Tag: slump

Shohei Ohtani caught performing CPR on his bat to escape an early season slump

That’ll do the trick

It hasn’t been the most electric start to the season for baseball’s most exciting player.

A year after Shohei Ohtani proved the sport’s biggest stage is no match for his talent, the two-way star finds himself mired in a wee bit of a slump to begin his 2022 campaign.

Through five games and 21 at-bats, Ohtani has just three hits on five strikeouts with no walks. Considering he hits at the top of the Angels lineup, a .143/.143/.190 slash line isn’t what anyone wants to see at all. Especially not for an MVP favorite (+300 at Tipico). Ohtani knows this, too.

But not to worry, because the modern day Babe Ruth has a fix for his quiet bat.

That should do it! Or maybe Jobu just needs some more rum.

Either way, Ohtani’s playful attitude here is exactly the right course. It’s the first week of the season and every one needs to take some deep breathes. He’ll be launching balls into orbit soon enough.

It’s not like he’s slumping on the mound, either. In his first start of the year, Ohtani went 4.2 innings pitched with nine strikeouts, one walk issued, one hit allowed and one earned run.

His bat will come around. Or surely the Angels have a defibrillator around the dugout Ohtani can use to wake it up.

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Chiefs CB Charvarius Ward explains his ‘slump’ and how he got out of it

Ward says his “slump” is behind him and explained what it took to get out of it.

Kansas City Chiefs CB Charvarius Ward is looking to make the most of the final seven games of the 2020 NFL regular-season. Ward had some lofty goals for himself entering his second year as a starter. Those goals were quickly stifled when the corner broke his hand in the season opener against the Houston Texans. He wouldn’t play again until Week 3 against the Baltimore Ravens, but he struggled in his return. Ward discussed those struggles with the Kansas City media on Wednesday.

“I was playing with a cast on, so I couldn’t really use my left hand how I was supposed to,” Ward told reporters. “That hurt me a lot. It hurt me more mentally than anything. I was still out there trying to give my all, help the team, be out there for my teammates. The coaches believed in me. I believe in myself as well. It hurt me a little bit but now I feel like I’m going to bounce back real strong these last couple of games.”

After the Chiefs’ Week 8 win against the New York Jets, Ward tweeted, “I’m in a slump….. I gotta come up out of it.”

It’s not something that you would expect to hear from a player after the team won big. Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo said that he didn’t feel that Ward was in a “slump.” It’s clear that Ward had set a standard for himself that he felt he wasn’t meeting.

“I’m always holding myself [accountable], I just want to be the best player that I know I can be,” Ward said. “I’m just going to continue to try to improve and get better and be one of the best corners in the league by the end of the season. These last seven games, I’ve got to come out strong and be at my best.”

Ward believed that the slump was a combination of his physical ability to press and get his hands on opponents impacting his mental state. While his fracture still isn’t fully healed, he’s no longer wearing the cast and he’s not in pain. That has led to a confident level of play from Ward, but even approaching the Week 10 bye, he wasn’t happy with his performance. During the bye week, he worked to improve his technique.

“I just stayed active all throughout the bye week, working on my feet, working on my press technique,” Ward said. “I was really just working on my technique and my game all throughout the bye week. Hopefully, I’ll be better these next seven games. I know I will.”

As for the slump, Ward is confident that it’s in the past. He feels that he’s physically healthy and mentally prepared for the challenges that await him in the next seven games. For now, he’s looking ahead to an exciting divisional rivalry game against the Raiders in Week 11.

“I’m already out of the slump, man,” Ward said. “The slump is over with. I’m already out of the slump. We love playing the Raiders. It’s a divisional game, it’s a rivalry game. They got us the last time so now we’re just going to come out of this game and be at our best. Hopefully, we get our rematch and do what we’re supposed to do.”

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