Girardi won't sit slumping Ellsbury: 'He's got to fight through it'

Jacoby Ellsbury has nowhere to hide as he battles through one of the worst stretches of his seven-year career.

The New York Yankees outfielder is hitting .096/.130/.096 through 13 games this month, though manager Joe Girardi has no intentions of benching Ellsbury as his team attempts to end a two-year postseason drought.

"He's got to fight through it," Girardi told reporters Tuesday. "This is a guy that we really need. We know how great a player he can be. We've seen it; we saw it the first two months of the year. We need to get him going."

The 32-year-old, who's in the second year of a seven-year, $153-million contract, admits the recent stretch of futility has been frustrating, but he's doing all he can to get back on track.

"I come in early, I'm working hard with the hitting coaches," Ellsbury said. "I've worked too hard not to have success. I know it's going to come soon."

Often criticized for an inability to stay healthy, he's missed 49 of the Yankees' 144 games this season with various ailments and is hitting .207/.247/.322 with 14 extra-base hits since coming off the disabled list July 8.