CHICAGO — Anthony Santander wasn’t getting his foot down early enough. He’d stride, plant his leg and then, before he could properly identify the pitch heading his way, the ball was upon him.

That timing issue has played a major role in Santander’s early-season struggles for the Orioles, with the slugger entering Saturday’s game against the White Sox with three hits in his last 35 at-bats. “Honestly,” Santander said before the game, “since Opening Day I haven’t been able to feel comfortable.”

But Santander wasn’t late on the fastball in the sixth inning.

It came out of right-hander Michael Kopech’s hand at 94.2 mph, sailed in toward the bottom of the zone, and unlike so many swings of late, Santander was timed to perfection. He swung, then stood and admired his first home run of the season before jogging around the bases.

More than anything in Saturday’s loss, seeing Santander on time — and with a long ball to his credit — might’ve been the most positive development for the Orioles at Guaranteed Rate Field.

“Big time,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “Getting on a fastball, being on time with it, a big hit for us.”

Baltimore hasn’t doubted Santander’s capabilities, keeping his place as the cleanup hitter even though most of his at-bats have ended with a trudge back to the dugout. They’ve waited for his timing to straighten out, for his foot to get down sooner and for his 20 strikeouts in 13 games to become less commonplace.

Last season, Santander led the team with a career-high 33 home runs. He starred for Venezuela at the World Baseball Classic, where he hit .353 with two home runs. But to begin this season, Santander entered Saturday with a .186 average and four extra-base hits in 11 games.

“Right now, his timing is a little bit off. He’s been relying on his upper body rather than using those big, strong legs to generate that power,” co-hitting coach Ryan Fuller said in a Saturday morning segment on MASN. “We’re really bullish on Tony making the adjustment, and he’s very aware of that.”

Santander noted before the game how important it was that he didn’t make a large swing overhaul, although part of his recent struggles could be due to soreness in his back that kept him out of two games earlier this week.

When it was suggested that he could abandon his leg kick altogether — thus removing the potential for a late plant foot — Santander pointed out that removing a step entirely could impact the timing of the rest of his swing. The legs are an important driver for any hitter, and Santander wasn’t willing to risk losing the additional power that is added with a proper stride. And he proved why Saturday, when he caught up to Kopech’s fastball and deposited it 405 feet away into the stands.

“He’s super important,” shortstop Jorge Mateo said. “Hopefully now he’s feeling much better from his back, and he’s a really big part of our lineup, a really important bat, so hopefully that’ll get him going.”

At any point during a season, there will be players facing slumps. Gunnar Henderson and Santander were the two most extreme examples entering Saturday, experiencing the disappointment and thinning patience that’s especially potent at the beginning of the season.

Both have fallen into pitcher’s counts, leaving them guessing at the plate. Both would like to see their batting average increase. But any major alterations could send them tumbling further from the answer.

“You have to trust,” Santander said. “This is a game of failure, a lot. A slump is always going to be there at some point, so you have to stay confident, keep working hard and try to get out of it as soon as possible.”

It was one swing, one ball traveling over the right-center field fence. But for Santander, the end of a slump has to start somewhere.

andy.kostka@thebaltimorebanner.com