4/25 Ramirez: "I have to do the job"

Aramis Ramirez ended an 0-for-21 skid with a bloop RBI single in the sixth inning Saturday night but says he still has a lot of work to do. Ramirez was back in the starting lineup after missing two games to work with hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo. He went 1-for-4 in the Cubs’ 5-1 win over the Brewers, and is batting a very un-Ramirez like .134.

“Rudy’s good,” Ramirez said, “but I’m the one who has to do the job out there. I used to be a good hitter and now I can’t hit.”

He was kidding, folks. Often a bloop single like the one Ramirez got can help a hitter get out of a slump.

“I only went 1-for-4 but I felt a lot better,” Ramirez said. “I think I made good swings. I didn’t swing and miss much tonight — I didn’t used to do that until this season. I’m working on it.”

Marlon Byrd wasn’t too worried about Ramirez.

“He’ll get his .300, 30 [home runs], 100 [RBIs] at the end of the season,” Byrd said. “Nobody’s worried about him. That’s going to be one of many for him.”

– Carrie Muskat