rockin500
04-02-2003, 09:40 AM
NEW YORK -- Corey Patterson has heard the talk that he's underachieving and hasn't lived up to the hype. A .253 average in his first big-league season in 2002 doesn't match the expectations. He's a No. 1 pick -- shouldn't he be batting .350 by now?
Patterson worked this offseason, really worked. If Monday's game is any indication, he'll be just fine.
The center fielder went 4-for-6 with two homers and a career-high seven RBIs in the Cubs 15-2 Opening Day win over the New York Mets.
"He's got all the ability, all the tools," Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said of Patterson. "His future is ahead of him. He's only 23 -- it's just a matter of letting him play."
Cub manager Dusty Baker did his best to protect Patterson this spring, deflecting any criticism directed toward the youngster or any of the kids on the roster.
On Monday, Baker switched Patterson to seventh in the batting order because he didn't want Hee Seop Choi and Patterson hitting back-to-back -- both are lefties -- against Mets' southpaw Tom Glavine.
"Corey's been struggling a little against lefties," Baker said.
Players can only dream of a day like Patterson's. He hit a RBI single in the Cubs' four-run first inning off Glavine and another RBI single in the third, again off the Mets starter. He struck out against right-hander Scott Strickland, then hit a two-run homer in the sixth off lefty Mike Bacsik. Patterson added a two-out, three-run blast off Bacsik in the seventh.
His previous RBI high was four, done twice, most recently last June 28 against the Chicago White Sox. It was his second career two-homer game.
"At the end of last year, I had to sit down and work on a couple things," Patterson said. "I really just worked on my balance in the offseason, keeping my head still. Last year, a lot of times, I just didn't see the ball. I think it's going to pay off."
If Patterson needs any reminders, he has Sammy Sosa on his side. The Cubs right fielder has taken the young outfielder under his wing.
"Sometimes you lose your focus and get into bad habits," Patterson said. "He's always grabbed me aside and said, 'Hey, we've got to get you back on track.'"
Sosa downplayed his role, saying he reminds the youngster to hit to the opposite field every now and then. Actually, Patterson deserves most of the credit.
"I never questioned my ability and never was down confidence-wise, but sometimes things can get a little frustrating," Patterson said. "When you're frustrated, you think about the wrong things, and you overcompensate trying to do something else and that's going to get you into one bad habit, and it'll snowball and go from there."
After the All-Star break last year, Patterson hit just .228 and drew two walks in 276 at-bats. The Cubs offense was a shambles. A 67-95 season also had something to do with the mood.
"We know we have to improve offensively from last year," Patterson said. "I think the biggest thing we're doing this year is communicating more amongst ourselves as teammates. If we see a guy having a problem, we'll go over and help that guy. Last year, we really didn't say anything and let things happen and before you knew it, bad things started to snowball."
By the way, Patterson is from Georgia so the snow references must mean he has adjusted to Chicago's climate. Or else Monday's 39-degree game time temperature just put him in the Christmas spirit. He did his best to stay warm -- chasing down two fly balls to deep center by Mike Piazza.
"Any center fielder on any team needs to take charge," Patterson said. "Playing center field on this team isn't that hard. I've got (Moises) Alou in left and Sammy in right. They've helped me out a couple times. They make it a lot easier for me."
Patterson had a good first month last season, batting .333. The Cubs can only hope Monday's game is a sign of things to come.
"Anybody coming up, you just work so hard and it feels good to have something to show for it," Patterson said. "It was a good day. You've got to just keep working hard, keep the same mental preparation every day and stay consistent with it."
http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/chc/news/chc_news.jsp?ymd=20030401&content_id=252627&vkey=news_chc&fext=.jsp
Patterson worked this offseason, really worked. If Monday's game is any indication, he'll be just fine.
The center fielder went 4-for-6 with two homers and a career-high seven RBIs in the Cubs 15-2 Opening Day win over the New York Mets.
"He's got all the ability, all the tools," Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said of Patterson. "His future is ahead of him. He's only 23 -- it's just a matter of letting him play."
Cub manager Dusty Baker did his best to protect Patterson this spring, deflecting any criticism directed toward the youngster or any of the kids on the roster.
On Monday, Baker switched Patterson to seventh in the batting order because he didn't want Hee Seop Choi and Patterson hitting back-to-back -- both are lefties -- against Mets' southpaw Tom Glavine.
"Corey's been struggling a little against lefties," Baker said.
Players can only dream of a day like Patterson's. He hit a RBI single in the Cubs' four-run first inning off Glavine and another RBI single in the third, again off the Mets starter. He struck out against right-hander Scott Strickland, then hit a two-run homer in the sixth off lefty Mike Bacsik. Patterson added a two-out, three-run blast off Bacsik in the seventh.
His previous RBI high was four, done twice, most recently last June 28 against the Chicago White Sox. It was his second career two-homer game.
"At the end of last year, I had to sit down and work on a couple things," Patterson said. "I really just worked on my balance in the offseason, keeping my head still. Last year, a lot of times, I just didn't see the ball. I think it's going to pay off."
If Patterson needs any reminders, he has Sammy Sosa on his side. The Cubs right fielder has taken the young outfielder under his wing.
"Sometimes you lose your focus and get into bad habits," Patterson said. "He's always grabbed me aside and said, 'Hey, we've got to get you back on track.'"
Sosa downplayed his role, saying he reminds the youngster to hit to the opposite field every now and then. Actually, Patterson deserves most of the credit.
"I never questioned my ability and never was down confidence-wise, but sometimes things can get a little frustrating," Patterson said. "When you're frustrated, you think about the wrong things, and you overcompensate trying to do something else and that's going to get you into one bad habit, and it'll snowball and go from there."
After the All-Star break last year, Patterson hit just .228 and drew two walks in 276 at-bats. The Cubs offense was a shambles. A 67-95 season also had something to do with the mood.
"We know we have to improve offensively from last year," Patterson said. "I think the biggest thing we're doing this year is communicating more amongst ourselves as teammates. If we see a guy having a problem, we'll go over and help that guy. Last year, we really didn't say anything and let things happen and before you knew it, bad things started to snowball."
By the way, Patterson is from Georgia so the snow references must mean he has adjusted to Chicago's climate. Or else Monday's 39-degree game time temperature just put him in the Christmas spirit. He did his best to stay warm -- chasing down two fly balls to deep center by Mike Piazza.
"Any center fielder on any team needs to take charge," Patterson said. "Playing center field on this team isn't that hard. I've got (Moises) Alou in left and Sammy in right. They've helped me out a couple times. They make it a lot easier for me."
Patterson had a good first month last season, batting .333. The Cubs can only hope Monday's game is a sign of things to come.
"Anybody coming up, you just work so hard and it feels good to have something to show for it," Patterson said. "It was a good day. You've got to just keep working hard, keep the same mental preparation every day and stay consistent with it."
http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/chc/news/chc_news.jsp?ymd=20030401&content_id=252627&vkey=news_chc&fext=.jsp