Surging Lind gets rare start against lefty
CHICAGO -- Adam Lind's recent performance at the plate apparently has been enough to convince Blue Jays manager John Gibbons to use him against left-handers.
Lind has spent most of this season sitting on the bench when the opposing team starts a lefty. That changed at least temporarily on Tuesday night with Jose Quintana on the mound for the White Sox.
The move paid immediate dividends as Lind had two hits off Quintana and another one against lefty Matt Thornton during the Blue Jays' 7-5 victory over Chicago.
"Just not trying too hard," Lind said when asked of his approach against lefties this year. "Take a nice easy path to the ball and hopefully hit it on the barrel. Hopefully the pitch is over the plate, too, that makes it easier."
Whether or not there has been a lot of strategy to it, Lind has been able to find a way to hit lefties in a very small sample size this year. He's now batting .500 (11-for-22) with a homer and three doubles against southpaws this season in limited action.
On the surface those numbers are impressive, but for his career Lind is just a .226 hitter with a .621 OBPS against left-handers.
When informed of his numbers this year, though, Lind couldn't help but laugh and crack a smile.
"That's great, hopefully it can continue, and if it does I'll continue to play," said Lind, who went 3-for-4 with a double on Tuesday night.
Lind's had at least one hit in 14 of the past 15 games he started. Since May 10, he was batting .392 (38-for-97) entering Tuesday's game, which leads the Major Leagues and raises his season average by .97 points from .238 to .335.
Shortstop Munenori Kawasaki also got a rare start against a lefty on Tuesday night. With right-hander Chien-Ming Wang on the mound for Toronto, Gibbons wanted to put his best defense on the field because of his tendency to induce a lot of ground balls.
Kawasaki was unable to come through against Quintana, but he did manage an RBI double in the 10th inning to provide the Blue Jays with an insurance run.