TEMPE, Ariz. -- In his second season, Rangers rising star outfielder Nomar Mazara must keep one thing in mind.

Try easier, as former manager Johnny Oates often said.

It is another way of saying "stay within yourself." The root of the dreaded sophomore jinx is that a player tries to get too big and strays from the plan.

That would be a regrettable mistake for Mazara. His rookie performance showed that what he does can work well in the majors.

"What happens to some of these guys is they push too hard too fast and forget about what got them here," manager Jeff Banister said Wednesday. "Continue to learn the league and pitchers. They're going to try to do some different things to him this year and expose weaknesses."

Mazara followed the typical path of a rookie last season. He tore up the league early, and the league came back at him.

Mazara hit .302 with an .827 OPS for 44 games through May. He hit .248 with a .676 OPS for his final 101 games.

"They made adjustments to me, and they're going to make adjustments this year, too," said Mazara, who had an up-the-middle single in three at-bats in an exhibition game Wednesday against the Los Angeles Angels. "I've got to see what they're doing and can't get out of my plan. That's what they try to do. They want to get you out of your plan."

Mazara did not do that. A National League scout said he was impressed that Mazara did not panic, as many rookies do, and change his game.

Mazara stayed with what the scout said is an excellent approach to hitting. Mazara has a good grasp of the strike zone and will use the entire field.

The scout added that Mazara will hit for more power than he showed last year: 20 homers and a .419 slugging percentage. The key is that Mazara did not lengthen his swing in an attempt to be a power hitter. Mazara stayed with a compact swing and took singles to the opposite field when the opening was available.

"He had a number of growth periods," Banister said. "The league kind of took advantage of him at times. True to form from what we had heard of him, he was steady and used his skill set to make another step."

Banister made changes to protect the rookie.

Mazara, a left-handed hitter, had increasing problems during the season against left-handers and finished at .234 with a .548 OPS against them. It could have been worse. Banister did not start Mazara in the final 13 games in which the Rangers faced a left-handed starter.

Performance will dictate how often Mazara faces left-handers this season, Banister said. He expects Mazara to hit equally well against right-handers and left-handers over the long run.

"I could tell some of those lefties were more of a challenge late than they were early," Banister said.

The entire season was a valuable learning experience for Mazara.

He learned what it takes to hold up over more than 500 at-bats. Banister said the season took a toll on Mazara, and that likely contributed to a brownout near the end.

Mazara also learned that he could play at this level, offensively and defensively. That helps the confidence.

"The confidence is there," Mazara said. "I feel so much better than last year against the pitchers because of the confidence. When you have that confidence, you can do whatever you want."

Sparkling starts

Colorado's Trevor Story, of Irving, led major league rookies in OPS last season. The list: