Former CMU shortstop McKinstry settling into minor leagues with Great Lakes Loons
The Central Michigan baseball team endured multiple losses to its roster this offseason, including the loss of sophomore shortstop Zach McKinstry.
McKinstry signed a minor league deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers after being selected in the 33rd round last June. The 21-year-old said he thought it was best for his baseball career to leave school and take the deal.
McKinstry's professional career began with the Dodgers in the Arizona League, but was called up to the franchise's Single-A affiliate, the Great Lakes Loons in Midland. He played just four games with the AZL Dodgers.
Through eight games with the Loons, McKinstry is batting .393 with 11 total hits. He also has an on-base percentage of .500 to go along with four RBI and just five strikeouts. Two of his 11 hits are for extra bases.
"I'm just trying to get as many good pitches to hit as possible," McKinstry said. "I'm just being aggressive when guys are throwing a lot of strikes. I also like to put myself in shoes of other batters and see what the (pitcher) is throwing in different situations and counts."
McKinstry has already seen several differences from the college and professional level.
"The pitching is much better here, but the tempo of the game is a lot slower," McKinstry said. "There is a lot of diversity in the clubhouse, but it's still a lot of fun. We've had a lot of people come and go so far and I've only been (with the Loons) for two weeks."
Along with the slower tempo, McKinstry said he has also learned to slow down the game by taking time between pitches at the plate and in the field. He said "knowing the situation" and "what the guy on the other side is trying to do" are mental adjustments he continues to make.
During the offseason, McKinstry said he plans on working to get stronger and faster. On the field, he will work on adjusting his swing so he can drive the ball better. He'll also work on his first-step quickness for accuracy and consistency defensively.
The Indiana native started all 61 games at shortstop last season for CMU, but he believes being able to play a variety of positions will help him reach the higher leagues.
"I think if I show I can play (more) positions in the infield, it will give me a better chance to move up," he said. "If you're put at one position, you may not get the same opportunity (to move up) as a guy that has played the other positions."
McKinstry led the Chippewas in batting average, hits, on-base percentage, at-bats, stolen bases, multi-hit games and assists as a sophomore. He also had a 26-game on-base streak and a 17-game hitting streak and was named co-MVP.
In addition to McKinstry, the Chippewas lost their two best starting pitchers from a season ago — Sean Renzi and Nick Deeg — to the MLB Draft. Freshman pitcher Grant Wolfram also transferred to Davenport University.
