Batting from both sides isn't a novel idea in baseball -- and some pitchers even "switch-pitch."
But a mid-career conversion is far rarer.
That's what veteran Rays first baseman Ji-Man Choi did on Sunday -- and he even cracked a homer in his second career plate appearance from his "weak" side for good measure.
Choi, a former Angel and Yankee, switch-hit as a minor leaguer, but all of his 860 career Major League plate appearances prior to Sunday had come from the left side. The 29-year-old has found a niche for himself in Tampa as a righty killer, and in years past has found himself on the bench against lefties owing to his paltry career numbers against them.
But perhaps that is now about to change after Choi launched a laser of a homer from the right side on Sunday, off Blue Jays left-hander Anthony Kay. The long ball's exit velocity clocked in on MLB's Statcast at around 112 mph, which far exceeded any of Choi's home runs from the left side in 2019, according to Mike Axisa of CBS Sports.
Choi was expected to platoon at first base with former Cardinal Jose Martinez, as well as Yandy Diaz, the corner infielder who enjoyed a minor breakout with the Rays last season after his acquisition from the Indians the preceding offseason.
But perhaps Choi can hit his way into more regular playing time if he continues to rake from the right side.
For the Rays, it marks another interesting twist for a franchise long accustomed to extracting value from players in creative ways. Tampa Bay in recent years was at the forefront of the run prevention craze, extreme fielding shifts, and using relievers to "open" games for one or two innings.