Photo by Matt Sachs, TexAgs
Texas A&M Baseball
“Right now honestly nothing. Like I said, it’s completely healed and it feels great. The only thing is if you’ve ever broken a bone, the cold weather gives you a couple problems but that’s with anything, just makes it stiff. Right now I’m ready to go.”
“I guess, kind of in the middle of nowhere, I just got a little house to myself. I’ve always liked the country, and always lived out there so I decided to get a house on about 10 acres with a pond. It’s about 900 square feet to myself and that’s all I really need. The main thing was to be close to the field. I’m blessed with that coaching staff and coach Childress and this facility is second to none so why would I want to be anywhere else.”
“If you just sit down and talk with him about baseball or whatever, life in general, he will leave an impact on you and in at least 30 minutes you will remember whenever you talk to him. It’s just a little bit different the way he comes from. You can tell by the way he was raised that he’s all about respect and he is going to respect you until you break that trust. It’s not necessarily that he doesn’t want anything to do with you but you’re not going to be on his top list to call if you need something. He’s always willing to help and he’s a great man, great family man, and he’s always looking out for you. The main thing that I like is that he’s trying to make you a better man off the field and wants you to succeed on the field, and win championships. The little things like shaving and stuff like that doesn’t seem like that big of a deal but when you are off the field you realize that those little things all tie up and they all start to put together into life situations.”
“I go Monday through Saturday. You hear a lot of people talk about how baseball isn’t a job, well it’s not a job if you don’t treat it like a job. It’s just like this. You are in here everyday sitting here, reading all this stuff and getting information out to the public and everything and taking care of everyone and that’s your job. If I treat baseball like it’s my job then I need to be able to go perform at a high level just like anyone else like a swimmer, a coach and what not. I go in on Monday and I’m there y 8:30 and eat breakfast. A lot of times I will cook it at the house but I will meal prep on Sundays. That’s the time for my body to regenerate and I’ll cook about 8 meals or 10 meals and have those for Monday through Saturday and just work out every single day. Upper body and lower body switch it out and you’ve got to be able to listen to your body. Brody and guys that are still playing are going to say that your body is your work place. As much as it is your job, people like to say it isn’t a job and you have to go in and punch that time clock. You’ve got one shot at this. You have one life. God only gave you this ability for so long and I have to go in there and plug away and plug away. It’s funny because guys like JB Moss are always like ‘why are you here all the time’ and once I hit these stadium doors I don’t have many problems. I stay there till about 4 o’clock and go out there and practice with the guys and take in and out, take BP and I’m thankful that coach Seely, coach Bolt, coach Morgan and coach Childress let me get out there and let me do that. Coach Hutch even helps me if I have something I need to send off or if I need something real quick coach Hutch is there. Coach Mack, the weight trainer and all the guys in there letting me steal practice with them, play with them and just lift weights and everything to my expense and use the facilities. That goes unsaid and I’m very thankful for that.”
“Yeah, you know another joke that the guys say is ‘you bring your pants and everything’ and they ask ‘why’ and I say ‘because this isn’t the NBA, this is baseball and I love wearing pants and I want to hit batting practice in my pants, and I want to run and catch fly balls in my pants. It’s not overdoing it, it’s just like I have one shot at this. If you’re an onlooker from another team or something they would say ‘Naquin is living in the glory days.’ Well, no. I just have a beautiful facility, a field and I have good talent at Texas A&M. If I can go out there and throw to different bases with the outfielders, they are going to ask me what I think about this and I’m going to help them and what not and they might see something on me, and you know you are your own best coach and other guys can see you and help you out as well. If I can get as many reps as they get, whether it’s little quarterback drills, coach Seely throwing the outfielders fly balls, just keeping my routes and keeping everything crisp so that I can go onto spring training so it looks like I gained a step and not lost a step.”
“I’m going to let him speak on that because I haven’t given him any significant amount of information that would help him hit 400 but if you watch him play he has a nature pretty swing. He’s got power, he can run and he can catch. He’s got all the tools, it’s just up to him if he wants to put it all together and go be great. He texted me last night after you said I was going to be on the show and he was like ‘teach me your ways’ and I just said ‘you just go be Nick Banks’. But I mean, that whole team; Logan Nottebrok, JB Moss is going to do some great things this year in center field and Logan Taylor all the way around that team is going to be pretty solid. I’ve been out there almost every single day and I see a lot of things a lot of people don’t inside the clubhouse and outside the clubhouse and I think there will be some big things happening in there hopefully.”
“Oh for sure. It’s a lot of the same (type of ball as the minor league). The minor league balls are a little different than the major league balls but these baseballs are pretty much the same as the minor league baseballs.”
