Padres’ Luke Voit still growing into full-time DH role

Luke Voit admits he’s exaggerating. But as the 31-year-old Padres slugger explains how he’s beginning to work his swing into a much more familiar place, it’s clear this really might not be all that much of a tall tale.

“There was one day in St. Louis,” Voit said, “where I literally took three or four hundred swings in the cage during the game. … Just mad hate. You have to get out of this. Just kind of needed it.”

A middle linebacker in a baseball player’s body — it’s the only way Voit knows.

He’s also learning that approach isn’t all that conducive to being an everyday designated hitter, which is actually entirely new for Voit despite the Padres acquiring him from the Yankees to serve in that very capacity.

He’d started as the DH in just 59 games over parts of four seasons in New York and had never started at DH in more than four straight games before landing in San Diego. On Tuesday, Voit was in the starting lineup as a DH for the 15^th straight game and 33^rd overall.

Like most everything in baseball, it’s been an adjustment as he’s used to at least having action in the field to distract him — he’s only spelled Eric Hosmer three times at first base — when things aren’t going as planned at the plate.

“I think I’ve started to figure it out and keep my mind off stuff,” Voit said. “You can only watch so much video, then you can go back and look at balls and strikes and then get mad about that. … Early on, whenever I got out, I wanted to go straight to the cage.”

His time with Giancarlo Stanton in New York is certainly something he’s drawing on as he figures out what works for him as a designated hitter. Last week’s return trip to St. Louis — which traded Voit to the Yankees in 2018 — afforded him the opportunity to chat with Albert Pujols and Bengie Molina, the older brother of Yadier and a long-time catcher in the Angels’ organization.

The latter watched Tim Salmon learn to DH later in his career. Pujols also served the Angels in that capacity before last year’s release, although Voit admits any conversation with the Cardinals’ future Hall of Famer is more about mimicking a frame of mind than anything Pujols does in particular.

“He’s just a machine,” Voit said with a laugh.

As for his developing routine, he’s beginning to resist the urge to over-swing his way out of funks as he attempted to earlier in the season. He’ll put some work in in the weight room between plate appearances, visit the clubhouse, talk with teammates — anything to make sure he’s not overthinking his outs.

“I just can’t do that,” Voit said. “I just go in there and get frustrated and just tire myself out.”

It was especially counterproductive while trying to play through his biceps injury, certainly a factor in Voit hitting .143/.315/.167 over his first 13 games with the Padres. He homered twice in his second game back from the injured list and entering Tuesday was hitting .302/.371/.476 with three homers — two to left-center and one to right-center — over his last 17 games, which included a three-run shot in the eighth inning Monday night.

“The big part of the park, that’s always been instrumental in his game,” Padres manager Bob Melvin said. “ … I think he’s just feeling that much more comfortable and seeing the ball a lot better.”

Said Voit: “I’ve stopped swinging so hard. That’s part of it. … It kind of clicked that series (in St. Louis) and I hit a couple of balls to right field. I had seven or eight hits in Milwaukee, too. I’m hitting to all parts, which his big for me, and I’m hitting every pitch.”