Josh Hamilton is going through a slump in July. At the end of May, he was hitting .368, getting on base 42% of the time, and slugging .764. He led the league with 21 home runs. Since then, he has hit only seven. So far this month, he is getting on base at a .238 clip, and only slugging .345 (Dayton Moore perks up his ears).

So, it is true that Josh Hamilton has been having an off month. No one is going to continue the hot stretch that he had in May, but the Rangers would probably like somewhere in between. It’s too bad he wasn’t a free agent then, everyone was willing to give him all the money he wanted, and wanted him to star in movies about his life. The Rangers even opened negotiations that had been shut down in the offseason.

Enter Nolan Ryan, the Rangers president and CEO, and baseball Hall of Famer. Speaking on 103.3, he had this to say:

I think we’re all seeing the same thing. You’re right that some of his at bats aren’t very impressive from the standpoint that he doesn’t work deep into the count, he’s swinging at a lot of bad pitches, he just doesn’t seem to be locked in at all. So what you’re hoping is that his approach will change and he’ll start giving quality at bats because there’s a lot of those at bats that he just gives away. One of the things I’ve always commented on is I can’t ever say that I ever saw Henry [Hank] Aaron give an at bat away.

Hamilton’s struggling, but these seem like posturing. You hear that, Josh? You are no Hank Aaron, he never gave away at bats like you are doing almost every time up lately. Let’s set aside the ridiculousness of the statement and chalk it up to Nolan walking to school up hill both ways in the snow. How many Hank Aaron at bats did Ryan really see? They played in the same league, but on different teams, for four years early in Nolan’s career, and then for two late in Aaron’s career when he joined the Brewers.

The Rangers are probably hoping that the rest of the league now overreacts to the slump just as everyone declared him the best player two months ago. But just in case they want to think before they give him 150 million or so, Nolan Ryan wants everyone to know that he gives away at-bats, something the greats never ever do.

[photo via US Presswire]

Previously: Josh Hamilton Photo Bomb to Brighten Your Day

Previously: The Rangers Could Be Great, but Approaching the 1998 Yankees is a Long shot