After the big season that Kelly Johnson had in 2010, no one could have imagined that the Diamondbacks would have someone else manning the second base position at the end of 2011. During 2010, Johnson set career highs in home runs and RBI’s and put together his second best batting average of his career.
Then came 2011 where KJ struggled dramatically with the bat. In his second season in an Arizona uniform, the 29-year-old Johnson had a measly .209 batting average with 18 long balls and 49 RBI’s. Johnson also had an eye-popping 132 strikeouts in only 430 at-bats, which led the club at the time.
Because of his problems at the plate, the front office decided to trade Johnson on Aug. 23 to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Aaron Hill and John McDonald. Smack dab in the middle of a pennant race, the deal came to a shock to many Diamondbacks fans, but it was a move that paid off at the end.
At the time of when he was brought over to the National League for the first time in his career, Hill was struggling just like Johnson was. In 104 games with Toronto, the second baseman had a better average than Johnson at .225, but he also featured a lot less power with only six homers on the season.
Struggles for Hill weren’t anything new. After hitting .286 with 36 homers and 108 RBI’s in 2009, Hill just hadn’t been the same player. In 2010, he saw his home runs dip by 10, his RBI totals by 40 and his average by 81 points. His 2010 struggles continued on with Toronto in 2011, but he was a totally different player once he got to the desert.
Playing in 33 games in the middle of a pennant race for the first time time of his career, Hill hit a career best .315 with a pair of home runs and 16 runs driven in. Compared to Johnson, Hill cut down on strikeouts significantly at the position and didn’t commit a single error in 283 innings in the field. In his first playoff series, Hill hit .278 with a solo home run against the Brewers.
After Hill’s great final month plus of the season, Kevin Towers and company made it one of their top priorities to bring back Hill in an Arizona uniform. The club declined Hill’s option on his contract, but eventually agreed to a two-year, $11 million deal that will keep him in a Diamondbacks uniform through the 2013 season.
It is hard to pinpoint what the reasoning is for Hill’s sudden resurgence. Could it be that he just needed a change of scenery away from Toronto? What about a different hitting coach? Maybe he was just happier to face National League pitching? Whatever the reason may be, the Diamondbacks hope it continues going forward into the 2012 season.
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