Diamondbacks' Randal Grichuk Reveals His Turning Point of 2024

An inning later, a 104 MPH double followed for the veteran outfielder.

From that point forward, Grichuk began to morph into a bona fide weapon for the Diamondbacks. Though the rest of August was a bit more pedestrian, his two homers and two doubles for the month were a shadow of what was to come.

And when September hit, the difference was tangible. Grichuk slashed an immense .404/.451/.957 — yes, that's a 1.408 OPS — with seven homers in 47 at-bats. Those seven homers eclipsed his six strikeouts recorded over that same timeframe.

Granted, baseball is a game of streaks. But something else had clicked for the veteran outfielder. On Wednesday, Grichuk opened up to Diamondbacks On SI's Jack Sommers about the late turning point of the 2024 season.

Grichuk pointed out that August 7 contest, specifically his second at-bat, and said it was a specific tweak made in that game that might have sent him on an upward trajectory.

"I think mechanically, I did make an adjustment. ... [I] made an adjustment pregame, but I didn't want to implement it in the game because I wanted to work on it a little bit more. I don't know what I did my first at-bat. It wasn't good.

"And I said, I'm going to just do it my second at-bat. Why not? And I ended up, I think, popping out to first base or the catcher. But it felt right. I knew the moves were right. The vision was there. It was just a tick off. And then I ended up homering and doubling my next at-bat, and I stayed with it," Grichuk said.

He described the adjustment as "quieting" both his lower and upper halves, and simplified his timing to get more air under the ball.

"I stacked my lower half a little bit better. I did my timing based on my hands to see the pitch versus my legs and my hands, having to try to sync them up together," Grichuk said. "I was able to stay behind the baseball more. I was able to launch the ball more. I did a little side crunch with my left side that allowed me to launch the ball more in the air versus on the ground, which I felt like all year I hit the ball on the ground maybe too much.

"And that was something I was searching for for a few weeks, a month before I made that adjustment. It kind of all panned together well and clicked. Then mentally, if you're confident, you're going to go out there and swing the bat well. That's all lumped into one, and it worked out."

To those of us who might not be professional hitters or hitting coaches, it might be difficult to visualize the exact mechanical changes that Grichuk described.

Clearly, however, the adjustment paid off in results, as Grichuk's season-end .291/.348/.528 slash was a career-best. His .875 OPS sits only behind his second year with the St. Louis Cardinals (.877) nearly a decade ago in 2015.

And that added up to reunion, as Grichuk re-signed with the D-backs on a one-year, $5 million deal, with a mutual option for 2026. While he'd already declined the option present in his previous contract for 2025, a trip around the free agent market ultimately led him back to Arizona.

Grichuk was candid about his free agency process and his return to the desert.

"I think it's one of those things, that once you have a good season and you're eligible for free agency at the end of the year, you want to see what's out there. You want to see who calls. You want to see what offer A, B and C are before you take offer D. And is D the same as A?

"It was good to get to go back in a free agency and see who was interested. And then, ultimately, I felt like I was a great fit here. I did a good job in my role. I came off the bench well. I hit well against lefties, and that's kind of what they were looking for," Grichuk said.

It was speculated that perhaps the veteran was looking for a chance to get full-time at-bats, rather than platooning in a more restricted capacity. That factor might have been a part of his desire to explore the market.

But, like other members of this D-backs club have exemplified, Arizona owns somewhat of a home-field advantage when it comes to signing or retaining free agents. Many players — Grichuk and teammate Corbin Burnes included — live in the Phoenix area already, and signing (or re-signing) with the Diamondbacks offers them a unique chance to stay close to their loved ones.

"I think when you're going into free agency, first and foremost, you have to look at the opportunity," Grichuk said. "What's best for you? Is that playing every day, if that's what you want to do? Is that playing in a city you're comfortable in, in a division you're comfortable in? Whatever it may be, baseball-wise. And then you have to factor in where do you live?

"For us, we had our second baby this offseason. We had some Florida spring training teams pushing hard, and the wife wasn't loving that too much. But, at the end of the day, she'll be there to support me. But it definitely makes it a lot more comfortable knowing that if you could sign with a team that's in Arizona... that's ideal."

Grichuk (and, assumedly, his family) are happy he'll be remaining in Arizona for the time being, and the Diamondbacks see plenty of value in the 33-year-old's bat.

"I was glad we were able to get something done. Obviously, I live here, so it was definitely always in the back of my head, is there a possibility of going back? Are they interested? I'm glad we were able to get something done."

And so far, it looks like the outfielder could be set up for another strong season — especially if his recent mechanical tweaks continue to pay off.

Grichuk was scratched from the starting lineup on Sunday, March 1 with lower back/glute tightness. Concern remained minimal, and he returned to the lineup Monday.

In his first at-bat Monday, Grichuk crushed a center-cut fastball for a 114 MPH laser beam of a home run that traveled 452 feet.

While he said his body doesn't necessarily feel "100 percent," it's fair to say that his swing is feeling just fine. For now, he's just appreciative of the time he gets to spend with the team in Spring Training, since a minor ankle surgery prior to 2024 held him out of big-league camp.

"Mechanically, I'm in a good place. Was feeling for some things for the first few games, and timing wasn't really right. But I felt better my last at-bat [against] Cincinnati, so I think it's going in a good direction.

"It's nice to actually have a spring with the guys. Last year, I wasn't in the clubhouse. I wasn't around them on the field. So, I was just in the training room, and when they were on the field, I was in there," Grichuk said.

"It's been good to be able to shoot the sh--, hang out with them a little bit more, in this kind of environment versus at Chase in-season."

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