NORTH PORT, Fla. — As Austin Riley looked to dig into his swing over the offseason, he went to a familiar name: Brumley.
For years, Riley worked with Mike Brumley, his mentor and swing coach. Riley swore by Brumley, a former major-league infielder who eventually worked as a minor-league coach in the Braves’ system. Riley and Brumley worked closely as the third baseman emerged into one of the top hitters in baseball.
Last summer, Mike died in a car crash — a tragedy mourned by Riley and many others. At that moment, Riley lost a friend and mentor.
Now, Mike’s memory is kept alive — at least in part — by his son, Logan, who helped Riley evaluate his swing over the offseason. Logan is the next Brumley hitting instructor to impact Riley, carrying on his dad’s legacy as he does so.
“He’s really good,” Riley said of Logan Brumley. “Super, super detail-oriented, obviously knows my swing because we’ve been working together the last three or four years. He’s a spitting image of his dad. It was really encouraging.”
The reason: Brumley and Riley nailed down a lower-half adjustment on Riley’s swing that the third baseman believes will bring more consistency and production in 2025. As he talked about it, you could tell Riley was excited — in his own reserved manner. He feels the work he did over the winter will translate into the next seven-plus months.
A season ago, Riley missed two weeks in May because of an oblique injury, then didn’t play again after Aug. 18 because of a hand fracture. He began his swinging progression in December and felt fully healthy around New Year’s Day.
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Over the offseason, Riley and Brumley looked at Riley’s swing from 2021 through 2024. Their findings were a revelation to Riley — an aha moment of sorts.
“And I think that’s what I was so excited about,” Riley told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “As a hitter, there’s always something you’re trying to look for, dive (into) and stuff like that. When he brought that to me, he was like, ‘Hey, let’s look and see how it’s kind of evolved.’ I struggled with it a little bit in the minor leagues, so I know it was there. And I think that’s another encouraging point, is I know how to fix it. We really focused on that.”
In layman’s terms, Riley had started not getting into his hips during his swing. He would do a little slide or shift then would have to get back to a centered position. This created inefficiency. The split second it took to re-center himself meant he ended up just missing some balls — a little out in front here, a bit behind there.
The changes have left Riley eager to test out his swing during live batting practice in camp. He’s here early with the pitchers and catchers. The first full-squad workout isn’t until Tuesday.
“We dialed in some things on my lower half that I’m pretty excited about,” Riley said. “Logan’s great, and being able to kind of carry that on (from working with Mike) has been pretty huge.”
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
In 2024, Riley actually performed relatively well — though maybe not by his standards. Despite the stop and go in May, he finished with a .257 batting average, a .783 OPS, 19 home runs and 56 RBIs. This season, Riley hopes to be better with runners in scoring position (he hit .238 in such spots last season).
This spring, the Braves are without Travis d’Arnaud, Max Fried, A.J. Minter and Charlie Morton from last season’s team. The feel is … different — if only because those guys had been here for years. But the Braves still have a great clubhouse, and Riley is one reason why.
“He’s what it’s all about,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “That’s what they look like right there. He’s a guy (that’s important) when people talk about the room. And he’s a voice. The way he carries himself and how he prepares and the consistency and all — he’s everything that we always thought he would (be) when we drafted him.”
The Braves’ faith in him is evident. They did, after all, sign him to the most lucrative contract in franchise history in the summer of 2022. Before signing, Riley was slated to be a free agent after the 2025 season. Now he’ll be in Atlanta through at least 2032.
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
He’s one of the franchise’s cornerstones in this era.
“For me personally, I just try to be the best teammate I can be,” Riley said of his leadership style. “Day in and day out, with my preparation, the way I carry myself on and off the field, I feel like if I can just play the game the right way and do things right — just be that type of guy that if guys need something, try to be there for them. And just really play hard and just be accountable.”
Jurickson Profar was the Braves’ only notable addition over the offseason. Through two days of camp, players have insisted it doesn’t matter. The Braves still believe they’re a great team equipped to get into the postseason and win the World Series.
“We’re still a really good team. We really are,” Riley said. “We got the guys here that can make a run. I think the biggest thing for us is just going to be to be healthy. Stay healthy throughout the year. I think that’s the name of the game, and if we can do that, I think we give ourselves a really good chance.”
In part, the Braves’ odds rely on Riley’s production. He’s one of baseball’s better third basemen, someone who could be a perennial All-Star if he remains healthy.
And over the winter, Riley worked with his late mentor’s son to ensure he’d bring his best into this season.
“It’s great. Just how much Mike meant to me,” Riley said. “Unfortunate event, but to have Logan, to be able to roll over to that and use him, we really haven’t skipped a beat. It’s been cool.”
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