting a home run on opening night definitely eases your mind a little bit.”   

Ducks hitting coach/outfielder Lew Ford has also read the Woodcock book and likes where it’s headed.

“I’ve seen a lot of things I’ve liked,” Ford said. “He’s strong, takes good at-bats, can hit the ball to leftfield or rightfield. He comes in every day, works hard, wants to get better, and he has. The sky's the limit for him.”

De Aza shining

In a little under a month, former Met Alejandro De Aza has been a lynchpin in the Ducks lineup. Entering Saturday, the 38-year-old was slashing .337/.427/.533 with four home runs and 22 RBIs in 27 games.

“He had no spring training,” Backman said. “He had to get his feet wet in the first seven or eight games, which he did, and he’s just basically taken over and done was he’s capable of doing.”

De Aza played parts of 10 years in the major leagues, including 2016 with the Mets.

Game time change

The Ducks home game against the FerryHawks on Thursday, July 7 has been switched from a 6:35 p.m. start to a 1 p.m. start to accommodate team travel, the Ducks announced Friday. The Ducks play in Lexington, Kentucky the following night.