Hanley: 'I'm not a home run hitter, I hit homers'

Hanley Ramirez is stating the obvious, which is the first step in rediscovering his swing.

After 25 games and 101 plate appearances, the Boston Red Sox slugger has one home run, but that doesn't mean much to him.

Ramirez was never a prolific home run hitter. In his Florida Marlins days, he belted a career-high 33 homers in 2008 and 29 the year prior. Last season he smashed 10 homers in April alone, only to suffer a shoulder injury and hit nine the remainder of the season.

“I don’t want to think about homers,” Ramirez told Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. “I’m not a home run hitter. I hit homers. That’s the difference.”

The 32-year-old is referencing his difference in approach this season from last, where he's found himself to be a more well-rounded hitter. Ramirez is batting .283 while making hard contact 35.5 percent of the time to the opposite field, according to Fangraphs, which he says is by design.

“I forgot for a couple of years. I was trying to launch everything,” he said. “But now I just want to hit for average, and the homers will come.”

One of the biggest differences is the leg kick, which Hanley more or less eliminated from his stance. He also got rid of his high-and-mighty one-handed finish, which forces him to stay wider, and more compact through the zone.

With his old swing, Ramirez was so violent to the point where his helmet fell off. He even got his own Twitter account for it. Not only does the controlled swing allow him to hit with more consistency, it also takes some stress off his oft-injured shoulders.

"It’s better for my shoulders,” Ramirez said. “It feels a lot shorter. I want a shorter swing. It’s more compact. It’s two different hitters.

"I was focused too much on hitting home runs. It was awful," he said. "This offseason I was like, 'No, I’m going to hit .378.'"