Garcia working to get swing back for Chicago White Sox
It's in there somewhere.
Right fielder Avisail Garcia knows it, and so do the White Sox.
Garcia was the Sox' best hitter for the first six weeks of the season, and he looked like a star in the making in mid-May while ranking second in the American League with a .346 batting average.
Garcia has since been riding a lengthy slump, and he entered Tuesday night's game against Tampa Bay hitting .264.
"You want to see some consistency that he's had," manager Robin Ventura said. "He's shown us that he's had it, now it's time that you do have to make an adjustment. Pitchers are making an adjustment on you, and this game is full of it. And it happens all the time.
"You can't go through a season just with one thing and think that's going to work for you."
The 24-year-old Garcia said he has identified the problem and is working on the adjustment.
"I've been using my body too much to hit the ball," Garcia said. "That's tough when you do that. I'm learning how to use my hands more because when I use more of my hands I have got more of a chance because I have enough power to hit the ball out of this ballpark.
"I'm just trying to use more of my hands, recognize the pitches. I have been swinging at a lot of bad pitches because my body is in front. When I start my at-bat, all my weight is in the back and then when the pitch is coming all my weight is in the front. I've got to be in the middle. Not too much back, not too much front, just in the middle to be successful."
At 6-feet-4, 240 pounds, Garcia has the size and strength to hit 25-30 home runs a season. He has been stuck on 7 homers since June 8, a serious power outage.
"I have power," Garcia said. "I know that I can hit, but I've got to learn how I have enough power. I've just got to touch it. I just try to put the barrel on it and that's what I need to do. That's it."
Thompson watch:
After coming up from Class AAA Charlotte on Monday, outfielder Trayce Thompson is expected to make his first major-league start Wednesday.
Thompson could play right field in place of Avisail Garcia or he could start in left, with Melky Cabrera shifting to designated hitter for one game.
"I think (Thompson) will have to get in there at some point," Robin Ventura said. "You don't want a guy coming up here and sitting around too long. I don't necessarily like doing that."
Dubious anniversary:
Tuesday marked the 22nd anniversary of Robin Ventura charging the mound at Texas after being hit by a pitch from Nolan Ryan. Ventura got the worst of the fight, and he never has been fond of talking about the incident.
"It is what it is," Ventura said. "People keep bringing it up. I don't know if it's a state holiday in Texas. Do people get the day off for it?"