CORY SNYDER : HIS SPRING TRAINING DIARY WEEK 4

It was hard taking my gear over there to the minor league camp. I went over to the Cleveland clubhouse Saturday. They were having a team meeting while I was packing my gear.

Then, I was watching them stretch out on the field. It was tough, knowing I was leaving. It was hard, like losing your best friend. (Outfielder) Brett Butler, who has become a good friend, took me aside and talked to me, helped get me through it.

I’m doing real good now. I’m playing third base (the Indians had tried to switch him from third to second for his brief big league stay). I’m happy about that. I feel fine.

And I’m getting my hitting back. In my first two games, against Seattle’s and San Francisco’s Double-A teams, I went 2-for-4 and 1-for-4 with a home run in each game. I hit one to left field and one to right-center.

It’ll be a good thing. I needed more at-bats. I just didn’t get any with the major league club. I couldn’t get in a groove. You see, with me, I need to hit every day. I need the extra batting practice.

Sometimes I’m strong up in the front part of the game or sometimes I’m stronger at the end. That’s why I need to play the whole game. The way it was, I was getting only two at-bats a game. Sometimes it’s hard to get up for that when you know you’re not going to start or are just going to play the first half. If you get a couple of hits, you know the manager’s going to take you out. And if you don’t start, you have to wait, wait, wait.

Cleveland management told me the main reason they sent me down was to get some at-bats somewhere I could play every day. My dad told me this would be good for me, that I could get some experience.

I’m having fun now because I’m playing the whole game every day. I’m going to be hitting, hitting, hitting. I’m going to hit the heck out of the ball. I hope to do real well. What happens is not in my hands, so I’m just going to go out and fire out and hope I can get up there to the big leagues just as soon as I can. I’m going to just hit, hit, hit--get hits every day.

Now I’ve been to the major league team and I know what that’s all about and I’ve been to the minor league team and I know what that’s about. I know just what I want and I know how hard I’m going to have to work to get back there.