Why Andy Pages might have Paul Skenes to thank for massive start to Dodgers season

Los Angeles Dodgers center fielder Andy Pages is by far the hottest hitter in baseball right now. His 2-for-3 against the New York Mets on Wednesday only strengthened his already gaudy stats through 18 games: .409/.451/ .697/1.148 with five homers and 20 RBI.

Pages' 27 hits lead MLB, as does his .409 batting average, with the second-best BA (belonging to the Tampa Bay Rays' Yandy Diaz) falling far short of Pages' at .371. In sum, Pages is absolutely on fire at the plate to start 2026, and many people are wondering how this is happening.

Pages has always been a gifted player, but he added a new aspect to his training regimen this past offseason that just might have taken his offense to a new level.

Dodgers' Andy Pages used a simulated Paul Skenes to improve his plate discipline in the offseason

Pages told Orange County Register's Bill Plunkett that he spent every day in the offseason hitting off of a simulated Paul Skenes using the Trajekt machine, which effectively replicates any pitcher's motion on a video screen with "the ball emerging from that pitcher’s release point and arm angle with the unique characteristics and movement profile of his actual pitches," as aptly explained by Plunkett.

The Trajekt machine isn't just useful for practicing bat-to-ball contact. It's also a helpful tool to help a player hone his eye, and Pages has benefited accordingly. After a full offseason of facing Skenes on Trajekt — and learning to lay off of Skenes' most deceptive pitches — Pages' chase rate has decreased this season substantially.

Pages is also discovering that a great consequence of chasing less is that you make solid contact more often when you do swing. Per Plunkett (who cited Statcast), Pages had "squared up" the baseball on 48% of his swings entering last Thursday compared to 33% last season.

Andy Pages is turning a longtime weakness into a strength for Dodgers

Pages has always been an aggressive hitter, and he told Plunkett that, throughout his baseball life, his coaches have always emphasized the importance of laying off of pitches outside the zone. But any human knows that bad habits can take years to break, and the same principle applies to MLB players. Pages is still only 25 years old. He's still developing different element of his game. In this specific case, his ability to flip his propensity to chase on its head and become a far more disciplined hitter has suddenly skyrocketed his ceiling and made the Dodgers even more terrifying.

When considering LA's star-studded roster, Pages — though highly talented — has always been considered an afterthought. But if he's now pairing supreme range as a defensive outfielder with elite hitting, that's a head-turning development in MLB that could become a serious difference-maker in the Dodgers' quest for a three-peat.

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