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Rangers’ Hamilton: Spring training numbers don’t matter

Cleveland Indians catcher Kelly Shoppach and the Texas Rangers' Josh Hamilton watch Hamilton's RBI single during a game in Surprise on Tuesday. Hamilton says he's struggling this spring, despite hitting .400.

Cleveland Indians catcher Kelly Shoppach and the Texas Rangers' Josh Hamilton watch Hamilton's RBI single during a game in Surprise on Tuesday. Hamilton says he's struggling this spring, despite hitting .400.

Josh Hamilton doesn’t feel comfortable at the plate so far this spring.

His swing feels funny, his timing off.

Still, the Texas Rangers slugger is hitting .400, even after an 0-for-4 performance in an 11-5 win over the Colorado Rockies on Friday.

Not bad for struggling.

“I’m still trying to figure out some things,” Hamilton said. “If you can still get knocks and feel good, that’s a plus.”

Hamilton has always hit well in the spring, a lifetime .413 hitter this time of year.

Just don’t remind him.

“Spring doesn’t matter,” Hamilton said. “It doesn’t matter about numbers, it’s not going to go down in the books as an unbelievable spring that’s going to get you a contract. I’m just trying to make things feel good. If I go 0-for-4, I don’t care.”

The Rockies may have cooled off Hamilton, but the rest of the Rangers were a different matter.

Frank Catalanotto hit a three-run homer and Nelson Cruz added a two-run shot. It was Cruz’s fourth homer of the spring.

“I’m seeing the ball really well,” he said. “My swing is there.”

Michael Young had a single and double for Texas before leaving with tightness in his left quadriceps. He said it’s nothing serious.

“I thought it was smarter to put some ice on it,” Young said. “Not a big deal. It will go away in no time.”

Jason Marquis went five innings for the Rockies, yielding six runs and seven hits.

So much for his experiment with a new delivery.

Marquis tried to pitch from a different spot on the mound and got roughed up. He went back to his familiar way in his last two innings and surrendered nothing.

“Still a work in progress,” said Marquis, who’s hoping to incorporate the new delivery just to show hitters a different arm angle. “I felt like I had some quality pitches. . . . Obviously, they capitalized on the mistakes.”

Ian Stewart went 3 for 4 with a solo home run for Colorado and Ryan Spilborghs had three hits, including two doubles.

Notable

Rockies 3B Garrett Atkins took some cuts in a batting cage. He’s been out of action for nearly two weeks with a groin injury . . . Rockies OF Brad Hawpe left in the sixth with a cramp in his left hamstring. He felt it when he was running out a double. “Nothing bad,” Hawpe said. “I was coming out that inning anyway.”

Citizen Online Archive, 2006-2009

This archive contains all the stories that appeared on the Tucson Citizen's website from mid-2006 to June 1, 2009.

In 2010, a power surge fried a server that contained all of videos linked to dozens of stories in this archive. Also, a server that contained all of the databases for dozens of stories was accidentally erased, so all of those links are broken as well. However, all of the text and photos that accompanied some stories have been preserved.

For all of the stories that were archived by the Tucson Citizen newspaper's library in a digital archive between 1993 and 2009, go to Morgue Part 2

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