http://0rz.tw/kOCwz Sandoval looks good in batting practice By Chris Haft / MLB.com | 05/31/11 7:49 PM ET ST. LOUIS -- Pablo Sandoval remained on course to begin a Minor League injury rehabilitation stint Friday by swinging impressively during early batting practice Tuesday. Recovering from surgery to remove a fractured hamate bone from his right hand, the switch-hitting Sandoval swung against a batting-practice pitcher right-handed and hit soft toss -- balls flipped underhanded toward him -- left-handed. It had been reasoned that Sandoval might experience difficulty batting left-handed, since the knob of the bat would put pressure on the surgically repaired area. But Sandoval reported feeling no pain. Manager Bruce Bochy estimated that Sandoval took about 75 swings overall and even hit some home runs batting right-handed. "He looked pretty good," Bochy said. "I was encouraged with where he is." Assuming Sandoval feels fine physically Wednesday, he'll begin swinging left-handed off batting-practice pitching. One concern that might not get addressed immediately is whether Sandoval can regain his power batting left-handed. Several players who experienced hamate bone removal lost much of their home run pop. "I need to see," Sandoval said. "I want to get healthy first." Slumping Huff takes mental break on bench ST. LOUIS -- Giants first baseman Aubrey Huff received Tuesday off to clear his mind of the demons that have caused his season-long slump. Huff's struggles have been so extreme that manager Bruce Bochy might also rest him Wednesday. "He's searching," Bochy said of Huff, who entered the game batting .219 with a .278 on-base percentage and a .337 slugging percentage. By comparison, Huff's corresponding figures last year were .290/.385/.506, making him a major force as the club surged to its World Series triumph. Huff admitted that his selectivity at the plate has been lacking. He began Tuesday with 16 walks in 52 games, far off the pace he set last year, when he drew 83 free passes. "I'm swinging at bad pitches. That's the bottom line," Huff said. "I'd swing at the rosin bag if they threw it up there to me. I've had situations many times this year where they're trying to walk me. I just won't let them -- not that I'm not letting them, it seems like everything out of the hand to me looks like a strike. It's one of those things where maybe I'm a little jumpy. I'm at the point where I need to kind of slow it down and not be so antsy." Huff described his jumbled mental approach: "When you're hot, you don't think about anything up there. You just see the ball and think about hitting every pitch as hard as you can. Right now, for me, it feels like, 'Put my foot down. Where are my hands? What pitch is coming?' Just too much going on up there." Bochy's analysis was much simpler. He suggested that with injuries sidelining Buster Posey and Pablo Sandoval, Huff has been trying too hard. "Especially with Buster and Pablo not here, he wants to be 'the guy,'" Bochy said. Worth noting Outfielder Aaron Rowand (bruised right hip flexor) felt nothing more than lingering soreness and was available for duty Tuesday. ... Regarding Buster Posey's presence atop the list of National League catchers in the All-Star voting, Bochy said, "That's pretty cool. I'm not surprised, believe me. There are a lot of Buster Posey fans out there, not only in the Bay Area, but in the baseball world." Chris Haft is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. --

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