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Jones going the other way

By D.W. Norris, For The Southern

Friday, July 18, 2008 11:39 PM CDT

CRESTWOOD - Apparently the book is out on all-star third baseman Brandon Jones when he stands in the batter's box.

Pitchers have been starting off Jones with high fastballs and then pounding the outside of the strike zone with low pitches and breaking balls. The result has been a one-month stretch from June 13 to July 13 that saw Jones' batting average fall from .363 to .267.

Jones pointed to June 13 as the spot when the slide began. He also offered a specific reason as to why he began to struggle. One at-bat after Jones won a fan a Mercedes-Benz with a home run off the foul pole, Midwest pitcher Chris Rubio sent a fastball behind his head. Then, there was a threat after he hit a game-winning home run at River City.

"The whole Midwest Sliders thing of throwing at me and River City saying they were going to throw at me, that messed with me a little bit and I'm just starting to come out of that," Jones said.

Jones had multiple hits in 12 of the Miners' first 21 games.

"In the beginning, they were coming straight after me with fastballs and trying to pound me (inside) because they really didn't know who I was," Jones said. "That was basically exactly what I wanted. They were throwing it right there and I was getting good pitches to hit."

He's had six multiple-hit performances in the 30 games since his torrid start. Jones said he knows he's being pitched differently now. He also admitted that it's up to him to react accordingly.

"It's a game of adjustments and I have to adjust," Jones said. "The pitcher has his game plan and I have my own, but I have to adjust when he's throwing strikes."

The drop in Jones' effectiveness at the plate was precipitous as the season wound to the All-Star break earlier this week. Jones batted .388 in 11 May games. His average dropped to .246 for June's 27 games. In July, Jones had a .194 average through 12 games.

Jones was hitless in his last eight at-bats as the first half of the season came to a close. He was without an RBI since July 6 entering this weekend's series with Windy City. Jones has fallen from the third spot in the batting order to fifth or sixth.

While Jones went 0-for-4 in the Miners' final game before the all-star break, there was a positive sign. Jones hammered an outside pitch for a lineout to right field. Sure, it was an out, but by going to the opposite field, Jones could open up more opportunities for base hits.

"When he lets the ball travel deep and uses the whole field he's a formidable opponent and a tough out," Miners manager Mike Pinto said. "If he lets the ball travel and he uses the whole field, he's strong enough and he has a quick enough bat that he can hit the ball out of the ballpark."

Pinto said he was pleased to see Jones go to right field, but he added that the change would only be good if Jones carried that approach in every at-bat.

Jones said he believed he could take the necessary steps to make whole-field hitting a daily occurrence. He was also confident that his slump would pass.

"In trying to adjust," Jones said. "I went away from the overall game plan and it's been downhill from there, but we're looking up. It's looking up."

dw_norris@yahoo.com