Carlos' Corner: "You can't be a slave to the stats"
By Carlos Peña
Special to MLB.com


Carlos Peña, a 23-year-old rookie, was acquired by Oakland during the
offseason in a six-player trade with Texas. Expected to replace Jason
Giambi as the A's starting first baseman, perhaps as soon as Opening
Day, Peña is considered one of the top prospects in the game and is
providing for MLB.com an exclusive daily diary for the 2002 season.

Peña went 1-for-3 with an RBI Friday against the Cubs, then explained
why he doesn't spend much time looking at his statistics.

PHOENIX -- Someone told be today that I was hitting .200 this spring,
and I had no idea because I try not to concern myself too much with
the numbers. Someone might see that I'm hitting .200 and think I'm
having a bad spring, but I think I'm having a great spring. Because I
know how I feel at the plate and on the field, and I feel very good,
very comfortable.


Today, for instance, I got robbed by a great catch on a ball in the
gap. And I've hit several line drives this spring that have been
outs. These are things I can't control, so I don't concern myself
with them. Now, if I had been hitting weak ground balls or popping up
or striking out all the time, that would be cause for concern because
that means my technique is bad. But my technique, for the most part,
has been good.

The ball doesn't have eyes. I'm the one with eyes, and I'm OK with
that I'm seeing for now.

Think about it. If you hit .300 for your career, you're in the Hall
of Fame. But that means you were successful only 30 percent of the
time. The other 70 percent, that's the pitcher's time. You're
supposed to make outs, and I'm going to make a lot. It's the kind of
outs I make that tell me if I'm successful or not.

You can't be a slave to the stats. Ever. Because once you do, you'll
be that way for your entire career. So I stay away from the stats,
and I never go into a season with numerical goals. I just don't see
the point. I worry about the things I can control, and that's my
approach to each at-bat, each game.

In my opinion, every player in baseball would be a better player if
statistics did not exist. Every player. Because without the numbers,
the only thing to focus on would be the process, and that's what
matters the most. Not results. I've said this before, but it's worth
repeating: If you take care of the process, the results take care of
themselves.

The numbers mean nothing to me. I try to keep the game simple, like
I'm playing stickball in the street. That's when you have the most
fun, and when you're having fun, that's when the true talent comes
out.

Carlos Peña's diary appears as told to Mychael Urban, who covers the A's for MLB.com.