Tom Gage: Tigers insider

Sardinha: 'I have to hit more'

Baltimore

He sits at his locker, holding a bat he wishes would work for him.

Dane Sardinha's glove works. He's a good defensive catcher, even better than good, according to manager Jim Leyland, another catcher who couldn't hit.

In Leyland's case, it was the reason he never rose above Double A.

In Sardinha's case, it's the reason he frets about returning to Triple A.

Or worse -- a fate which befell his younger brother.

Bronson Sardinha, a former Yankees farmhand hoping to land a job in the Tigers' organization, was released this spring and still hasn't found a job -- even in an independent league.

With the thought he's barely holding on at .095 (2-for-21), Dane treasures each day in the majors.

But if he doesn't hit -- like if he doesn't hit at all -- defense won't be enough to keep him around.

"My head is on the chopping block every day I come to the ballpark," said Sardinha, 30. "I have to check to make sure my number is still on the locker.

"If I don't hit, I know I'm not going to stay here. That's just reality."

He once was a prospect

Sardinha is a laid-back Hawaiian with 19 letters in his middle name. That's not a claim to trivia fame, however. Bronson has 20.

He's pleasant to speak with; knows all about Matsumoto's Shave Ice in Haleiwa, as any Hawaiian should; was drafted in the second round of the 2000 draft by Cincinnati, so it's not as if he dropped in from nowhere.

But even so ... he wishes that bat would work better for him.

It used to.

Back in 2004, Sardinha was a legit catching prospect for more reasons than one. There was his rock-solid defense, of course.

His defense was one of the reasons he was on the International League's midseason All-Star team in 2004 when he played at Louisville. But so was his offense.

He had a four-hit game in May of that season, another one in June and yet another in July. In that May game, he also hit two home runs.

Bats worked for him then.

He hit .262 with nine home runs and 40 RBIs in 324 at-bats in 2004. But with 17 doubles, he also had a career best .404 slugging average.

What the heck happened?

It's been a struggle

He's not hit higher than .231 anywhere since -- and much less in the majors.

"When I got called up (by the Reds) in September of 2003, I didn't play all month except for (five) innings and two at-bats," he said. "But it helped me in a way because I worked in the cage every day and changed my swing.

"So when I went to Triple A the next season, I had my best year of hitting. But at the end of that year, the Reds called up Corky Miller (who went 1-for-39) instead of me and I began wondering what do I have to do?

"Then I began to struggle again and never got it back. Most of it is mental. The pitches I swing at, the decisions I make, that's the worst part about my at-bats.

"Then I begin to put pressure on myself, trying to get three hits in the same at-bat."

That doesn't work, either. But that glove works.

"He can play defense with anyone in the majors right now," Leyland said. "That guy can catch."

Sardinha appreciates the kind words. "But I have to hit more than I am. I just do."

Are you listening, bat? The man needs some hits.

tom.gage@detnews.com

Hot and cold

Right-handers Rick Porcello and Armando Galarraga were almost complete opposites in May. Here are their statistics:

By the numbers

What the Tigers' pitching staff leads the American League in after 46 games:

3.90 ERA

6 Shutouts

8.51 Hits per nine innings (fewest)

201-176 Runs and earned runs (fewest)

384 Hits allowed (fewest)

.249 Batting average against

Hitting highlights

Dane Sardinha is 9-for-65 (.138) in two years as a Tiger. But he's had two game-winning plate appearances.

• June 29, 2008: His two-run triple against the Rockies at Comerica Park was the decisive hit of a 4-3 victory.

• April 26, 2009: His sacrifice fly in the fifth inning stretched a 2-1 lead to 3-1 in a game the Tigers eventually won, 3-2, over the Royals.