Ryan Howard's ears must have been burning.
He smacked a two-run homer to right field in the third inning tonight at Citizens Bank Park to hand the Phillies a 3-0 lead. Before the game, the beat writers pressed manager Charlie Manuel on Howard's early season slump. Howard entered the night hitting .207 with two home runs and 10 RBIs. Manuel, after the 100th consecutive question asked about Howard, finally threw up his arms.
“He’s a good hitter. He’s going to hit,” Manuel said. “Take it to the bank: I said so. Write it down. OK? I will be responsible for that. Put it down. He’s going to hit. He’s good. He’s going to hit.
"He’s having a little trouble. This is another test for him. I know he’s going to come out of it, and I know he’s going to have a big year. … He’s trying too hard. The expectations that he’s put on himself, I think that has something to do with it. He went up to the plate last year knowing that if he hit the ball hard he had a chance to hit a home run. I think that’s what he has to get back to. He’s not staying back as much as he used to and seeing the ball as good as he used to. He wants to hit bad. I think he’s overanxious.”
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John Dewan from ACTA Sports has an interesting Stat of the Week: No lefthanded hitter pulls ground balls more than Howard, which is why you will see teams play the defensive shift on him.
But guess who's third?
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Cubs manager Lou Piniella has taken a page from Manuel's book. He wants the team to relax and have fun.
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Thanks to Randball for a nice plug today. Mike Rand is a good friend of mine -- we go way back, punching busses and such at the University of Minnesota -- and is one of the funniest writers I know.
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Thanks also to Ball, Sticks, & Stuff for a mention.
