Panas Prepares For Australian Baseball League

After five exhausting months and over 1,200 innings of baseball, the Dunedin Blue Jays 2017 season came down to one game. A win would mean the Dunedin Blue Jays would take home a share of the Florida State League's championship. A loss would leave the team without a title for the 33^rd consecutive season.
On the road, facing Tampa Yankees starter Erik Swanson, a pitcher who had been dominant against Dunedin in the regular season (0.77 WHIP and 1.73 ERA in 26.0 innings), Blue Jays RF Connor Panas stepped to the plate in the second inning of the finale of the FSL's North Division Championship with the game tied 0-0.
"During the playoffs, you just want to come through for your team. You don't want to try to do too much," Panas said in a recent phone interview, reflecting on the thrilling final game of the 2017 season. "I'd hit two home runs off of [Swanson] the last series we faced them in the regular season, both on off-speed pitches. He threw me a change up and I put a good swing on it and it left the yard."
Panas' first home run of the day put Dunedin up 1-0, a lead that would not hold. The Yankees battled back, taking a 2-1 lead going in to the seventh inning. Panas stepped to the plate to lead off the seventh and launched his second home run of the game, a towering shot to right that sailed out of George M. Steinbrenner Field and tied the game.  
"In that situation, you just can't try to do so much. I have the video from that home run, and I've watched it several times. My swing on the last home run was just so simple. I got my hands to the ball on an inside pitch and had the strength and the power to do the rest."
The Blue Jays scored three times in the ninth inning to take home the franchise's first championship, a title won not just by talent on the field, but through a clubhouse culture that helped maximize each player's contributions.
"We had really good team chemistry. At the beginning of the year, we were really strong. It was a good group of guys and it showed in our results. Obviously, roster moves effect some things, but at the end of the year, it was the same thing. We bonded, we all got along, and we had a lot of talent. All those things came together."
Minor League Baseball does not hand out a "Most Improved Player" award in their annual year-end MILBY awards, but if they did, Panas would have been a likely recipient. After playing sparingly and hitting just .248 with 4 home runs in the first half of the 2017 season, Panas slashed .294/.367/.543 in the second half, knocking 14 post-All-Star Break homers and three more in the playoffs. His 18 regular season home runs led the Florida State League.
"In July, I really noticed that my head was moving a lot. You practically have to be perfect to square up balls consistently when your head moves. It speeds up pitches, and it's hard to recognize pitches. So, I limited my movement as much as possible."
To help keep his head still during his swing, Panas eliminated his leg kick. Keeping his front leg planted allowed him to generate more power from his back leg and recognize pitches easier. From July 1^st on, no player in the league had as many extra base hits or home runs as Panas.
"I think the results show for themselves. My on-base was way higher, my average, power, practically everything. It was a really successful adjustment. In Australia, I'm going to build off that."
To get more at-bats to continue to develop his refined swing, Panas is headed to Australia this off-season to play for the Canberra Cavalry of the Australian Baseball League.
"I'll get a bunch of reps and get in some games, so it will be a good experience," Panas says about the Australian League. "It will be a good chance to build off and continue to develop my approach and strategy at the plate. I'm always trying to get better in the outfield and at first base through consistent reps as well. On a sidenote, I've never really traveled before. I've been all over Canada and the United States, but I've never really seen anywhere else. It will be a great to experience a new culture and see things I never have before."
Besides continuing to develop his plate approach, Panas also has specific goals on the base paths this off-season. Despite his linebacker build, he displayed surprising foot speed during the 2017 season.
"For a big guy, I'm pretty quick. From a stealing standpoint, I think I could get better. I could get 15-20 bags a year. I'm working to be a better all-around player."
In his pursuit of improvement, Panas has wasted no time since the season's end, spending almost every day of the off-season at the Rogers Centre in Toronto preparing for next season. For a lifelong Blue Jays fan that grew up less than 20 minutes from the stadium, he's cherished the opportunity to work out daily where he spent his childhood watching games.
"At first, I was like…wow! It's pretty crazy to think about. Now, I look at it like it's my job. To me, it's just another day to get better. But, it is still pretty surreal."
After leading Lansing in home runs in 2016 and Dunedin in 2017, Panas will return from Australia this winter with his eyes set on taking the next step in the Blue Jays system in 2018. For the Toronto native, each step up in the minor leagues is one closer to returning home full-time to the Rogers Centre.