Shea Langeliers has emerged as one of the best backstops in baseball. Building on the 2024 season in which he hit 29 homers and posted a 109 wRC+, the 27-year-old slashed .277/.325/.536 with 31 home runs and a 132 wRC+. Additionally, he lowered his strikeout rate from 27.2% to 19.7% and increased his WAR from 2.0 to 3.9. Those numbers come from the Athletics, who acquired Langeliers in the March 2022 trade that sent Matt Olsen to the Warriors.
In 2019, Langliers was called the “consensus best receiver” as he finished ninth overall at Baylor University in Atlanta [that year’s] “Draft Not Named for Adley Rutschmann” by Eric Langenhagen and Kevin Goldstein. In the spring of 2021, when we ranked Lang Grylls at No. 5 in the Braves’ system, our prospect analyst duo at the time also believed that “offensive development will determine his ultimate value, as his defense is now major league ready.” As the numbers show, the right-handed hitter’s offense has developed nicely.
When the Athletics visited Boston in September, Langeliers sat down to talk about hitting.
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David Laurila: How have you changed as a batsman over the years? For example, is your swing and setup different from when you entered pro ball?
Shay Langeliers: “None of that has changed that much. What has changed is how mentally I prepare myself to hit the ball faster throughout the process, if that makes sense. A good way to explain it is, being able to pull the trigger on my swing before releasing. Being ready to hit the ball ahead of time during the loading process gives me more time to see the pitch and react to it. That’s a good mental tip for me as well.
“The other thing is, when I first got to the major leagues, I was always trying to hit the ball as hard as I could. I’ve dialed it down a little bit. There’s more bat control now, so I’m missing fewer pitches.”
Laurilla: Can you elaborate a little bit more on being ready to strike early?
Langelier: “I guess I would say, I start it to see it. To me, it means starting the loading process earlier. Everything blends together so if you start later, you’re rushing through your swing. I like that feeling… I mean, obviously, everyone throws hard, but the slower I go earlier, the smoother the swing becomes. It’s not as rushed.
“I want to get to the height of the leg kick before the pitcher releases the ball. If the pitcher has released the ball and my legs are still up under my load – if I start a little late – my launch is going to be sharp and something can happen. I’m either going to get in and out of the zone or I’m tipping a little early and getting back here so I’m underneath it.”
Laurilla: Do you kick your legs often?
Langelier: “Since I’ve been drafted, yeah. I was a toe-tap guy in college, but then got drafted and made some changes. That’s probably when I made the most changes, when I came up with the Braves.”
Laurilla: Has the kicking height changed?
Langelier: “It’s not something I think about consciously. I kind of go with the flow and pretty much do it where my body is comfortable. Really, it starts with how strong my back leg is. If I charge, I’m going to charge forward. Conversely, if I have enough weight on my back foot, I can hold the kick long enough to be able to read the court.”
Laurilla: In terms of the way you attack, do you want to run the ball down the middle, or do you prefer to run the ball sideways?
Langelier: “It might depend on the pitcher, it might depend on how I’m feeling that day, but more often than not I’m going to be thinking about left-center. That said, sometimes when you do that, you can get too happy with the rotation and get in and out of the zone a little too fast. Then you need to start thinking about center field and just pass the ball. You have some mental cues about that.”
Laurilla: Do you usually try to get the ball in front?
Langelier: “Yes and no. I think I’m doing a better job of adjusting this year. I’m better able to make dynamic adjustments throughout the entire at-bat, whether it’s getting the ball forward or making the ball move farther. Some of that comes from first and second reads of the pitch.”
Laurilla: Do you ever think like a catcher when you’re in the box, or do you try to avoid doing that?
Langelier: “I try to keep them completely separated. Trying to think about what their pitch plan is, or what I’m going to throw myself, just gets me in trouble. I end up overthinking it instead of just being out there hitting the ball.”
Laurilla: You mentioned lowering your swing. What exactly are you going to do?
