Axe Bat Pro Player Profile: Dansby Swanson

Axe Pro Player Profiles - Sharing the experiences Pro players go through when making the switch to Axe. Just like you.

DANSBY SWANSON MADE THE SWITCH TO AXE:

Dansby Swanson made the switch to Axe in 2022. He had instant success with Axe. He hit home run in his first game using Axe. That success continued, culminating in the best offensive season of his career. Now let's look more closely at how he did when he made the switch from round to Axe.

50 ABs Before (Round) vs 50 ABs After (Axe)

• Major Increases in AVG, SLUG, OPS, wRC+ with Axe
• Launch Angle Increase! 6.5 degree increase from 13.4 to 19.9  +49%
• Hit To All Fields! Hit the Ball To Opposite Field More. 21.2 to 35.1 +13.9% 
• More Balls In The Air! Fly Ball % Increase 36.4 to 43.4  +6.8%
• More Quality Contact on Pitches in the Zone! Zone Contact % from 79.4 to 83.3 +3.9%

100 ABs Before (Round) vs 100 ABs After (Axe)

• Continued Major Increases in AVG, SLUG, OPS, wRC+
• Better Launch Angle! Continues to increase
• Better Hitting To All-FIelds Continues
• Driving More Balls In The Air Continues
• Even More Quality Contact on pitches in the zone.

How Did It Go After 200 ABs With Axe?

• IMPRESSIVE! As you can see, there was a dramatic change immediately after the switch from round to Axe for Dansby Swanson. Think of how most youth and high school players have between 50 to 200 total at-bats in their seasons. Dansby took the bold steps to make the switch to something he felt was better for his performance. And he made that switch, not in an offseason, but in the Major League season! If he can be bold and take the risk, so can you. 
• The chart below does an even better job of showing the improvements when the switch to Axe happened for Dansby. Zone Contact %. Slugging, OPS and Batting Average charted with the before and after timeline. Enjoy!

 

 

SOME GAME HIGHLIGHTS:

His First Game = Home Run: 5/13/22 - Dansby Swanson's first game making the switch to Axe, he hit a bomb. Check it out below.

First Home Run As Cub In 2023: Starting off his Chicago career with a bang. Check Out Below

Borrowed Bat = RBI Bunt:  Dansby actually used Kurt Suzuki's Axe bat in a game in 2018 once. He used it for a successful RBI squeeze bunt 😂😂😂 Check it out below.

SOME GAME-USED BAT FUN:

Here is one of Dansby's game-used bats from the 2023 season that went for auction. Special Note: At Axe, Victus is one of our MLB bat partners. They pay to license our Axe handle so they can to service our Axe pros for us.

Dansby Swanson Game-Used Cracked Bat - Dylan Floro to Dansby Swanson, Ground Out, Bot 10 - Marlins vs. Cubs - 5/7/23

DANSBY SWANSON AXE BAT QUOTES:

Swing And Design Advantages:

"From the research that’s gone into it, you can have – I don’t want to say a stronger grip, but you can have less tension going through your body to actually grip it,” he said. “It naturally grooves with you hand more, where with a rounded bat handle you’re having to, like, grip in different places to make sure you’re keeping a firm grip. Whereas that (axe handle) is, like, more naturally grooved so you don’t have to try as hard to hold on to it.” - Dansby Swanson

“I noticed the difference as far as when you swing, it almost dynamically fits better, just different than the traditional rounded bat,” said Swanson. “When you grip it, it’s not moving around in your hands as much. You don’t have to grip it as tight to make it stay put." - Dansby Swanson

His Advice For When You Start To Make The Switch To Axe:

“Once you get over the fact that it’s different and you say, all right, I’m going to try this and commit to it, it allows you to have the freedom to move forward with it,” Swanson said. “It’s not holding you back, like, hey, that’s weird and different, I’m not going to do it. Yeah, it’s a little uncomfortable (initially) and nobody wants to do anything that’s uncomfortable. But it only took a day to kind of understand, like, hmm, this could really benefit me.” - Dansby Swanson

What Others Said At The Time:

"Swanson is the latest major leaguer to switch to the unconventional axe handle or at least give it a try -- some because they’re curious and find out they like the feel and others because it’s said to be easier on the hands and wrists. Dustin Pedroia, Carlos Correa, Bryce Harper, Mookie Betts, George Springer and Kris Bryant are among the high-profile players who have used axe-handle bats." - David O Brien Atlanta Journal

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