and did not have practice.ddd

BALTIMORE – Kevin Seitzer does not have a doctorate in psychology and the Blue Jays recent offensive slump has him wishing he did. "Now would be a good time to have one," Seitzer joked to TSN.ca before Friday nights game against the Orioles. Its been a tough week. Entering Fridays action, the Blue Jays had lost five of their last six games, scoring a total of eight runs in that span. Baseballs leader with 91 home runs as a team, Toronto didnt hit any in the five defeats. The frustration is mounting, not that Seitzer needed anyone to point it out. "Its mental, emotional stuff," said Seitzer. "We were having so much fun and playing so well that when you hit a little bump in the road nobody likes it. When you dont like it you get mad and when you get mad after an at-bat and you go up for your next at-bat and it doesnt work out the way you want then you get more mad." Now is the time Seitzer gets away from swing-tweaking and mechanical suggestions. He becomes more a mental coach, inviting his group to take a seat on the proverbial couch. "I said, I want you guys to stay aggressive. I want you to compete your butt off on every at-bat but keep the emotions out of it," said Seitzer. "Weve got to keep the emotions in check. Understand that umpires are going to make bad calls you dont like, pitchers are going to hit spots that theyre not used to hitting consistently, were going to go through a little phase where we get painted up a little bit with guys who arent used to doing that." Hes talking about a guy like Minnesotas Kevin Correia, who entered Tuesday nights start with an ERA above six but shut the Jays offence down over six innings. Hes talking about a guy like Jaime Garcia of the Cardinals, who baffled Toronto over seven innings last Sunday. Garcia has a pedigree but is only recently returned from a year-long layoff following complicated shoulder surgery. Young Orioles fireballer Kevin Gausman held Toronto to a run over six innings on Thursday but Seitzer felt his offence had its best outing in a week. Gausmans fastball tops out at 98 miles per hour; he has a nasty splitter and a tough slider and hes learned a changeup, an effective weapon to keep hitters off balance. Seitzer liked, despite Gausmans relative dominance, his pitch count hitting 100 in the sixth inning, which forced him from the game. Theres also been some griping about recent umpires strike zones. Players have done a good job of not embarrassing the men in blue, quietly voicing displeasure without causing a scene. Seitzer had a way of handling such situations when he played. "Dont show them up, dont show body language, dont get them all mad but you have to let them know that you know that pitch was outside," said Seitzer. If Seitzer felt a called strike was a few inches off the plate, hed murmur as much to the umpire. A third baseman and first baseman in his playing days, Seitzer often would speak to the same umpire the next day and would receive admissions of missed calls. He said the conversations often helped to develop friendships with the umpires. One thing he doesnt want his pupils doing: going out of the strike zone because the umpire has a wide one. "The thing Im telling the guys is you cant change your zone," said Seitzer. "You dont want to expand because once you start expanding a little bit then youll expand more. You dont even want to deal with those pitches until two strikes when youre battling and protecting but I dont want you protecting four inches off the plate even with two strikes because, number one, you probably will miss it and number two, if you do put it in play youre going to be out because itll be softly hit." Seitzers ability to relate to hitters is, in part, a result of the experiences he had during his own career. In 1993, following his release by Oakland, Seitzer returned for a second stint with the Milwaukee Brewers. He made a decision. As an experiment, he would no longer allow himself to be affected by negative thoughts. If he went 0-for-5 in a game, hed arrive at the park the next day repeating to himself Youre hot, youre hot until he was convinced the previous nights donut was an aberration. There were times when his hitting coach thought he was crazy. Seitzer said he never went into a prolonged slump in either 1994 or 1995 and in those two seasons he posted OPSs of .828 and .815. Reflecting, Seitzer said his mental experiment laid the groundwork for his future career in coaching although he didnt know it at the time. Hed like Jays hitters to apply his theory. "We have to let that transition again back to the good," said Seitzer. "I said dont fight, dont force, dont try and do too much and dont get mad about it and just keep competing; compete each at-bat." Despite the recent team-wide slump, Toronto continues to lead baseball with 91 home runs (Colorado is second with 84) and is second in OPS (.769). Blips happen. The statistics suggest the Blue Jays will come around. A tough week doesnt negate a strong two-month stretch. "Ill admit I was extremely spoiled rotten watching this offence go night after night," said Seitzer. "Hopefully we can get this sucker turned around quick." John Kelly Jersey . The Incheon-based tea, of the Korea Baseball Organization said the deal for the 35-year-old Scott included a $50,000 signing bonus. Scott reached the major leagues with Houston in 2005 and hit 23 homers or more for Baltimore each year from 2008-10. Torry Holt Jersey .S. President Barack Obama saluted the Stanley Cup winning Chicago Blackhawks at the White House on Monday -- a rare moment for a president hungry to see more victorious teams from his hometown. http://www.officiallosangelesramsfootbal...stomized-womens. 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