Luis Robert Jr. ripped a Clarke Schmidt sweeper to left subject throughout the fourth inning Tuesday towards the New York Yankees.
The ball received over the wall for the Chicago White Sox middle fielder’s thirty first homer of the season.
The night time earlier than at Guaranteed Rate Field, Robert drove in two runs with an eight-inning double to proper. It was his thirtieth double of the season.
Robert is the tenth participant in Sox historical past with at the very least 30 doubles and 30 residence runs in the identical season. It’s a feat that’s occurred 27 occasions in franchise historical past.
With six extra stolen bases, he would be part of Magglio Ordóñez (2001) as the one gamers in Sox historical past with at the very least 30 homers and doubles and 20 steals in the identical season.
“I would like to steal 20,” Robert stated via an interpreter after Tuesday’s recreation, “but actually the real goal, the real number is 30. We’ll see if I’m able to do it.”
Robert has been a vibrant spot for the Sox in a disastrous season. The staff’s lone All-Star this 12 months, he already has reached profession highs in residence runs, RBIs (65) and doubles.
His 31 homers are essentially the most for a Sox middle fielder in a single season and essentially the most for any Sox outfielder since Jermaine Dye hit 34 in 2008.
“Of course, those numbers mean something,” Robert stated. “You know, all those individual numbers mean something for you. Even though this is a team, it’s what you do that makes you help the team. It means good. It means you are doing good.”
Sox supervisor Pedro Grifol desires Robert to look past particular numbers.
“I don’t have markers for Luis,” Grifol stated Wednesday. “With that sort of expertise you don’t set any targets, you simply play. Go on the market and be taught day-after-day, and concentrate on the issues you have to concentrate on, which is the strike zone. And you don’t set any sort of targets. What I’ve realized via the years with potential superstars like him, you don’t wish to cap them out.
“The most important thing for me is continue to learn, go out and play as hard as you can and don’t worry about numbers, hitting 30 or 40. Just because complacency can set in if you wanted 30. Now you’ve got 30, now what? Is the urgency there as it was to hit 30? Let the goal be ‘I’m going to get better every single day.’”
Grifol stated that begins with the strike zone.
“When he’s in the strike zone, he’s as dangerous as anybody in the game,” Grifol stated. “If he’s not in the strike zone, he’s not. That’s something we have to continue to work on and he has to not worry about any markers, just go play.”
Robert has additionally performed in a career-high 111 video games getting into Wednesday. He’s aiming for at the very least 150.
“The most important (thing) for me and I think the key for me this year has been that I’ve been able to be on the field and play every day,” Robert stated. “That’s my purpose. I do know if I’m capable of be on the sector, I can carry out and do what I do know I can do. The outcomes are there.
“I’ve been able to be there almost every day and been able to have a good season.”
That’s a purpose Grifol is behind.
“That to me is a great goal,” Grifol stated. “Because we all know as a workers and group if now we have him on the sector 150 video games we’re going to get fairly rattling good manufacturing. And you’ll be able to’t simply be on the sector 150 video games speaking about it. You should eat proper, sleep proper, it’s a must to work, get within the weight room, respect the sport, respect your physique.
“And he’s doing all of the above. That’s why he’s on the field every day. You can’t burn the candles at both ends and think you’re going to have success. So he’s committed to this, to 150 games — or more. That’s a great goal because there’s a lot of things attached to that goal. Respecting the game and character and winning and becoming a champion is what this is about. That’s the mentality and when you’re talking about leadership, that’s what leadership is about. Expecting yourself to go out there for 150 games, that’s leadership.”
Robert stated attempting to assist his staff win will proceed to drive him in these remaining two months of the season.
“Try to win as many games as we can and try to finish the season strong and find something in these two months we can carry over for next season,” Robert stated.
“Each one of us has to take care of what we need to do to win games. If you prepare yourself to go out and win games, that’s all you want. That’s what we are trying to do.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com