Twins outfielder Aaron Hicks has decided to give up switch hitting and will bat righthanded only, a decision, he says, that will help the team.

Hicks informed manager Ron Gardenhire of the decision this morning, telling him he has no confidence batting lefthanded.

``Now I'm batting righthanded," Hicks said. ``It's only one side I have to work on. It's going to be easier worrying about one side."

Hicks is batting .187 this season - .263 rigththanded and .145 lefthanded. For his career, he's .227 as a righthanded hitter and .179 as a lefthanded hitter.

Hicks said the decision was all his and he received no prodding from the club. Twins manager Ron Gardenhire sounded surprised when he informed the media this morning.

It had to be a hard decision for Hicks, who hit from both sides of the plate since he was a youngster. The Twins did kick around the idea of Hicks dropping his left-handed swing a couple times when he was struggling in the minors but decided to let it play out. Well, it has played out, and Hicks is now a right-handed hitter.