A quick refresher for those of you who were too engrossed in a 'planking war' to read my post on Monday about the rampant struggles of Adam Dunn this season:
- He is on pace to have the lowest batting average for a major leaguer in 75 years.
- He is 1-for-53 against lefties. The one hit came on an infield single.
- Highly esteemed sportswriters are calling him "The Least Exciting Player Ever". Loaded words, considering baseball history practically goes as far back as time itself. Moses was a hell of a leadoff hitter, I'm told.
What's the opposite of 'swimmingly'? Because that's how things are going for the White Sox's one-time slugger right about now. Remember: we're talking about one of the great power hitters of this era, a man who - at worst - should have given the Sox a .900 OPS from the DH spot this season. Instead, he's the worst hitter in baseball, and seems to be single-handidly putting Ozzie Guillen's lineup in a choke hold strong enough to prevent a race to the top of the AL Central. Chalk up Dunn's struggles to switching leagues, or whatever, but there really appears to be no rhyme or reason for his sudden and drastic decline.
Predictably, the Sox are exhausting all options to cure whatever the hell is ailing their prized free agent signing. That means that Dunn has been spending his off-time golfing with a psychologist. As you might expect from a wildly successful, wildly rich man who has (probably) dominated whichever endeavor he puts his mind to for his entire life, Dunn sounds like someone who isn't particularly receptive to the idea.
Asked if Fishbein is any good, Dunn complimented his golf game. Yeah, his eggs are a little scrambled at the moment.
So is he a good psychologist?
"I don’t know what’s a good one," Dunn finally said. "Yeah, sure. I don’t know, it’s my first run-in with one."
There's also this:
"I talked to him a little bit," Dunn said. "It works for different people I don’t know if it works for me but you know, I have talked with him and I even golfed with him I like him."
"I just need to go back to basics and quit thinking. It’s not me. I’m not a thinker. Have to quit thinking. That’s not me. I’m not a thinker. I have to see it, hit the damn thing and not make it so complicated."
Adam Dunn: not a thinker! I'm glad we cleared that up.
Read that last quote again. It sound like it's coming from the mouth a man who is losing his mind due to the worst slump of his life. I think the Sox are right: Dunn's struggles are (mostly) mental. But when you lose your head, there is no instant cure. No psychologist, no 'Chicken Soup For the Soul' book will do the trick. Not even a motivational pep talk from Tony Perkis. Which is to say: Adam Dunn -- and, by relation, the Sox's offense -- could be struggling for some time. This hole is only getting deeper.
Twitter: @TUP_Ricky