Pablo Sandoval refuses to let frustration settle in.
Sandoval has raked against right-handers this season while struggling mightily against left-handers. But Sandoval still has no plans to abandon switch-hitting, as the Boston Red Sox third baseman instead remains focused on working on his obvious flaw and improving from the right side of the dish.
“Nope. I don’t think about that. I feel good,” Sandoval said Thursday of potentially giving up switch-hitting, according to MLB.com’s Ian Browne. “Why am I going to be frustrated? It’s part of your job, being able to hit both ways. You have to be proud and keep fighting. Keep working.”
Sandoval entered Thursday’s game against the Seattle Mariners hitting .371 (33-for-89) with a 1.007 OPS as a left-handed hitter against right-handed pitchers and .059 (2-for-34) with a .145 OPS as a right-handed hitter against left-handed pitchers. He wasn’t in the Red Sox’s starting lineup Thursday against left-hander Roenis Elias, but manager John Farrell said he expects Sandoval to continue to play regularly against southpaws moving forward.
“I keep on working hard, and trying to get my timing down,” Sandoval said. “That’s the hard thing. You don’t see so many left-handers.”
The Red Sox faced just six lefty starters through their first 31 games. They’re scheduled to face three lefties in their four-game series with the Mariners, though, so perhaps a couple of starts Friday and Sunday will help Sandoval find some sort of rhythm from the right side of the plate.
“I don’t know why,” Sandoval told Browne of his right-handed struggles. “If I knew why, I’d fix it.”
Boston sure hopes Sandoval fixes the ongoing issue. Otherwise, it could become a bigger problem.
Thumbnail photo via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