“I don’t think there is anything emotionally that I can do for that. That’s probably going to hit me pretty hard and right here thinking about it makes me feel a different type of way. It’s something I am looking forward to but I’m not banking on that 100%. My main thing is just trying to prepare mentally for the next day or the next game or the one at hand right there and just playing every single day as hard as I can. You never know. I could be hitting 313 and it’s the bottom of the 8th, 3-2 count and then my hand breaks. Do I think I had a shot there towards the end? I do, but it’s not something that I’m going to bank on and just steel clear from playing hard and all that other stuff. I have to look ahead for that and if they do make the call then they make that call but I’m not in control and that’s not up to me.”
“I have done that. A funny thing is that when I was a freshman, Andrew Collazo hit a ball down the right field line it kicked off my glove a little bit and I just slow played it over there and I picked it up and threw it to second base and threw him out by a couple steps. I got in the dugout and coach Seely pulled me over to the side and said ‘hey that’s a great throw but don’t you ever do that again.’ It’s definitely something that I take pride in and I take care of it and being accurate is the main thing.”
“If I had a dollar for every time somebody asked me that: ‘how do you throw like that? How do you throw that hard’ there really isn’t a secret. My brother had an extremely strong arm and he’s about 5’10, was a really fast guy and had all the tools in the word and could really throw. We had a little horse pasture next to our house and he took me out there one day. We just had a little backstop, chain link that my dad had put up for us and it was all grass with that chain link and he said ‘whenever you take that lead knee through there, it’s almost like it’s your God. I just want you to throw these baseballs as hard and as far as you can and try to throw it through that backstop.’ So we would keep backing up and over the years we were throwing water logged footballs, waterlogged baseballs and you don’t think about it when you’re a kid but the arm strength just built and built and was able to help me build a little accuracy too.”
“There were a couple plays this year where I noticed that they don’t run unless it’s a very close game. The one I remember the most was when we were playing the Oriels AA affiliate and it was in extra innings inside of a double header and was probably 11 o’clock. There was a hard grounder up the middle with a guy on second base. If I threw him out I’d tie the game and it kind of got stuck in my glove and I double pumped and threw it as hard as I could and it barely beat him and I threw him out. That is starting to show me that they are giving me respect but whenever you have to run you have to run. You have to make a play like that, and its not even trying to make a perfect throw, it’s about doing what you do. It’s just like Brody taking double play balls. He’s not thinking about making it perfect and touching the bag every time, he’s just going to do what he does and just let it happen.”
“Probably not. You can say hitting a homerun in a big situation because those come far and few between like a walk off or something but whenever you can do something defensively like all the weight is at the plate you know, everyone knows you have an arm and want to see it, and the anticipation is built and that fly ball is coming to you or its on the ground and the guy is on second or third it is. It’s almost like a gasp of air through the whole stadium when you throw him out."
“I came on an unofficial visit and long story short I went ahead and signed with San Jac and got some letters from Texas and Baylor and thought that one of those would be for sure, and I hadn’t even talked to A&M until really really late after I had already signed with San Jac. I really considered going to play pro ball and I talked to coach Childress one more time and something just kind of rang my bell and I just knew it was what I needed to do. Everything he told me is exactly what is happening right now in my life and it’s just a blessing to have him and that coaching staff who come through there and help me that much because words can’t even describe what they have done for me and they will never know.”
“I do appreciate the respect but I wanted to make sure that game and the games leading up to that weren’t about Tyler Naquin because it’s not. It’s about the team and about coach Childress and it’s about our mission to win a championship. People would ask me about a 10 game hitting streak and that’s awesome, and they ‘hey you got 20’ and the suspense does build but if I start thinking about that then I’m not solid at the plate and I need to go up there with a clear mind. They intentionally walked my twice and unintentionally walked me two more times and my last at bat I chased a fast ball and it was just an immature at bat. If I would have taken my other walk I could have brought that hit streak onto another day because a walk is a walk and it’s not an at bat. The way I look at that is just that it was immature. If I have the strike discipline I have now then I may have had a 35 game hit streak. It doesn’t weigh on me but it was fun while it lasted and we had one heck of a team and you know it was a whole lot of fun.”
“It was surreal. It’s almost like it didn’t happen. You wait so long for it to happen and then the moment is there. You see Wacha getting that last ground ball to second base to Charlie Curl and all of the sudden it’s time to pack it up and head to Omaha. It’s a different feeling and I wouldn’t change it for the world. I wish that it went different yes, but you make memories out there and relationships with guys that will never be broken. It was a lot of fun.”
Tyler Naquin chases big league dream
Key quotes from Tyler Naquin interview
“I started out well in AA and there was some speculations and talk and stuff but just putting that aside and playing hard everyday and having a good time on the field with your teammates, managers and stuff. Just happened to be 80 games in, I was doing well and took a fast ball to the hand and broke it and never got back during that season. Just rehab, rehab, rehab and even the cold weather to this point keeps it pretty stiff and I have to soak it in some water and still get Josh over at the ballpark to work on it. He does a great job and I trust him with everything and we do that about 3 or 4 times a week and just keep it mobile and moving just getting ready for spring break. It’s still not exactly there just because of the cold weather, but perfect enough to play and just around the corner it will be 120%.”“Right now honestly nothing. Like I said, it’s completely healed and it feels great. The only thing is if you’ve ever broken a bone, the cold weather gives you a couple problems but that’s with anything, just makes it stiff. Right now I’m ready to go.”
