Bill Hall served as a utility man for the Boston Red Sox in 2010, playing both the infield and outfield. He currently looks for work as a free agent. The peak of Hall’s career lasted a very short time. His age 25-26 seasons, 2005 and 2006, saw Bill post a .280/.344/.525 slash line, excellent for a middle infielder. On top of that, the Brewers moved him from second base to shortstop in 2006, and he excelled defensively. Hall seemed to be poised for a great five-year peak.

He moved to centerfield in 2007, however, and his offense fell apart. He posted a .254/.315/.425 slash line that season, and since 2006 those numbers stand at .233/.297/.405. So what happened? Why did a promising career go down the tubes when Hall should have been at his best? I suspect he became too enamored of his home run power. Hall’s home runs went from 17 in 2005 to 35 in 2006. At the same time, his strikeouts increased from 103 to 162. I suspect pitchers learned there was a hole in Hall’s swing. In 2007, he kept swinging for the fences, and pitchers got him to chase bad pitches. In 2005, he struck out in 20.5% of his at bats. That went up to 30.2% in 2006, 28.3% in 2007 and 30.7% in 2008. Opponents found a weakness, and Hall never adjusted.