Hacking Hanley in rut

Needs to use entire ballpark

CHICAGO — I was one of those starry-eyed types who thought Hanley Ramirez was going to take to the designated hitter position like a fish to water.

Looks as if I’m the one who’s all wet.

Ramirez might yet heat up and find his groove, but to date, he’s been nothing close to the thunderous threat he should be for the Red Sox.

While the Sox don’t appear close to replacing him with, say, Sam Travis, their patience is being tested.

After 43 games, he has only six home runs (actually two ahead of last year, when he finished with 30) and 20 RBI while batting .257 and slugging .408.

Nobody asked him to duplicate David Ortiz’ production, but Ramirez can’t even imitate himself.

He’s trying too hard to murder the ball with every swing he takes, yet he’s only managing misdemeanors. His spray chart shows him pulling too many pitches, especially on the ground, and when he comes to his senses and waits for a pitch on the outer half of the plate to drive to center or right-center, he is popping up those balls.

Five of those home runs have been hit to extreme left field, one to dead center.

Last year, he spread those 30 home runs around.

Ramirez can’t be labeled a flop, but he’s nowhere near an acceptable level of production for his talent.

“We all know that he’s not doing what he’s capable of,” Sox assistant hitting coach Victor Rodriguez said before last night’s game. “The numbers are not as good as what he’s doing when he’s (meeting his potential).”

To Rodriguez, Ramirez is thinking too hard, trying too hard. It’s called pressing, and Ramirez needs to stop it.

“We just need to get him under control, get him back to staying in the big part of the field. Don’t try to do too much,” Rodriguez said. “When he gets in trouble is when he gets in that pull mode and he wants to create and his body wants to get involved and his hands stop working. He’s a guy who’s strong, and when his hands are working, that’s when he’s very dangerous. That’s what he’s done through his whole career. It’s a matter of getting him going, feeling it and trusting what he can do, and we’re going to see the Hanley Ramirez that we know.”

Ramirez is showing patience. He’s not chasing many bad pitches. While he has at times been prone to swinging at sliders away, he’s drawn 22 walks (he had 11 in his first 43 games a year ago), and his strikeouts are down from 42 last year to 33.

“I think that’s where teams are probably choosing who to attack and maybe minimize the potential damage,” Sox manager John Farrell said. “He’s been pitched carefully, so that’s out of his control.”

What’s out of control is what Ramirez is doing with that violent swing.

“He’s being pitched very carefully. He has a good idea of the strike zone, so I think when he’s getting his pitch, he’s trying to do too much with it,” Rodriguez said. “It’s not that he’s swinging at bad pitches, but when he’s getting his pitch, he’s trying to do too much with it instead of trusting his hands, trusting his approach and staying in the big part of the field. He’s always shown that ability to control the strike zone. He’s swinging at good pitches, but he needs to be more controlled and not try to do too much with it.”

Ramirez got the night off last night, a very good idea. He could use a break. We’ve all seen what Ramirez can do when he relaxes. Perhaps the 10 home runs he hit in his first April here in 2015 are one example. And there was his all-around strong season last year.

And there’s this year, when he hasn’t been able to create nearly enough mayhem from his normal cleanup or No. 5 spot in the lineup.

“There have been stretches where he’s been really good,” Farrell said, likely referring to a six-game stretch in late April and early May when Ramirez hit .429 with four home runs. “Like every hitter, he’s hit into some situations where he’s squaring balls up and not getting anything for it. And then there have been some times where on occasion he might get a little big with his swing.

“Here’s the thing: Hanley has power. We feel like when he’s driving the ball with some regularity into right-center field, that’s when I think he’s at his best. He’s got better plate coverage. I think there’s, at times, a little bit of tendency to maybe look to pull the ball on occasion. So we just have to get him back in sync. He’s been such a productive hitter. Last year was a really strong year for him.”

Ramirez’ track record suggests he’s going to figure out what he’s doing wrong and reverse course.

In the meantime, the wait is brutal.