Magglio Ordonez Benched Indefinitely
June 19, 2009 by Stephen Kersey
Filed under Baseball
Magglio Ordonez, the six-time All-Star outfielder, has been benched indefinitely by manager Jim Leyland. Ordonez is struggling at the plate and Leyland thinks some time away will help Ordonez settle down and get his stroke back.
On the season, Ordonez is hitting .273 with two homers, 22 RBI and 28 runs. In the month of June, he’s hitting just .250 with no homers, three RBIs and five runs. Considering that he’s hit at least 21 homers and driven in at least 103 RBIs in the last three seasons, he’s far from his typical pace.
Although he’s 35 years old, most scouts agree that Ordonez should be able to turn it around and that it’s not a case of him simply getting old.
Replacing Ordonez in the lineup will be Ryan Raburn. The 28-year-old outfielder is hitting .225 with four homers, 14 RBIs and 15 runs. He’s never played more than 100 games or hit more than four long balls in his four years in the major leagues.
Even though they’ve lost six of their last ten games, the Tigers are 35-31 and in first place in the AL Central.
Magglio Ordonez Benched Indefinitely (Image: Zuma Press)
