Josh Hamilton is human after all

The story of Josh Hamilton and his rise to stardom is a remarkable story that still inspires me whenever I see him play.  But Josh is struggling at the plate these days.  After receiving Player of the Month honors for May and June, his production has dropped considerably.  Nobody is as frustrated as he is about all this.  Hall of Famer and Rangers President Nolan Ryan jumped on him a little bit saying that he is throwing away at-bats and needs to focus more.  Absolutely true but easier said than done.  Anyone who has ever experienced a slump knows how tough it can be.  The link below takes you to a good article that has numerous great quotes from Hamilton that are good advice for anyone caught in a rut of some kind.  Here are some parts of the article I found to be most valuable:

“Usually you get into trouble when you start thinking about stuff,” Hamilton said. “It’s the mental aspects more than the physical. That’s where I think I am right now.”

“I am human,” Hamilton said. “No matter how mad you are or if you break something or throw something, it’s not going to change the fact of what happened or make anything better. It snowballs.”

Hamilton knows the adjustments must come from his head, where he admits he has to recognize pitches better, stay patient and not be afraid to hit balls the other way.

“They all know they can throw me questionable pitches and more than likely I’ll swing at them. When I’m going good, they can do that and I get hits. When I’m not going good, I get myself out. It’s understanding what kind of game plan they’re going to have and what it is and trusting myself, trusting I don’t have to create anything or get in an overly ready position to hit.”

To read the entire article, click HERE.