As can be seen, I have posted stats. Lets not get carried away with looking at them or playing for them. They are just one measure, and sometimes do not tell the entire story, AND don't mean much over three games.
So, all you guys below the Mendoza Line*, call off the suicide watch, lighten up and just play your game. These things will all work out in the long run, and quite frankly our season is not long enough for statistical proof of your worth.
A case in point, my high school junior year I hit .167. My senior year I hit .458. I was the same guy both years. In the 20 games we played in each season, one year my balls found holes, the other year I hit a lot of balls right at people. All I cared about (and still do) was my next at bat, and how worried I was for the poor pitcher who had to face me. I knew there was no way he could get me out.
*The term is named for former shortstop Mario Mendoza, a flashy defensive player who struggled at the plate. Although Mendoza's batting average was .215 lifetime, he was known as a sub-.200 hitter whose average frequently fell into the .170 to .180 range during any particular year. That proved to be true in 1979 when Mendoza managed to finish the year with a meager .198 average.
The "Mendoza Line" was created as a harmless clubhouse joke amongst friends. "My teammates Tom Paciorek and Bruce Bochte used it to make fun of me," Mendoza said in 2010. "Then they were giving George Brett a hard time because he had a slow start that year, so they told him, 'Hey, man, you're going to sink down below the Mendoza Line if you're not careful.' And then Brett mentioned it to Chris Berman from ESPN, and eventually it spread and became a part of the game."
Sure the Mendoza Line is well known, but how about the Cougan Crack? Just one Cougan Crack can get you tossed out of a game!
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