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Hafner says he’s healthy, ready to DH
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Photo
Cleveland Indians' Travis Hafner stands in against live pitching during baseball spring training Monday, Feb. 21, 2011, in Goodyear, Ariz.
By Bud Shaw
The Cleveland Plain Dealer
GLENDALE, Ariz.
Indians manager Manny Acta believes the full-time designated hitter is vanishing throughout baseball. Not how purists would like to see it vanish — overnight or into thin air.
It’s just that the DH has become a fluid role for American League managers to use in myriad ways, including getting everyday players off their feet while keeping their bats in the lineup.
Not surprisingly, Indians’ DH Travis Hafner doesn’t totally buy the benefits of sweeping change. If he did, he’d be like the curator at a spotted owl sanctuary coming out in support of extinction.
“I could see wanting more versatility out of the spot,” Hafner said. “But at the same time if you have that big thumper in the middle of the order, that’s a pretty good luxury to have as well.”
Be careful about jumping to conclusions. Hafner wasn’t calling himself a big thumper. He’s not delusional. Approaching his 34th birthday in June, those days are likely gone forever.
When Acta calls Hafner “one of the last guys to be a full-time DH,” the Indians’ manager is certainly not saying it because Hafner’s production makes him an unmovable force against an irresistible trend. It’s because Hafner can’t play a position and because his contract makes him untradeable.
Two years remain at $13 million each. There’s a club option for 2013, but you’d bet on him seeing the $2.75 million buyout instead.
Even with power numbers in decline around baseball, Hafner’s drop in homers and RBIs in recent seasons stands out. Not just from his best season in 2006 when he batted .308 with 42 homers and 117 RBIs but from his more modest 2007 (24 homers, 100 RBIs).
Some of that goes directly to his shoulder issues. But even he says he developed poor habits that were not all connected to his injury.
Relatively healthy last season, he hit 13 homers and knocked in 50 runs in 118 games. Even when Hafner batted .329 in the second half, he still only hit five home runs and drove in 21 runs in 44 games. Four homers came after a stay on the DL in early August.
Acta didn’t play Hafner more than four days in a row last season in an attempt to keep him healthy.
“I needed it,” Hafner said of the rest days. “It’s tough to say [how it will go] this season, but I know I’m in a better spot right now. I’ve been able to hit just about every day here. And the days I have taken off have been more precautionary.”
Unlike the 2009 off-season, Hafner hit through the winter. Batting coach Joe Nunnally came to his house twice a week for sessions in Hafner’s in-home batting cage.
Acta says Hafner looks stronger. The manager hasn’t missed many opportunities to talk Hafner up, even pointing out Hafner was the team’s second-most productive hitter in 2010 despite his problems.
That’s praise; just not high praise.
At the same time, Acta can’t expect the kind of return to power for Hafner that would dictate keeping him in the lineup as much as possible. If he’s a glorified singles hitter, he’s a replaceable part. His spot then becomes fair game for any number of other players.
“It could be Carlos if I want a right-handed hitter,” said Acta. “It could be Choo to get him off his feet for nine innings, or it could be Grady [Sizemore] to get him off his feet for nine innings.
“There is not going to be a spot on [the] club designed for a guy who DHs when Hafner gets a day off.”
Santana, coming off knee surgery, could play some first or he could DH to get him out from behind the plate. Sizemore’s microfracture surgery could bring the same DH considerations.
Acta needs to watch Hafner early in the season, not just for signs of shoulder issues but to see if he can drive the ball with any regularity.
“He’s not playing every day so it’s tough to judge,” Acta said when asked about Hafner’s lack of power so far this spring. “I think we’ll have a better read once we make some cuts and these guys get to be out there on a more consistent basis. He’s been fine so far. Just because he hasn’t hit a home run doesn’t mean anything.”