Cincinnati Reds second baseman Jonathan India always wears padding over his left ankle to protect himself in case he gets hit by a pitch.
In Wednesday’s loss to the New York Mets, India got hit in the left ankle in the bottom of the first inning by Mets starting pitcher David Peterson. The pitch found a way to miss the padding but still hit India’s ankle.
“Just my luck, right, with this season,” India said.
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India left the game and received an X-Ray, but the results came back negative. He’s expected to be back in the Reds’ lineup soon, and he avoided a worst-case scenario.
It was still another bad bounce in a season where India hasn’t met his standards.
In spring training, India said his goal for 2022 was to make the All-Star team. Two weeks into the season, India went on the IL with a hamstring injury. He returned at the end of April but went back on the IL in less than a week.
India stayed on the IL from May 1 to June 13, and he still has only played in 30 of the Reds’ 81 games this season. After Wednesday’s game, he only had a .204 batting average with just five total extra-base hits.
“It’s been tough mentally,” India said. “But you know what? That’s a part of it. I’m going to get through it, and I know I’ll be fine at the end of the year. I’ll do what I have to do. I’ll get through it.”
In June, India completed his rehab assignment sooner than the Reds expected. He was activated one series before he was supposed to have been because he had been feeling healthy on his rehab assignment in Triple-A. But India only had 15 plate appearances with the Louisville Bats, and he wasn’t in a rhythm when he returned to the Reds lineup.
Since India came off the IL, he’s hitting 10-for-69 with a .145 batting average and 21 strikeouts in 18 games.
“You want everything to be perfect and great,” Reds manager David Bell said. “That just builds that toughness that you have to have to play in the league, play for a long time and be a great player. I know that’s what he wants. And he’s going to be, so he just has to keep working through it.”
The key for India has been timing. He has been taking more off-balanced swings than he usually does. He’s rarely walking, which was a big part of his game last season. The struggles have carried over to his defense, making two errors over the last three games.
To fix his swing and build confidence, India is watching highlight swings from his 2021 season.
“I’m just swinging, trying to get my swing back, my feeling back and my body movements back,” India said. “I watch a lot of video from last year, and my swing path isn’t as clean as it was last year. I’m just trying to smooth it out. I’ll work. That’s me. I’ll keep going until I feel it click. Then once it clicks, you’ll see it.”
After the Reds’ loss on Monday, India stayed back after the game to work on his swing. The work ethic, toughness and talent that India showed in his 2021 Rookie of the Year campaign make him a cornerstone of the Reds’ future.
Wednesday’s hit-by-pitch was another bad break, but it could have been much worse.
“In the moment when it first happens, it can feel like it’s broken,” Bell said. “It can swell up to where you feel like you can’t do anything. When it’s not broken, you can get that out of there pretty quickly. Knowing how much he wants to play, I expect him to be back in there really soon.”
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