CINCINNATI -- When
In his 21 games before the All-Star break, Edman hit .283 with more than a few timely hits, including his first home run, a game-tying shot in the eighth inning against Miami on June 20, and earned his playing time.\n\nOver the five games after the All-Star break, Edman was hitting .154 (2-for-13). He began the adjustments against the Pirates on Wednesday with two singles, when he focused on recognizing when pitchers will try to make him chase. He pointed to his single in the seventh, when Francisco Liriano threw Edman a changeup that Edman had chased the day before. He took the ball, which set him in a favorable count for the hit.\n\nThe grand slam Thursday was further evidence that he is on the right track.\n\n“This is an adjustment league with everything that’s out there with video, scout reports, metrics,” Cardinals manager Mike Shildt said. “People are going to make adjustments when you have success. It’s a fine line because you want to stay with your success, but you want to be aware of how you’re approached. Tommy is a very smart guy, conscientious guy, even-keeled guy. That’s a beautiful way of making something difficult, simple.”\n
But Edman wasn’t the only Cardinals player to break out Thursday night thanks to the small adjustments he made. \n\nIt had been over a month since
Between June 16 and Thursday, DeJong played in 23 games. He hit .165 in those games with 20 strikeouts. His on-base percentage was .224, and he had just three RBIs.\n\nDeJong said he adjusted his mindset to better trust his abilities. He knows he can be an impact player as the Cardinals battle through the division. In the games out of the break, he fought the urge to swing at everything. Instead, he stepped into the box and saw the ball without imagining what the pitch was before it left the pitcher’s hand.\n\n“Today, I felt quiet and calm in [the box],” DeJong said. “It showed. Turned over a new leaf and going to continue to impact the game every day.”
Ultimately, impacting the game is what DeJong, who has started 91 of the Cardinals’ 95 games, will need to do. The same goes for Edman, as he fights for playing time with