Arizona Diamondbacks’ Martin Prado attributes turnaround to comfort — and his mother

Martin Prado wanted you to like him.

Having come to the Arizona Diamondbacks from the Atlanta Braves by way of a blockbuster trade, he likely tried too hard to impress a new group of people.

So, when he hit .217 in April, things were bad. His play picked up in May, as he hit .313, but when he batted just .209 in June it seemed like this season would go down as one of the worst in his eight-year Major League Baseball career.

“In the past, in baseball, when somebody got traded it’s a transition that, actually, people don’t see,” Prado told Arizona Sports 620’s Burns and Gambo Tuesday. “It’s kind of hard. You’re going to change your routine, you change your city, change your people, you’ve got to get to know everybody.”

Prado said the quicker one can adjust to it all the better, but it took a little longer because he was working so hard to fit in.

Things turned around for Prado in July, though, and he’s been one of the National League’s best hitters since the All-Star break.

He attributes much of his newfound success to his mother, who moved to Arizona the day after the All-Star break and has been with him the last couple months.

Saying that his mom was always there for him after a rough game when he was a child, Prado said her being around now for extra support has been real helpful.

“When you hear…the way she talks…she’s got the right things at that moment that make you feel better,” Prado said. “There’s nothing better than that.”

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