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Washington right fielder Austin Kearns (25) was benched yesterday for the second time in six games. Kearns is hitting just .192, including one hit in his last 22 at-bats. |
BY RICH CAMPBELL
BALTIMORE
--Washington Nationals manager Manny Acta kept right fielder Austin Kearns out of the starting lineup last night for the second time in the last six games in order to give Kearns time to address some flaws in his swing.Kearns is mired in a 1-for-22 slump and carried a .192 batting average into the three-game series against the Baltimore Orioles.
"Right now, he's getting his hands back a little too late," Acta said. "His trigger is a little bit too late. He's working on that. Hitters only have so much time to read and react and realize what to do with the pitch, and when you go back with your hands too late, it's a struggle."
Kearns has three homers and 16 RBIs in 41 games this season. He has just one extra-base hit, a homer against Houston on May 6, in his last 51 at-bats.
Regardless of how well Kearns is hitting, he is usually reliable in right field. That wasn't the case, however, during Washington's recent four-game series against the New York Mets.
On Tuesday, Kearns misplayed a scorched line drive that allowed the decisive runs to score in a 6-3 loss. In Thursday's 1-0 win, he dropped a pop fly near the foul line.
Acta is confident that Kearns isn't letting his offensive struggles affect him in the field.
"He always plays both ends of the game and is able to separate hitting from fielding," Acta said. "He's human, after all. He's good, but he's human. I asked him, and he said, 'No, that has nothing to do with it.'"
Elijah Dukes started in right field last night, and he's struggling at the plate, too. He's in a 1-for-19 slump since returning from the disabled list on May 9.
"Keeping patience late in the count, that's my thing," Dukes said. "I need to stop trying to force things."
Young returns to team, bats cleanup as dh
Dmitri Young returned to the Washington Nationals yesterday and batted fourth as the designated hitter. He believes that he wouldn't have benefited from any more time on his rehabilitation assignment and declared himself recovered from the lower back problems that cost him 39 games.
As expected, Young was reinstated from the 15-day disabled list yesterday when first baseman Nick Johnson was placed on it.
"It was actually perfect timing," Young said. "I was expecting to come back this weekend."
Johnson was in the clubhouse yesterday, as well. He will keep his right wrist, in which he has a torn tendon sheath, in a splint for two weeks and will be re-evaluated after that.
HARRIS AMAZED HIMSELF WITH THURSDAY CATCH
Outfielder Willie Harris savored his spectacular, game-saving diving catch against the New York Mets on Thursday by watching the highlight several times on ESPN.
"When they slowed it down, I was amazed," Harris said. "I was shocked. I was like, 'Dang, that was kind of nice.'"
With one out and a runner on first in the ninth, Harris sprinted about 90 and made an all-out, backhanded catch on the left-field foul line. It preserved Washington's 1-0 win.
Harris received congratulations Thursday night from his friends around the league, including Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Andruw Jones and Chicago White Sox outfielder Jermaine Dye. The play was ranked the best in baseball on Thursday by ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" and was the second-best play of the day in all sports according to ESPN's "SportsCenter."
Harris downplayed a suggestion that it could be one of the best plays of the entire season come the end of the year.
"It's still early," he said. "That play won't last long, but I'm going to enjoy it."
Rich Campbell: 540/735-1974
Email: rcampbell@freelancestar.com
