Justin Morneau is having a decent season so far, batting nearly .300, tied for 10th in the American League in RBI. He's batting .321 with runners in scoring position, a huge improvement on his frustrating .196 futility in those situations a year ago.
He knows he should be pleased. And he is, to a point. But there's something nagging at him, too.
"It's hard to change your identity as a hitter. And I still believe I'm a power threat," the Twins' cleanup hitter said Wednesday. "But for some reason, I'm going through a stretch [without a home run], and it's hard to figure out why."
He's going through the worst stretch of his career, actually. It's been 28 games, or 112 at-bats, since a Morneau blast left the yard, a two-run shot off Texas righthander Alexi Ogando on April 28. He has two more days to avert his first homerless month since his concussion-marred 2011 season.
Morneau has two home runs, on pace for seven for the year. For a player who has hit 30 or more three different times, it's a shock, but he remains confident.
"I just have to keep believing that if I keep making solid contact, the home runs will come," Morneau said. "I've hit a few balls [in Target Field] that probably would have been homers in other places. Obviously, that's what I'm here for — to drive the ball out of the ballpark. But as long as I'm still driving in runs, helping us win games, it's all right."
Morneau's power decline isn't entirely unexpected; he only turned 32 two weeks ago, and Fangraphs.com, a statistical analysis website, projected him to hit only nine homers this year. He's also on pace for 111 RBI, and it's largely a product of his improvement in RBI situations, an emphasis of his after "my numbers were so terrible last year," Morneau said. "It's easier to drive in runs by hitting three-run homers, but as long as I'm having good at-bats, that's going to help the team, too."
Still, he admits it bothers him, and fears the consequences if pitchers no longer believe he can hit a mistake 400 feet.
