{"id":79710,"date":"2019-04-24T10:44:24","date_gmt":"2019-04-24T15:44:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=79710"},"modified":"2019-05-11T12:49:52","modified_gmt":"2019-05-11T17:49:52","slug":"northwesterns-erro-heats-up-in-april-after-slow-start","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/northwesterns-erro-heats-up-in-april-after-slow-start\/","title":{"rendered":"Northwestern’s Erro heats up in April after slow start"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Andre Toran<\/strong>
\nMedill Reports<\/em><\/p>\n

Northwestern second baseman Alex Erro walked around the batting cage into the batter\u2019s box, swiping rubber pellets into the air as he dug his cleats into the turfed surface at Rocky and Berenice Miller park, and prepared to swing.<\/p>\n

Line drive up the middle. Line drive up the middle. Then again, line drive up the middle. One final cut, and Erro drove deep fly ball off the left-field wall.<\/p>\n

Swing after swing, Erro squared up balls, jumping off the bat of his compact right-handed swing, whizzing passed the mesh net that shielded Northwestern assistant coach Dusty Napoleon from Erro\u2019s assault.<\/p>\n

That was Erro\u2019s second round of batting practice Tuesday before Northwestern\u2019s matchup against UIC, a bite-size sample of what opposing pitchers have had to face over the past month, now that Erro has put early season troubles behind him.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I\u2019ve been the same hitter all year,\u201d Erro said referencing his initial struggles, which have all but dissipated at this point. \u201cThe balls are falling more now and I\u2019m getting see a little bit better results. Not much change, just sticking to what I know.”<\/p>\n

\"\"
NU’s Alex Erro swings for a hit in the first inning of a 6-1 win over UIC.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Erro started the 2019 campaign slow but has hit a groove at the plate in April. He\u2019s hitting .431 in the month alone and .327 overall. But what\u2019s most impressive about Erro\u2019s smoldering hot stretch are the minor adjustments he has been able to make in the wake of struggles earlier in the year.<\/p>\n

After going 2-for-8 in a mid-March series with Kent State, Erro, who batted .250 for the month, said he was at his lowest and began to look for answers.<\/p>\n

He decided to call up his dad for advice, and asked, \u201cShould I change anything up? What\u2019s going on with my swing?\u201d<\/p>\n

His father reassured him that he is and was the same hitter he\u2019s always been, a good one. This something that\u2019s common sense to the ones around Erro. They know his ability to produce.<\/p>\n

He knows his ability to produce.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Northwestern batter’s take practice swings prior to a matchup against Maryland in mid-April (Front to back Alex Erro, Willie Bourbon, Jack Dunn). (Carolyn Katz Photography)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After reflecting, Erro said he promised himself he would have quality at-bats every time he stepped in the box, and that there was plenty of time to make up ground. \u201cI told myself, \u2018They\u2019re not going to get you out.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The Northwestern coaching staff is well-aware of Erro\u2019s ability. They know more than anyone that the issue wasn\u2019t the mechanics of his swing. Rather, it was his approach to how opponents had begun to adjust to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe such a good hitter,\u201d said Northwestern coach Spencer Allen. \u201cReally, all you\u2019re showing him is a thing or two approach-wise like, \u2018Hey, here\u2019s a pitch maybe we want to attack.\u2019 Or, \u2018Here\u2019s a time where maybe you want to be a little more aggressive, or a little more patient. But he just knows his swing too well. He came in that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

All it took was a little reminding and minor at-bat to at-bat adjustments for Erro to return to form \u2013 understanding tendencies of opposing pitchers, recognizing the count and adjusting his approach from there.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the last month, I\u2019ve seeing how pitchers are going to attack me and that\u2019s with a lot of off-speed and a lot of pitches away.\u201d Erro said. \u201cSo, I\u2019ve been gearing my approach around that and being more patient at the plate.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Northwestern\u2019s 6-1 win over UIC Tuesday, Erro\u2019s approach was no different. He went 1-for-4, with all of his at-bats reminiscent of his pre-game batting practice — making solid contact with every ball, even those recorded for outs and focused on driving the ball middle.<\/p>\n

In his first at-bat, Erro worked the count to 2-0, sat on a fastball the next pitch and treated just like BP, driving the ball up the middle passed the out-stretched glove of the UIC shortstop.<\/p>\n

The confidence is there, and the adjustments have been made. His approach in the box is as calm and poised, as if it was just batting practice.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Photo at top: Northwestern second baseman Alex Erro takes a health hack in 6-1 win over UIC, April 23. (Carolyn Katz Photography)<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Andre Toran Medill Reports Northwestern second baseman Alex Erro walked around the batting cage into the batter\u2019s box, swiping rubber pellets into the air as he dug his cleats into the turfed surface at Rocky and Berenice Miller park, and prepared to swing. Line drive up the middle. Line drive up the middle. Then […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":538,"featured_media":79715,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31,4741],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-79710","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","category-spring-2019"],"yoast_head":"\nNorthwestern's Erro heats up in April after slow start - Medill Reports Chicago<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/northwesterns-erro-heats-up-in-april-after-slow-start\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Northwestern's Erro heats up in April after slow start - Medill Reports Chicago\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Andre Toran Medill Reports Northwestern second baseman Alex Erro walked around the batting cage into the batter\u2019s box, swiping rubber pellets into the air as he dug his cleats into the turfed surface at Rocky and Berenice Miller park, and prepared to swing. 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