Naquin stays hot with 3 hits

Tyler Naquin could have gotten angry or confused about being shipped back and forth between Cleveland and Columbus last season like a package from Amazon, but he had such tunnel vision that he wound up third in voting for American League rookie of the year.

Through body language and statistics alone, Naquin obviously has had the same mindset since being optioned to the Clippers by the Indians 13 days ago.

Naquin was in the middle of three Clippers rallies Tuesday night in going 3-for-5, including run-scoring doubles in the fifth and ninth innings, in an 8-5 loss to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs before 7,202 at Huntington Park. The Clippers (7-11) lost their sixth straight game.

Cleveland had a numbers problem in the outfield when Lonnie Chisenhall came off the disabled list, and manager Terry Francona said it was a hard decision about who would be sent to Columbus. The Indians kept Abraham Almonte because of his ability to switch-hit and play every outfield position, Francona said, making Naquin the odd man out.

“That’s out of my hands," Naquin said. “I just do what I’m instructed to do. I can’t wait to get back up there and help those guys win. Right now, my head is here, and I will keep playing hard. I like playing in Columbus."

Naquin, 26, was 7-for-20 on the sixgame trip through Lehigh Valley and Buffalo.

Tuesday night, he doubled to left-center with one out in the fifth to drive in Yandy Diaz. He singled to center in the seventh and doubled to right-center to score Adam Moore in the ninth.

The Indians gave Naquin only 17 atbats before sending him down. In 2016, he was the talk of spring training and made the Opening Day roster before being sent down despite hitting .315.

What keeps him positive?

“It’s about staying confident and knowing that you belong," he said. “It’s about realizing that wherever you are playing — middle school, high school, college and even the backyard — you always want to win, you always want to hit, and you always want to play defense. You just keep playing hard."

Cleveland fans got excited when Naquin hit 12 home runs in June and July, but he hit only two more the rest of the season. Naquin, a lefthanded batter, has been sending the ball to left field a lot.

“His approach has gotten much better over the years," Clippers manager Chris Tremie said. “He uses the whole field. If they don’t give him something inside that he can turn on, he goes with it."

When reporters brought up the losing streak, Tremie had to smile. Last June, the team lost seven straight but went on to win a third-straight International League West championship.

“Everybody gets wrapped up in the record early in the year, and it can be frustrating. But we’re going to change it around," Tremie said.