In his first season with the Indians, Nick Swisher put up some of the worst numbers of his career, batting .246 with 22 home runs, a .423 slugging percentage and .763 OPS. So during the offseason, he worked out with Mike Barwis, former strength and conditioning coach at Michigan and West Virginia, to help out with his swing.
As it so happens, Discovery Channel decided Barwis’ gym and his work with various professional athletes would make a great setting for its new reality TV show, American Muscle. Cameras were there for Swisher’s training sessions, which included throwing a keg to build explosiveness in his hips.
Swisher is batting .215 with eight home runs, a .349 slugging percentage and .635 OPS so far this season, so the keg tossing doesn’t appear to have helped his power numbers. But he’s hitting better in July, so maybe positive results were just slow to develop.
