ARLINGTON, Texas – Lance Berkman and his achy knees feel fine physically.
His bat is another story.
Berkman was out of the Texas lineup for a second-consecutive day Monday as manager Ron Washington wanted to give his designated hitter a chance to get some rest.
Berkman is using the time to work on his mechanics.
"I felt pretty good in terms of not having a lot of pain, but obviously mechanically things aren't as good as they have been in the past so keep try to working on that," said Berkman, who didn't know he wasn't in the starting lineup until he got to Rangers Ballpark.
Berkman, who is hitting .266 on the season, is batting .192 over the past 21 games. He did have a key homer last Monday in the lone game the Rangers have won on the home stand.
Berkman said he's having a hard time keeping his right knee straight, which is key when he's hitting left-handed. Berkman's had four surgeries on the knee.
"Well it's hard for me to straighten my left leg when I hit left handed, and that's one of the things that helps you generate the bat speed that it takes to hit with authority so that's something I'll continue to work on and try to get some of the range of motion back in there where I feel I can be as explosive as I have been," Berkman said.
Berkman said he's watched video of years past and noticed that he doesn't have the same foundation on his front (right) leg as he's had in the past.
The Rangers hope the work on mechanics has helped as Washington said Berkman will be in the lineup for Tuesday's game against Oakland.
