Hays shared some perspective on the fresh challenge of every big league season.
“Someone told me in my first full season (in the big leagues) in 2021 that every season is different,” Hays said. “It’s going to be different with your family. It’s going to be different with a team. Maybe you get traded. The game is the same, but every season is different. Now that I’m six full years into my career, I’ve started to understand that. Everyone wants to come in healthy and you start (the season) swinging it and you play great from start to finish.”
Hays signed a one-year prove-it deal with the Reds, and he has been one of their most productive hitters when healthy. Last week, he returned from the injured list and reclaimed his spot hitting fourth in the Reds’ lineup. He’s confident about his ability to turn in a strong second half of the season.
“It’s a long year,” Hays said. “Things happen with your health. Things happen with your family. Things happen with teammates. I’ve been through a trade now. I’ve gotten released. I’ve signed with a new team and come in. I’ve seen a lot of change. You understand how difficult the game can be at times. It’s relentless. The game doesn’t really care about your feelings. You have to remain mentally strong and always have a certain level of positivity and optimism in your outlook on everything every day.”
Hays has hit the ground running, highlighted by a performance on Monday in Boston where he had a triple and a home run.
“I’m grateful to be here,” Hays said. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to play for the Reds. They brought me in after the stuff I went through last year. I got off to a strong start, feeling really good. I had a bit of a bump in the road. I remained confident and positive. I came back and was playing really well, and then the foot thing happened.”
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Steer, who was hitting .200 on May 15, is now one of the Reds’ hottest hitters. He had always been a very consistent player before this season. But after battling a shoulder injury in spring training, his timing was off to start the season.
“The biggest thing I learned was that, obviously, you’ve got to ride the roller coaster,” Steer said. “You’ve got to understand that it’s a tough game. I kept trying to keep in perspective that we’re two months in and we’ve got 100 games to go. I can still make it a great year.”
Steer looks like himself again at the plate. Recently, he had a three-homer game and also took home the NL Player of the Week award.
“By taking each at-bat like that and making each at-bat its own battle, I slowly climbed my way out of it, started to feel better with my swing, started to feel better with my timing,” Steer said. “Ultimately what I learned is I belong here. I’m a good player. I’m going to figure it out. Not saying I have it completely figured out, but I’ve been better. And I’ll take better.”
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