Ah, baseball. The great American pastime. There’s nothing quite like it. Except for maybe a good hotdog. Or a beer. But I digress.
So, the Nationals had a win on Sunday, and apparently some guy named Meneses hit the ball to the opposite field. I don’t know about you, but I prefer to hit the ball straight ahead. But hey, whatever works for him, right?
Meneses thinks these hits are a good sign. He says they give him more confidence at the plate. Personally, I prefer a good pep talk or maybe some hypnosis, but to each their own.
Manager Dave Martinez is also optimistic about Meneses’ progress. He says they’re still working on some stuff, but they’re getting there. It’s like that scene in “The Karate Kid” where Mr. Miyagi tells Daniel to “Wax on. Wax off.” Except instead of waxing, they’re working on Meneses’ swing. Same thing, basically.
Some fans in the cheap seats started a chant for Meneses during Saturday’s game. “Joey Baseball!” they yelled. I’m not sure who Joey Baseball is, but I assume it’s some kind of superhero. Or maybe a new hipster band.
Last year, Meneses was an unknown, but now he’s got some expectations to meet. He’s supposed to be a middle-of-the-order bat for the Nationals. That’s a lot of pressure. I mean, I can barely hit the ball out of the infield, let alone be a power hitter.
The Nationals didn’t expect to be a power-hitting team, but they did expect Meneses and a couple of other guys to bring in some extra-base hits. Meneses has raised his batting average, but he hasn’t hit a home run yet. He’s got four doubles and four RBI, and he’s been struggling with his timing. But hey, Rome wasn’t built in a day.
Meneses says he’s been working with the hitting coach to fix some of his issues. He’s been jumping at the ball too much, apparently. I don’t know about you, but jumping sounds like a pretty solid baseball move to me. But what do I know?
From a statistical standpoint, Meneses isn’t doing too badly. He’s actually doing slightly better in some categories than he was last year. So, there’s hope yet.
Last year, Meneses was a bit of a surprise. He hit .324 with 13 home runs in just 56 games. This year, the Nationals are hoping he can replicate that success over a full season. They even brought in some outfielders so he could play more first base and be the designated hitter. That’s pretty fancy.
Meneses struggled a bit during spring training, but he apparently found his groove playing for Mexico in the World Baseball Classic. He hit a couple of homers and had the most hits in the tournament, tied with some other big names. So, there’s hope yet for him to turn things around.
The Nationals could really use Meneses’ power right about now. They’re tied for last in the majors in homers, which is not great. But Meneses says he’s not too worried. He knows there are ups and downs in a baseball season, and he’s confident he’ll work through it. And if not, there’s always hotdogs and beer to fall back on.
Serious News: washingtonpost
