[BA] Q&A with Denard Span
http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/2005afl/051025spanqa.html
Chris Kline's AFL Road Trip: Q&A With Denard Span
By Chris Kline
October 24, 2005
SURPRISE, Ariz--Twins outfielder Denard Span broke out in a big way in 2005,
hitting .339 in 186 at-bats at high Class A Fort Myers, and finished up the
season holding his own in Double-A, batting .285 in 267 at-bats at New
Britain.
The 21-year-old outfielder was hampered by injuries in 2004, including a
broken hamate bone in his right wrist that caused him to miss two months. But
the speedster, who rates as a 70 runner on the 20-80 scouting scale, is on
the fast track to Minnesota now.
Span has an unorthodox approach at the plate, with both hands held slightly
apart in his grip. Though he will never hit for much power, Span is a
prototypical leadoff hitter that has shown some prowess for drawing walks. He
drew 34 free passes last year and the patience improved with 44 in 2005.
A first-round pick in 2002 out of Tampa Catholic High, Span could fit in to
the big picture in Minnesota as early as next year.
We caught up with Span--who began his high school career at baseball power
Hillsborough High in Tampa--to talk about his swing, how his approach to
stealing bases has changed over the years, and second-guessing himself early
in his career.
BA: (Grand Canyon hitting coach) John Mallee has implemented a system with
you guys this fall to go over your individual at-bats. How helpful has that
been with your overall approach?
DS: After each game, I try to look at every one of them to see if I'm using
my legs or how level my swing was. It's great because you break everything
down frame-by-frame to see what you're doing or not doing. Having that has
only helped me get better from a contact standpoint.
BA: You have kind of an unusual approach at the plate now, with that gap
between your hands in your grip. Why do you use that technique and what do
you think that does to help you?
DS: It hasn't always been that way. It's something I tried out because my top
hand is a little bit weak, and when I have my hands together I tend to get a
little under the ball more often. With that little space in there, it's
easier for me to slap the ball and keep it on the ground more. I tried it
this year, got comfortable with it and had some success. I'm trying to
squeeze my hands back together, but it's working and it got me to Double-A.
It helps me stay on top.
BA: Having such great speed, how has stealing bags changed for you over your
career?
DS: I've never had problems stealing bases before, but as you move up it gets
a lot different. You have to pay more attention to (pitchers') tendencies.
When I was in high school and Rookie ball, I just stole whenever I felt like
it. Now, you have to understand situations and see how quick a guy is to home
plate, how good his (pickoff) move is, and how good the catcher is to be
effective.
BA: You started out at Hillsborough High, who produced guys like Carl Everett
and Gary Sheffield, but then transferred to Tampa Catholic. How much does
coming out of such a limelight put extra pressure on you?
DS: I'm proud of where I'm from. You know when you say 'Tampa,' the first
thing that comes to people's minds is good baseball. People look at me and
think, 'That guy's going to be good because he came out of Tampa.' People
talk about Hillsborough all the time because of the guys that have come out
of there, but I hope one day they'll look that Tampa Catholic and say the
same thing about that program. I don't feel any extra added pressure--I have
to go out and do what I do and the results have to be there. But I'm not
afraid of failing when I do fail. I just think you have to put all those
names and stuff aside and go out and play.
BA: As a standout football player in high school, you ever catch yourself
wondering what might have been had you taken another path instead of baseball?
DS: It was tough early on in my career, because I think I second guessed
myself a lot. I second-guessed my decision to play baseball. I don't think
I've ever really felt this comfortable about my game, and I know I definitely
doubted myself early on in my career. I found myself thinking about what my
career would have been like if I stuck with football a lot. It wasn't until
this year when I really came to grips that football and all that stuff was in
the past and started to believe in my baseball abilities. I always knew I was
a good athlete, I just kind of doubted I could be a good baseball player.
--
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