Langelier: “My thought is, I didn’t tone it down a lot. When you’re in the game, the adrenaline is pumping so you’re still swinging pretty hard. But as opposed to going out there and thinking, ‘I’m going to swing as hard as I can,’ it’s more about your body’s reaction to the pitch. As we said, how can I hit the ball to left-center on time.”
Laurilla: Smooth and fluid swing…
Langelier: “Exactly.”
Laurilla: I don’t want to put words in your mouth…
Langelier: “No, here’s the thing. If you swing as hard as you can up there, your leg kick might get a little bigger. You can start a little later. You might get edgy. It’s one of those feel things. The question is, ‘How do I pull the ball with 75 percent feel of my swing, like I did at BP?’ Everything starts early and slow, and then it goes from there.”
Laurilla: Any final thoughts on hitting?
Langelier: “In addition to trying to hit the ball as hard as I could, I used to be almost obsessed with trying to hit the ball to right-center. When you try to push the ball there… there’s a lot of guys who are really good at doing that, but it just didn’t work for me. Over time, with enough at-bats, you slowly figure out who you are. You find your strengths and tend to them.”
Laurilla: Why did you focus on center right?
Langelier: “I want to be a complete hitter and use the entire field. But with my swing, even if I’m a little late in the ballpark, when I think left-center, I hit it hard the other way. When I think right-center, I tend to put my club down a little early, get under it, and chip the ball there. That’s obviously not what I want. I want to get behind it, stay the course, and hit the ball hard.”
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Earlier “Talks Hitting” interviews can be found at the following links: Jo Adell, Jeff Albert, Greg Allen, Nolan Arenado, Aaron Bates, Jacob Berry, Alex Bregman, Bo Bichette, Justice Bigbie, Cavan Biggio, Charlie Blackmon, JJ Bleday, Bobby Bradley, Will Brennan, Jay Bruce, Triston Casas, Matt Chapman, Michael Chavis, Garrett Cooper, Gavin Cross, Jacob Cruz, Nelson Cruz, Paul DeJong, Brenton Delchiaro, Josh Donaldson, Brendan Donovan, Donnie Ayk, Rick Eckstein, Drew Ferguson, Justin Fuscu, Michael Fransoso, Ryan Fowler, Joey Gallo, Paul Goldschmidt, Devlin Granberg, Gino Grover, Matt Hager and Andy Haynes, Mickey Hanig, Robert Hassell III, Austin Hayes, Nico Hoerner, Jackson Holliday, Spencer Horwitz, Rhys Hoskins, Eric Hosmer, Jacob Hurtubis, Tim Hales, Walker Jenkins, Connor Joe, Jess Jung, Josh Jung, Jimmy Kerr, Heston Kierstad, Steven Kwan, Trevor Larnach, Doug Latta, Dillon Lawson, Brooks Lee, Royce Lewis, Evan Longoria, Joey Lopez Fido, Michael Lorenzen, Mark Loretta, Gavin Lux, Dave Magadan, Trey Mancini, Edgar Martinez, Don Mattingly, Marcelo Mayer, Hunter Mense, Owen Miller, Paul Molitor, Colson Montgomery, Trey Morgan, Ryan Mountcastle/Cedric Mullins/Daniel Murphy/Lars Notebar/Logan O’Hope/Vinnie Pascantino/Graham Pauley/David Peralta/Luke Reilly/Julio Rodriguez/Brent Rooker/ Thomas Sarkis/Anthony Santander/Drew Seiler/Nolan Sanur/Marcus Semien/ Giancarlo Stanton, Spencer Steele, Trevor Story, Fernando Tatis Jr., James Tibbs III, Spencer Torkelson, Mark Trumbo, Bryce Turan, Justin Turner, Trey Turner, Josh Van Meter, Robert Van Scoyok, Chris Valaika, Zach Wayne, Alex Verdugo, Mark Wyantos, Matt Vierling, Luke Voight, Anthony Volpe, Joey Voit, Christian Walker, Jared Walsh, Jordan Westberg, Jesse Wink, Bobby Witt Jr., Mike Yastrzemski, Nick York, Kevin Youkilis
