"He needs a day to recharge," Scioscia said, adding that Guerrero did not request the break. "He's been grinding it. He'll have a day off to go back home [where the Angels open a three-game series Monday night against the Tigers]. I thought it was a good day to get him recharged a bit."
A .322 career hitter, Guerrero is batting only .211 on the road trip. But three of his four hits have gone the distance, accounting for six RBIs. He drove in all four runs in a 4-3 victory over the Blue Jays on Wednesday night with a pair of homers, and his blast Saturday was all the run support Jered Weaver and Francisco Rodriguez would need.
Guerrero's average is a sub-standard .254, the lowest of his career after 49 games. His 28 RBIs match Casey Kotchman for the club lead. Guerrero has batted at least .300 with a minimum of 25 homers in each of the past 10 seasons. The only player to have done that in more consecutive seasons is Lou Gehrig, who did it 11 times.
Garret Anderson, who had Saturday off, was back in left field and in Guerrero's customary No. 3 spot in the order. Gary Matthews Jr., brilliant in right field on Saturday with a pair of plays that helped preserve the shutout, was back in right with Torii Hunter in center and batting fourth against Jose Contreras.
Juan Rivera made his second consecutive start for the second time this season. He has made nine starts, three in the outfield and six as a DH.
No comments:
Post a Comment