Mitch Haniger has had a completely different second half. Daniel Kramer pulled the numbers, his OPS has gone from .618 in the first half to .965 in the second half.
But there's another signpost worth acknowleding: The addition of Justin Turner, who became Haniger's teammate by way of a trade on July 29. In the four games the two have been teammates, Haniger is 5-for-11 with three RBIs, two home runs, two walks, and a 1.571 OPS.
That's not all attributable to Turner, but Haniger would tell you at least some of it is thanks to the perspective he's brought to the team and him personally.
"[Turner is] a big help for me as a guy whose swing I studied for a while, so I've been leaning on and asking a lot of questions and it's really good," Haniger said Saturday night after he worked a bases-loaded walk to secure a comeback win for the Mariners over the Philadelphia Phillies.
Walk-off walk.
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) August 4, 2024
Series win on lock. #TridentsUp pic.twitter.com/T8kN6RP7w5
It ended a scoreless drought for both teams that lasted three full innings, sending the game into an extra frame. Carlos Estevez intentionally walked Cal Raleigh, and Dylan Moore was hit by a pitch to load the bases as Haniger came up to bat. Haniger fouled off three pitches in the seven-pitch at-bat.
To his credit, being someone to add perspective is exactly what Turner said he would be.
"Just hopefully a calming voice, someone that guys are comfortable with or get comfortable with so they can come to you with any questions or any situations and just try to help them out as best I can,” Turner said when he was acquired.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Mitch Haniger's Offensive Turnaround is at Least Partially Credit to Justin Turner, He Says.
