SALT LAKE CITY — After four years of back-and-forth stints between the major leagues and the minor leagues, Salt Lake Bees infielder Andrew Romine has learned to not get too up or down on himself — even after his latest hot streak at the plate.
The former Arizona State standout has connected for seven hits out of his last 14 at-bats, a four-game span that comes on the heels of a miserable 3-for-23 stretch.
"I see his swing coming from A to B, just right into the hitting zone," Bees interim manager Bill Richardson said. "He's locked in for sure. I think in this (recent) win streak we did gain a couple of our bats."
The turnaround is dramatic, peaking exactly a month after Romine was asked to swap Angels red for Bees yellow. It's the third such transition for Romine since 2010, allowing him to take his latest back-and-forth turn in stride.
"It's another a baseball game," Romine said. "You've got to take it like a big league game no matter where you are. I try to take that into every game."
Romine gets more empathy than most. His brother Austin is currently with the Yankees. His father was a six-year man for the Red Sox. Romine talks to both, though the conversations are less baseball-heavy than one would assume.
"I talk to my dad every once in a while and just keep it with life stuff and not pound our heads so much with baseball," Romine said. "He knows, having played before, it's a long season. To have to talk baseball all day long with everybody gets kind of old."
Instead, there's a quiet-but-acknowledged understanding among the Romines. They get it. They know what Andrew is going through, both the successes and the setbacks.
The 2012 season saw Romine cash in on his major league opportunity, amassing seven hits in just 17 at-bats over a 12-game span. Like any other player who sees his stay in the majors cut short, he's eager to get back.
Eager, but not to the point of on-field impatience or error.
"It's just baseball," Romine emphasized. "No matter where you're playing, whether it's here, big leagues, rookie ball, it doesn't really matter."
Matt Petersen is the Sports Web Editor for DeseretNews.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @TheMattPetersen.