Ignoring a problem doesn’t make it go away. If anything, it makes everything worse.
LSU shortstop Alex Bregman and his coach, Paul Mainieri, would benefit from remembering that a few weeks from now when a horde of reporters bombard the sophomore with every question imaginable.
Mainieri announced Thursday that Bregman won’t speak to the media for at least a week while the Tigers’ phenom tries to refocus and break out of the worst slump in his LSU career. Bregman is hitting .130 with only one RBI in the Tigers’ six Southeastern Conference games.
The sabbatical was Mainieri’s idea, according to Mainieri himself, but no matter who though of it, this is the wrong idea. If avoiding the media is the goal, creating a media fiasco that highlights Bregman’s struggles even more isn’t the way to go.
Mainieri claimed the move was to take some pressure off the 19-year-old since, “he feels the weight of the world on his shoulders.”
Presumably the reason Bregman feels so much weight on his shoulders is because he was thrust into a weighty leadership role and expected to carry the Tigers’ offense, which he obviously isn’t doing. That’s a tough load to carry at a program where the fans expect to win 99 percent of the games the team takes the field for. 
But LSU has had its share of truly great leaders in the past who carried that load through ups and downs without complaint.
Baseball players go through slumps. From Babe Ruth to Miguel Cabrera, it’s unavoidable. And though this may legitimately be the worst slump of Bregman’s life, he will break out of it. He’s too good not to.
But what’s amazing is Mainieri and Bregman’s eagerness to pass blame instead of chalking it up as “just baseball,” which is probably the most likely of explanations.
Whatever the reason is for Bregman’s slump, rest assured it is not the media.
Contrary to popular belief, the media rarely heap more expectations on a player than the player or the fans do. The media didn’t label Bregman the Tigers’ offensive pillar out of the blue. His .369 average, 52 RBIs and National Shortstop of the Year Award last season did that.
By passing blame, Mainieri and Bregman essentially abdicated
Bregman’s throne as the Tigers’ leader. A leader would have handled a slump with poise and patience, setting an example for other players. A leader would have recognized his poor performance, confronted it and utilized the media to assure fans that slumps are only temporary.
Because at the end of that day, that’s what sports media are: a means of communication between the players and the fans. 
I assume it’s a rare person who actually cares what I have to say about Alex Bregman. But LSU baseball fans sure care what Alex Bregman has to say about Alex Bregman.
The media will never leave him alone because LSU baseball fans are never going away. Prying reporters will be there when he breaks his silence — slump or not — because LSU baseball fans will have questions that need answers.
And the No. 1 question needing an answer will be whether the Tigers’ 19-year-old shortstop with “the world on his shoulders” is mentally ready to be the Alex Bregman he is expected to be.