Mets' Daniel Vogelbach addresses 'mental break' amid slump

New York Mets designated hitter Daniel Vogelbach acknowledged Wednesday that he received a break from manager Buck Showalter in an effort to help him fix whatever has been ailing him this spring.

According to Alex Smith of SNY, Vogelbach told reporters before Wednesday's home game against the New York Yankees that he is using this time as a non-contributor to return his "swing back to the ultimate goal of helping the New York Mets win." The 30-year-old offered his comments after it was reported he had not played since last Wednesday due to a "mental break of sorts" amid his struggles at the plate. 

Vogelbach came into Wednesday slashing .203/.343/.297/.639 with two home runs and 14 RBI across 47 games this season. Showalter kept the left-handed hitter out of the lineup for Wednesday's contest at Citi Field. 

"You go back to watching your swings, and obviously it wasn’t that far off because when you look into the data, if we’re getting technical, I have an over 50% hard-hit rate on the year, I’m still walking at the clip that I normally walk at," Vogelbach explained. "It’s just something small that can lead to me not getting the ball in the air like I like to get the ball in the air."

Before Wednesday's update, fans had wondered why Vogelbach seemingly hadn't been available even as a pinch-hit option since a June 7 loss at the Atlanta Braves. Tim Boyle of Fansided argued that Vogelbach theoretically would have been the best option to enter the batter's box in place of Luis Guillorme in the bottom of the ninth inning of Tuesday's 7-6 loss to the Yankees, but that was before full context had been given as to why Showalter didn't go down that route. 

MLB insider Andy Martino of SNY reported that Vogelbach's spot on the big league roster is currently not in jeopardy. The veteran said Wednesday he is working with hitting coach Jeremy Barnes and assistant hitting coach Eric Hinske to get right as soon as possible. 

"It sucks," Vogelbach continued about his woes at the plate. "...This game’s tough. There’s a reason that it’s so hard to play, and then you start putting pressure on yourself because you want to produce and you want to perform, because the ultimate goal is to win. When you feel like you’re not at your best and you’re not helping the team win, it sucks." 

Vogelbach added he hopes this break proves to be "the best thing for everybody." Whether or not he'll get to test that theory with the Mets remains to be seen.