Fresh off a session in the indoor batting cage at Coors Field, Troy Tulowitzki confirmed what the raw numbers already showed.
“It’s pretty obvious I haven’t been swinging the bat well,” the Rockies shortstop said before Monday night’s game. “Defensively, I’m doing all right. But at the same time, the coaches always say they are going to put the best lineup out there to win, and I think this is our best lineup.”
It was a lineup against the San Diego Padres that did not include Tulowitzki. It could be a few more days before his name is on the lineup card.
Manager Clint Hurdle said there is no timetable for Tulo-witzki’s return, saying only that he would take it “one day at a time” and that Tulo needed a “work day” on Monday.
Tulowitzki was replaced at shortstop by Clint Barmes on Monday. Ian Stewart started at second base, where Barmes usually starts.
“We’ve all got to find a way for him to put a foot down on this thing,” Hurdle said of Tulo’s slump. “He will get some extended work inside (in the batting cages) and we’ll get him back in sooner than later, to see where we are with it. The kid can hit, and he’s not hitting, and the strikeouts are alarming. He knows that.”
Tulowitzki is hitting .167 and has struck out a team-high 17 times in 54 at-bats.
Tulowitzki said he is seeing the ball well and isn’t that far out of sync. Hurdle, however, sees a number of things that need correcting.
“There’s no doubt for me that there are times when he’s trying to swing too hard,” Hurdle said. “I think we just need to find a way to channel that energy. But you don’t want him taking swings that are overly aggressive.”
Hurdle added that Tulo-witzki, a natural pull hitter, is trying too hard to hit to the opposite field.
“There are a few things I can work on,” Tulowitzki said. “But at the same time, I think it’s more mental, getting out of my own head and knowing that I’m a good player in this game and that I will be fine.”
Tulowitzki was runner-up for National League rookie of the year in 2007, hitting .291 with 24 homers and 99 RBIs.
“I need to get out of this, but I’ve dealt with this before,” he said. “It seems like I’ve always started off slow, and it’s tough to battle back from, but I know I can.”
Patrick Saunders: 303-954-1428 or psaunders@denverpost.com
