By Tom Groeschen
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Deion Sanders got back into the hit column Saturday, breaking an 0-for-12 slide that admittedly had him “anxious.”

Sanders was the talk of baseball Tuesday, when he went 3-for-3 in his first major-league game since 1997. But then he didn't get a hit until Saturday's eighth inning, on an infield roller to shortstop.

Sanders was hitting .459 at Triple-A Louisville when he was called up. Saturday's 1-for-3 day left him at .250 as a Red (4-for-16).

“It's a little hard to go from getting a couple hits every day to nothing,” he said. “I got a little anxious, and I was jumping at the ball. I know I can hit. ... it's just a matter of relaxing.”

Sanders led off Saturday's game and had a .500 on-base percentage for the day. He reached base in the first inning when hit by a pitch but later was doubled off second base on Alex Ochoa's fly out to left field.

Sanders said the adrenaline rush of his first night, with a huge media contingent and national attention focused on him, had him energized. He's just now getting into the day-to-day major-league grind again.

“You just have to stand the test of time,” he said.