Ryan Howard

[Snakes Gould]

not really a good sign for the 2nd half.


"I'm tired. There's no reason to sugarcoat it," Howard admitted.

"How do I feel at the plate? That's a whole other story," Howard said. "Not good."

Not only is he tired and flailing, he has a full slate of activities coming up. Howard will participate in the Home Run Derby tonight and will play first base in the All-Star Game tomorrow night. After that, he will return to Philadelphia and spend Wednesday and Thursday resting.

"I'm going to get my rest," Howard said. "I have to."

full story


http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/15003909.htm

[costag]

He didn't look tired last night! The boy was hittin bombs!

[Mets1978]

They are all tired this time of year. There's nothing to worry about.


"God wanted 10 days to create the world. Ryan Howard gave him 6."

[Snakes Gould]

i do think there is something to worry about....this is his first full season as a major leaguer....i could see a little bit of a slump coming down the line...

[Mets1978]

"a slump might be down the line" is a tag that could be appliled to 75% of major leaguers (they all slump from time to time) but I don't think he's any worse off than any of the others.

Don't forget that as the weather get's hotter the ball fly out that much easier, partially offsetting any fatigue issues.

Would you say the same thing about any of the older guys?

[Snakes Gould]

all im saying is that he could be a good sell high candidate as he could be hitting the proverbial rookie wall soon...

[duckmonkey]

Rookie wall? Do you mean sophomore slump?

[The Loveable Losers]

Rookie wall? Do you mean sophomore slump?

A lot of rookies hit a 'wall' performance-wise about 2/3 of the way through the season. This is due to the length of the major league season...players just aren't used to 162 games in 180 days and they get worn down toward the end of the year. Most major leaguers eventually adjust to the grind though I'm not sure how they manage to get to that point...162 games in 180 days is just plain gruelling whether you've experienced it before or not.

[cakewalk5]

I would agree with the 2/3 rookie wall comment. Some guys look like the second coming in their first full half of play. And even if he keeps the pace, he would be a candidate for more walks instead of HR's. I don't expect him to keep the power hitting pace in the second half.

Doesn't mean he falls off the face of the earth, just that he may not hit twenty homers in the second half of the season.

[Snakes Gould]

i dont mean sophmore slump....and by "rookie" i meant first FULL mlb season. while hes not considered "rookie" by MLB standards, he still hasnt endured a full 162 season yet in his short career.