Wednesday, May 01, 2002
Larkin still struggling under .200
By John Fay jfay@enquirer.com
The Cincinnati Enquirer
LOS ANGELES — April has always been a cruel month for Barry Larkin. But never this cruel, he said.
“I never remember it being this bad,” Larkin said. “It seems like I'm striking out every other time.”
Larkin, who turned 38 on Sunday, ended the month hitting .193. He had almost as many strikeouts (15) as hits (17).
Tuesday's stats: 1-for-5 (double), two strikeouts and five runners left on base.
Actually, Larkin has had a worse start. In 1998, he was hitting .169 on May 2. A 0-for-30 streak got him to that nadir. Larkin found his stroke that year. He ended up hitting .309 with 17 homers and 72 RBI.
Larkin is working for such a turnaround. He showed up at Dodger Stadium early for extra batting practice. That's been a regular thing.
“I've been hitting in the cage, taking early BP,” he said. “I'm searching for my swing. It's been extremely elusive.”
Larkin has had days when he's hit the ball well. He has four two-hit games. He's had other days when he's hit well with nothing to show for it. Sunday was one. He stung the ball three times and went 0-for-5.
“He lines one to third,” Reds manager Bob Boone said. “The next time up he gets called out on a pitch he shouldn't have been. Then you start thinking, "What do I have to do?' ”
Larkin pleads guilty to pressing, panicking, trying to do too much.
In Tuesday's session, hitting coach Jim Lebfebvre was stressing hitting the ball low, working on hitting line drives.
“Usually, when someone like Barry is putting air under the ball, it's a sign that they're getting out front,” Boone said.
Larkin is beyond worrying about mechanics. He would like to just find a bit of a rhythm.
“I'd like to hit the ball solid,” he said, “just make solid contact.”
Tuesday's batting practice session didn't even go well. When Lebfebvre said “two more good ones,” it took 10 more for Larkin to get two he was satisfied with.
“I'm going to keep working at it,” he said.
Larkin is coming off two injury-plagued seasons. He was limited to 102 games in 2000 by hand and knee injuries. Last year, he missed all but 45 games because of a strained right groin muscle and a sports hernia.
But Larkin is healthy. That's evident in the way he's played defense. Still, he can't seem to get it going at the plate.
“I haven't been able to get comfortable,” he said.
said. “But I'm not really concerned. You look at his track record. It tells you he's going to come around. It's April.”
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Larkin still struggling under .200
