SSH2005 Posted March 6, 2006 Share Posted March 6, 2006 http://suntimes.com/output/sox/cst-spt-sox06.html Youngster eyes old touch March 6, 2006 BY JOE COWLEY Staff Reporter TUCSON, Ariz. -- Ozzie Guillen has yet to see a 19-year-old put on a performance like the one he saw in 2004. With every at-bat, every catch, Ryan Sweeney was turning the head of the White Sox manager. Therein lies the problem. Guillen still is waiting to see the Sweeney he saw two years ago. And he's not alone. Labeled by Guillen as "can't miss'' after that first spring, Sweeney now is considered just an outfield prospect who is in the mix to eventually step up to the major-league level -- no different than where Jerry Owens currently sits, while falling behind Brian Anderson. So what happened to the lanky left-handed hitter with a picture-perfect swing? "He learned how this game can humble you,'' Sox hitting coach Greg Walker said. "He had as good a camp as a young 19-year-old player that we've ever seen. He showed he could swing the bat, had good composure, above-average athlete. He had all the attributes that you're looking for in a young guy. "What can happen is when you have a young kid like that who never failed in high school, then all of a sudden he's playing 140 games or whatever, you have those failures that all young players have. Then they start tinkering.'' That was the worst thing Sweeney could have done. After being drafted in the second round in 2003, Sweeney opened eyes right away, hitting a combined .327 at rookie-league stops in Bristol and Great Falls. He then entered camp in '04 and dazzled the Sox' first-year manager. "To be 19 years old and do what he did at the major-league level that spring, that's impressive,'' Guillen recalled. "Everything moves fast at this level, and he didn't back down.'' Sweeney played in 14 Cactus League games in '04, hitting .367 and collecting some of those hits off Bartolo Colon, LaTroy Hawkins and Carlos Zambrano. The Sox had him open the season at Class A Winston-Salem, and the problems started. Playing his first full professional season, Sweeney began tinkering with his mechanics at the plate when slumps would creep up. He still managed to hit .283 with seven home runs and 66 RBI that season. Last year, the tinkering continued while he was at Class AA Birmingham. An injured hamstring didn't help his cause early on, and by June, Sweeney was in what Walker described as a "mechanical fog.'' "He started tinkering with his swing, and he got a lot more mechanical,'' Walker said. "The result of that was he lost what was great about him, which was his fluidity, his rhythm and tempo. Here's a guy that should have never tinkered.'' Sweeney entered this camp still considered high on the Sox' prospect list. He put together a solid second half with Birmingham, finishing the year with a .298 average. "This offseason I worked out really hard,'' Sweeney said. "My swing feels as good as it's felt. I'm trying to concentrate on that -- keeping the same swing and not changing it up.'' His consistency has been noticed through the first three weeks of camp. "This spring, we're seeing him get back to where he was,'' Walker said. "He's still made some changes, and he's still not exactly mechanically where he was two years ago. It's a little different, but it works. What I'm seeing, though, is that instead of worrying about mechanics, he's worrying about hitting. He still has a long way to go, like every young player.'' The other positive sign for Sweeney is he seems to have moved past all the hype he built in 2004. His concerns are focused on what he does, rather than what everyone else is doing. "It was awesome to watch what the big-league players did here last season, winning it all, but you can't get caught up in trying to compare yourself to someone,'' Sweeney said. "It's about worrying about what you are doing, and doing the little things. That's what they're looking for. "They just don't want the guy hitting .400. They want the guy that will move the runner over and do what it takes to win the game.'' Sweeney knows that guy well. After all, it used to be him. [email protected] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan4life_2007 Posted March 6, 2006 Share Posted March 6, 2006 Ryan looks like he might match or exceed that '04 performance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iWiN4PreP Posted March 7, 2006 Share Posted March 7, 2006 Yeah ryans been beast-like lately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan4life_2007 Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 QUOTE(Jordan4life_2006 @ Mar 6, 2006 -> 04:56 PM) Ryan looks like he might match or exceed that '04 performance. Let me now revise this statement and say that he WILL exceed his '04 performance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chisoxfn Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 He hit another bomb today. Really looks like he's gotten healthy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan4life_2007 Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 Ryan continues to rake. 2/4 with another bomb today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevo880 Posted March 14, 2006 Share Posted March 14, 2006 I'm also expecting a break out year for sweeney. He's gone back to his old swing and his wrist is healthy so he's adding power. I can't wait to see what he does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soxpranos Posted March 14, 2006 Share Posted March 14, 2006 Thats the key words... "wrist is healthy". Keep it up Ryan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest V for Venereal Posted March 17, 2006 Share Posted March 17, 2006 All the hack-articles aside, Sweeney looks excellent. Ya? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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