Struggling Athletics slugger Yoenis Cespedes received words of encouragement Wednesday from teammate Brandon Moss, who sees the outfielder working to emerge from a slump that has dragged his spring batting average down to a troubling .128.
"If he was up there raking and was hitting .128, and really feeling good at the plate, that would be one thing," Moss told the Bay Area News Group. "But he's up there working on things, trying to shorten his swing."
Cespedes has regressed since a fine rookie season in 2012. He experienced significant drops in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage and his problems have followed him to spring training.