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MARC TOPKINRays explore several sources for centerfielder's sophomore struggles.
BOSTON - Rocco Baldelli's second trip around the major leagues has taken some getting used to.
Last season's rookie sensation has been one of this season's questions, a live-in-living-color example of how quickly the game, and the accompanying expectations, can change.
Baldelli planned to spend Monday's off day at home in Rhode Island with friends and relatives who are more concerned with what he wants to eat than what he's hitting and more interested in whether he needs some new shirts than if he needs to hit more home runs.
But once he gets back to Fenway Park tonight, where as a native son he is welcomed as warmly as any visiting player, the pressure to perform will again be hovering over him and his smile may again disappear.
"It's tough to make it fun when you're struggling," Baldelli said. "When you really have fun is when you're having success."
Baldelli, 22, has had more lately, getting eight hits in his past 18 at-bats to raise his average to a respectable .258. But he has not made anywhere near the impact he did last season when, among other amazing feats, he scored or drove in nearly 22 percent of the Tampa Bay runs and finished in the AL top 10 in stolen bases, triples and hits.
This season, 15 of his 16 hits have been singles (the other a homer). He has scored 10 runs but driven in only three and he has stolen two bases.
From what Baldelli and manager Lou Piniella say, there is no one reason for his sophomore struggles.
Actually, there may be several.
Teams have been pitching Baldelli differently, and with more caution, than they did last season, and the onus is on Baldelli to adjust. For example, scouts say he appears to be guessing too much at the plate, chasing too many breaking balls and then missing fastballs.
"Maybe a little, but it's not too different," he said. "There's only so many ways they can pitch you."
Teams are also defensing him differently, specifically moving their infielders in a few steps to take away some bunt and infield hits, and paying more attention when he is on base. Piniella wants more out of him, prodding him to hit more home runs and be more selective at the plate. And the Rays' erratic schedule hasn't helped, Baldelli mentioning that he hasn't had a chance to get into a groove that comes from playing every day.
The mental aspect has been different, too. Rather than the wide-eyed innocent who could do no wrong as he burst onto the scene with a record-setting, confidence-building April, Baldelli started the season 3-for-25 and was inundated, if not overwhelmed, with intense scrutiny and negative talk, things he hadn't experienced much before and clearly did not enjoy.
"You try to block everything out and just worry about going out and playing and forgetting what happened the day before, but it seems when you're struggling that's all that anyone wants to talk about," Baldelli said.
"So even though you're blocking it out, everyone else wants you to get going, so that's all they're really talking about. So it kind of gets in your head."
Then there are the physical changes. Baldelli put on 10-12 pounds of muscle during the winter, figuring it would keep him stronger during the long season and help him answer Piniella's pleas for more power. Instead he has found himself answering questions about whether he isn't running as fast, or as hard, this season.
Piniella raised the question about the effect offseason laser eye surgery had on Baldelli's performance at the plate. Piniella thinks it could be a factor and suggested Baldelli go to the bullpen during pregame workouts and spend time tracking pitches to retrain his eyes.
"It actually has improved his eyesight, but it might take a while to get used to it," Piniella said. "He's seeing different. It might take a while for the body to adjust. So I told him the more you can track is probably the better."
Baldelli, who had trouble last season with dry contact lenses, said he didn't expect the surgery, which is not uncommon among players, to be the source of any problems. But he sounds as if he is beginning to wonder.
"I don't know, I'd like to think not," he said. "My vision as far as doing eye tests is good. It's probably better than 20/20, but that's not really the question at this point. I guess it's just a matter of getting used to it, living with it and playing with it. They told me it would take time to get used to it; I didn't know what they meant by time. I didn't know if they meant two days or what. ... We'll see."
Baldelli's improved performance over the past week has given Piniella reason to think good times are coming.
"He's swinging the bat better, and that's really good to see," Piniella said. "It's just that he's getting more at-bats now. He's a little more aggressive, too. He's taking better swings at the ball and he's got a little more bat speed."
Baldelli, meanwhile, has had reason to smile.
"I've felt good at the plate for a while," he said. "The hits haven't come so if you're reading the box scores you might not see it, but I've been pretty confident, pretty comfortable at the plate for a little while. It's starting to translate to helping the team a little bit, which makes it fun, which makes everything else better."