SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Sam Hilliard is one of the most intriguing players at the Rockies’ camp.

Ask teammates about the 6-foot-5, 230-pound outfielder, and the praise comes gushing out.

“One of the more toolsy guys we have on the team,” veteran right fielder Charlie Blackmon said. “He reminds me a lot of (all-star shortstop) Trevor Story. He’s super-fast, has very good power and is super-athletic. I’m looking for him to take another step forward this year.”

In order for Hilliard, 27, to make that stride, and possibly win the starting job in center field, he must whittle down his strikeouts. During his debut 2019 season, Hilliard’s strikeout rate was 26.4% in 87 plate appearances. In the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, his K-rate soared to 36.8% in 114 plate appearances.

As hitters hunt for home runs, and pitchers often bringing 95-98 mph heat, strikeouts have climbed steadily throughout the majors for more than a decade. Major League Baseball set a single-season strikeout rate record in each of the last 13 seasons, starting at 17.5% of plate appearances in 2008 and gradually climbing to 23.4% in 2020.

Nevertheless, Hilliard’s strikeout rate is too high. He knows that, and realizes that if he wants to make the Rockies and have a chance to be an everyday player, he’s got to make more contact.

“I would say I had a down year (in 2020) and I wasn’t happy with how I performed, for the most part,” Hilliard said Thursday. “It was really inconsistent and I could never really get that good feeling that I wanted.”

So Hilliard is tweaking his approach.

“Swing-and-miss has always been something I’ve tried to get better at,” continued Hilliard, who hit seven homers in 77 at-bats in 2019 and six homers in 105 at-bats last season. “For me, a lot of the work I did this offseason was simplifying and shortening everything, to be able to get my bat through the zone quicker and stay through the zone longer, and not feel that I have to cheat to get to the inside pitch.”

He’s also adjusting his philosophy.

“I have to let the pitchers supply the power,” he said. “My motto this year is: ‘The pitchers throw homers.’ You don’t hit homers, so just let them supply the power. All you have to do is put the barrel on the ball, especially with how hard guys are throwing. I feel like if I can stick to that approach, the swing-and-miss numbers will go down and the barrels will go up.”

Hilliard is not one to make excuses, but he did point out that last year’s truncated season, coupled with his spotty playing time, contributed to his struggles.

“In a normal season, I have time to struggle,” he said. “Last year I didn’t have time to figure things out. The team just didn’t have the time to afford to let guys get out of slumps, for lack of a better word. … The shortened season kind of made guys put a little more pressure on themselves and maybe we tried to do too much at times.”

Hilliard was not the only young Colorado player who struggled making contact. Ryan McMahon (34.2%), Garrett Hampson (32.6%) and Josh Fuentes (28.2%) were all well above the big-league average. For the Rockies to become a competitive team this season and improve what’s been a lackluster offense, all four need to improve.

As a team, the Rockies’ 24.1% K-rate was seventh-highest in the National League, while playoff-bound Atlanta (24.4%) had the fifth-highest. The difference, however, was that while the Braves hit 103 home runs, the Rockies hit just 63. The World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers were good in both categories: a 20.3% strikeout rate, third-lowest; and an MLB-leading 118 homers.

Manager Bud Black said Hilliard has to become “more consistent putting the ball in play,” but believes Hilliard is heading in the right direction.

Black added that young players can’t become “overly consumed by the goal of striking out less.”

“It’s gotta be a gradual reduction,” he continued. “It should happen at a reduced rate as you gain experience.”