I was right-handed and couldn't hit the ball. I was just dominated by right-handed pitchers. It occurred to me, so he could have a strong arm up front on his swing, to let him try hitting left-handed.

That last couple of months of high school were beyond belief. The phone calls, the scouts at the parks. Then all of a sudden you're in the Gulf Coast League. That was his immediate first lesson: It was nice to be All-American but a couple of days in Gulf Coast League and he was like, 'Holy cow, everybody's good here.' He figured out pretty quick to leave your ego at the park.

It became natural for him. It wasn't long before he picked it up and he had the stroke down. We flipped him around to right-handed at age 13 and he did OK. But he was definitely better left-handed.

You're only as good as your next at-bat. He's pretty grounded. He knows he wants to be more than just the flavor of the day.

He considered it playing, and he loved it. There was no time limit. Early in the morning, late at night, he was ready. As the other kids started getting into it, he'd have them shagging balls as he was hitting them. Girls, guys, it didn't matter.

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