Dunn as lost as ever

Sox slugger mired even deeper in season-long slump

July 19, 2011|By Mark Gonzales, Chicago Tribune reporter
  • Brent Lillibridge slams his helmet after striking out during the game against the Royals.
Brent Lillibridge slams his helmet after striking out during the game against the Royals. (Jamie Squire, Getty Images)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Manager Ozzie Guillen leaned back in his chair Tuesday with his arms folded and sighed after being asked if he was at a loss over Adam Dunn's latest regression.

Since hitting a two-run single Friday against All-Star Justin Verlander, Dunn is 1-for-13 with six strikeouts. Dunn didn't start Tuesday night against rookie left-hander Danny Duffy, and Guillen wasn't sure whether Dunn would return to the lineup Wednesday night.

This marked the first time Guillen seemed uncertain when Dunn, who leads the American League with 124 strikeouts and is 7-for-79 (.089) with 40 strikeouts in his last 22 games, would return in the lineup. Dunn didn't start on June 7-8, but that was designed to give him a break after previous struggles.

"Everything is in his favor," Guillen said. "The only thing that's not in his favor is he's not producing. How will he come out of this? Keep playing. He has to do it for himself. We can't do anything about it. We have to play him and hope it all works out for the best.

"There aren't many options. If I keep seeing him struggle, I'll give him more breaks here and there to make sure he's mentally fine. The only way to come out of it is to keep playing."

Dunn believes his recent struggles stem from being too aggressive and that opposing pitchers are taking advantage by throwing off-speed pitches early in the count.

"And that's not my game," Dunn said.

"Everything is there except me swinging at bad pitches," Dunn continued. "I'm working the count, usually putting myself in usually good hitters' counts but not making them pay."