Ryan Braun not fazed by slow start

Tempe, Ariz. -- It was a change of scenery for Ryan Braun on Saturday afternoon, as he took part in his first Cactus League road game when the Milwaukee Brewers traveled to face the L.A. Angels in Tempe.

The results, though, were much the same as they have been for the reigning National League Most Valuable Player, as he went 0 for 2 with a walk before departing following his third plate appearance in the top of the fifth inning.

Braun is now hitting .067 (1 for 15), with a home run accounting for his lone hit and two runs batted in. He's also walked three times, been hit by a pitch and struck out five times.

Regardless of how ugly the numbers might seem, Braun insists he's not losing any sleep over his early struggles.

"There’s never a quantity of at-bats in spring training that would concern me, ever," he said. "Spring training’s never been result-oriented. It’s always been process-oriented. The process is certainly a little different this year, it’s an adjustment I’ll have to make.

"Beyond that, I’ve never put any value into stats in spring training."

Braun flied out to right in his first at-bat in the first inning off Jered Weaver, walked his next time up against Weaver and then fouled out to first base off Rich Thompson.

"If I go 0 for 50 in spring training, I’m 100 percent confident I’ll have success in the season," he said. "I’m serious. It’s just different. It’s a different intensity, it’s a different focus. It’s a different energy, enthusiam when you play regular-season games. It just is.

"Of course I want to have success. You always want to have success. But it’s just different. When the regular season starts, it’s different."
Manager Ron Roenicke seemed encouraged by Braun's plate appearances.

"I think he saw the ball better today," he said. "I thought a couple pitches were probably tough pitches for him to hit in the counts that he had, which he usually wouldn't do. But he usually also doesn't get to those counts because he doesn't miss the pitches that he gets.

"He's a little off, but I think he's seeing the ball better."

Braun also made a nice sliding catch in foul territory to end the fourth inning.

The boos were clearly amped up at Tempe Diablo Stadium each time Braun came to the plate, with a sellout crowd of 9,641 in attendance. It was nothing like he's going to experience once the regular season starts, but Braun said he isn't concerned about outside distractions.

"I don’t think anything of it. It’s a story for you guys," he said. "For me, my focus is just on preparing for the start of the season. That’s it."
Braun said he plans on taking Sunday off, then playing back-to-back games Monday and Tuesday. When asked about facing Texas' Yu Darvish in \

Surprise on Monday, Braun said that was the first he'd been informed Darvish was pitching.

"I don’t know," he said."I have no idea who we’re playing or where we’re playing."


(jsonline.com)