Bonus Hot Take
Sox fans have no doubt noticed the absence of a familiar name in the lineup for the past week or so: slugging outfielder Hao Hang.
Or, more properly, former slugging outfielder Hao Hang.
Hao Hang
Since he was drafted in 2039, the Sox have just assumed he would be the linchpin of their offense well into the 2040s. He stormed through the minor leagues, racking up award after award, and then burst into the BBA after the 2041 All-Star Game, slashing .301/.392/.599 with 23 homers in 95 games and scoring Player of the Month and Rookie of the Month awards in September.
Hang followed that up in 2042 with an electric season that saw him lead the Frick League with 49 homers while posting a slashline of .298/.377/.631 and 5.9 WAR.
The future seemed bright, indeed.
Then came the offseason and the BBA’s decision to ditch the juiced balls (baseballs, damn it. Get your mind out of the gutter!) the league had been using to boost offense.
Offense did, indeed, tail off across the league, but Hang’s fall from grace was precipitous: he struggled all season long to even hit .200, and only a hot August and September saw him finally raise his slash to .240/.316/.449 with just 27 homers.
Which brings us to this season’s sorry state of affairs: Hang’s defense has deteriorated to the point that the Sox had been using him as a DH. Instead of starting against everyone, he now sat against left-handers … and his stats have hit a new low: .150/.193/.292 with just four home runs in 30 games.
So, a week ago, Sox management bit the bullet and sent their fast-fading star back to the AAA Carolina Flight to see if their new “big talent” hitting coach Alex Dominguez could work a little magic and fix Hang’s swing mechanics.
The jury, of course, is still out – but the first week in AAA was promising: Hang slashed .360/.400/.680 with 2 doubles, 2 homers and 9 RBIs.
Sox coaches want him to stay in Cape Hatteras for a couple of more weeks and see if he can sustain that pace and, hopefully, bring some positive vibes back with him when he eventually returns to Chicago.
For now, though, the rejuvenated Aarnaud Budding – who made a couple of trips to Carolina last season when he was suffering through similar batting woes – has shifted from first base to DH and offseason free agent signee Joaquin Hebner has moved into the full-time first base slot.
Budding and Hebner both had good weeks under that new arrangement, but the Sox are adamant they want and need Hang to find his hitting stroke again and return to his slugging ways in the middle of Chicago’s lineup.
For now, though, they’ll be patient and let Dominguez work some of his coaching magic.
***
OK. So that’s about all I had … but it seems like I’m forgetting something … something important.
What the hell could it be? Seems like it’s right on the tip of my tongue …
Oh, oh. Right – I know:
Phoenix!
