"It's a new response to a familiar outcome. Nate McLouth is whistling something jaunty after going hitless but striking the ball hard, peeling off his socks in front of his locker and merrily discussing 2010, the roughest patch of his professional life.

The Atlanta Braves center fielder came to spring training with a plan – nothing complicated, and maybe that's the point – and he's determined to pick through the events of each ballgame and tuck something positive in his pocket. Baseball is difficult even on the best of days, and it's altogether too easy to allow failure to worm its way between the ears and cloud every thought with negativity.

That partly explains what happened in 2010, when McLouth, an All-Star acquired by the Braves in 2009 for his enticing blend of power, speed and enthusiasm, lost the ability to hit. And to steal bases. And to throw with authority. He batted .190 with a .298 on-base percentage and .322 slugging percentage, steep declines from career numbers that predicted a line of about .260/.350/.450. It got so bad he was sent to Triple-A for a month, and even after showing signs of improvement upon his return, he wasn't in the lineup during the playoffs.

"Things started to snowball and for whatever reason I could never get on the right path," he said. "I took this offseason to take a step back from everything and rebuild my confidence."

How does a player with a strong track record rebound? McLouth isn't the only established hitter seeking an answer – Carlos Pena, Mark Reynolds, Aaron Hill and Milton Bradley all batted .205 or worse last season – but his efforts provide a glimpse into the difficulty of a player dusting himself off, reporting to camp with a fresh outlook and showing immediate signs of improvement."