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At full health, Hanigan hitting his stride

CINCINNATI -- Since returning from the disabled list on May 10, Reds catcher Ryan Hanigan appears on his way to rebooting his season. In the 11 games since being activated, Hanigan has gone 11-for-37 (.297) with two home runs and eight RBIs. He is riding a four-game hitting streak.

Hanigan was out from April 21 through May 9 with a strained left oblique and a sore right hand. While he's only batting .187 this season, it's an improvement from the .079 average he had when he went on the DL.

"You can't bring back what's already there. It's too late," Reds manager Dusty Baker said on Monday. "Can't live in it. Remember the Funkadelic song? Back in the day, I always think about this song called "Maggot Brain," that says you will rise above it all or you'll drown in your own [stuff]. That's what starting over is. You can drown in it, or wallow in it, it's still the same. You need to rise above it. It helps that Hani's hand is a little better."

Mark Sheldon is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Mark My Word, and follow him on Twitter @m_sheldon. Jeremy Warnemuende is an associate reporter for MLB.com.
Read More: Cincinnati Reds, Ryan Hanigan, Devin Mesoraco