As Norichika Aoki struggles, Milwaukee Brewers’ manager attributes it to weariness – MLB News
The Milwaukee Brewers' team manager Ron Roenicke on Wednesday, June 20, attributed outfielder Norichika Aoki’s sudden mini-slump to tiredness as the player struggled to maintained his otherwise excellent performance.
When the season had started, if there was one of the players that the Brewers attached significant importance and hope to, it was Aoki. As the season progressed, the choice and prediction proved right with Aoki coming up with meritorious execution.
However, there has lately been some unsatisfying and supposedly worrying development. The Brewers could not have their grip in Tuesday’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays. While others could not give a particularly good performance either, Aoki’s display hardly commanded confidence.
With his five appearances at-bat, he had no hit which in no way was reassuring for the Milwaukee Brewers. With that unexpected performance, the team manager – nonetheless, did not show much of frustration.
Instead, Roenicke ascribed this to the player’s fatigue. "I think he's run out of gas here a little bit," Roenicke said. Considering the tough schedule, the observation seems accurate.
Nonetheless, that which cannot skip attention is the fact that there is a slump in his last 11 games performance. He has had the batting average of .208 in these 11 appearances, just when it was .346 in 22 games that he had played previously.
But like stated earlier, all this is mainly because of the tight schedule that the team has to follow. The fact that they do not have much of rest contribute to the fatigue the team manager alluded to.
He nonetheless had his observation. "He's playing a lot, so all of a sudden I'm seeing some funny swings from him," Roenicke said. "He works so hard when he's off the field; I don't know if you can keep doing that. ... We've talked about it. You can overdo it."
The upcoming weeks will determine how far Aoki could go to regain the form he had had throughout the season. If Aoki regenerates what he is capable of, this will be a harbinger of good times not only for him but also for the team.
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