“I guess, kind of in the middle of nowhere, I just got a little house to myself. I’ve always liked the country, and always lived out there so I decided to get a house on about 10 acres with a pond. It’s about 900 square feet to myself and that’s all I really need. The main thing was to be close to the field. I’m blessed with that coaching staff and coach Childress and this facility is second to none so why would I want to be anywhere else.”
“If you just sit down and talk with him about baseball or whatever, life in general, he will leave an impact on you and in at least 30 minutes you will remember whenever you talk to him. It’s just a little bit different the way he comes from. You can tell by the way he was raised that he’s all about respect and he is going to respect you until you break that trust. It’s not necessarily that he doesn’t want anything to do with you but you’re not going to be on his top list to call if you need something. He’s always willing to help and he’s a great man, great family man, and he’s always looking out for you. The main thing that I like is that he’s trying to make you a better man off the field and wants you to succeed on the field, and win championships. The little things like shaving and stuff like that doesn’t seem like that big of a deal but when you are off the field you realize that those little things all tie up and they all start to put together into life situations.”
“I go Monday through Saturday. You hear a lot of people talk about how baseball isn’t a job, well it’s not a job if you don’t treat it like a job. It’s just like this. You are in here everyday sitting here, reading all this stuff and getting information out to the public and everything and taking care of everyone and that’s your job. If I treat baseball like it’s my job then I need to be able to go perform at a high level just like anyone else like a swimmer, a coach and what not. I go in on Monday and I’m there y 8:30 and eat breakfast. A lot of times I will cook it at the house but I will meal prep on Sundays. That’s the time for my body to regenerate and I’ll cook about 8 meals or 10 meals and have those for Monday through Saturday and just work out every single day. Upper body and lower body switch it out and you’ve got to be able to listen to your body. Brody and guys that are still playing are going to say that your body is your work place. As much as it is your job, people like to say it isn’t a job and you have to go in and punch that time clock. You’ve got one shot at this. You have one life. God only gave you this ability for so long and I have to go in there and plug away and plug away. It’s funny because guys like JB Moss are always like ‘why are you here all the time’ and once I hit these stadium doors I don’t have many problems. I stay there till about 4 o’clock and go out there and practice with the guys and take in and out, take BP and I’m thankful that coach Seely, coach Bolt, coach Morgan and coach Childress let me get out there and let me do that. Coach Hutch even helps me if I have something I need to send off or if I need something real quick coach Hutch is there. Coach Mack, the weight trainer and all the guys in there letting me steal practice with them, play with them and just lift weights and everything to my expense and use the facilities. That goes unsaid and I’m very thankful for that.”
“Yeah, you know another joke that the guys say is ‘you bring your pants and everything’ and they ask ‘why’ and I say ‘because this isn’t the NBA, this is baseball and I love wearing pants and I want to hit batting practice in my pants, and I want to run and catch fly balls in my pants. It’s not overdoing it, it’s just like I have one shot at this. If you’re an onlooker from another team or something they would say ‘Naquin is living in the glory days.’ Well, no. I just have a beautiful facility, a field and I have good talent at Texas A&M. If I can go out there and throw to different bases with the outfielders, they are going to ask me what I think about this and I’m going to help them and what not and they might see something on me, and you know you are your own best coach and other guys can see you and help you out as well. If I can get as many reps as they get, whether it’s little quarterback drills, coach Seely throwing the outfielders fly balls, just keeping my routes and keeping everything crisp so that I can go onto spring training so it looks like I gained a step and not lost a step.”
“I’m going to let him speak on that because I haven’t given him any significant amount of information that would help him hit 400 but if you watch him play he has a nature pretty swing. He’s got power, he can run and he can catch. He’s got all the tools, it’s just up to him if he wants to put it all together and go be great. He texted me last night after you said I was going to be on the show and he was like ‘teach me your ways’ and I just said ‘you just go be Nick Banks’. But I mean, that whole team; Logan Nottebrok, JB Moss is going to do some great things this year in center field and Logan Taylor all the way around that team is going to be pretty solid. I’ve been out there almost every single day and I see a lot of things a lot of people don’t inside the clubhouse and outside the clubhouse and I think there will be some big things happening in there hopefully.”
“Oh for sure. It’s a lot of the same (type of ball as the minor league). The minor league balls are a little different than the major league balls but these baseballs are pretty much the same as the minor league baseballs.”
“I don’t think there is anything emotionally that I can do for that. That’s probably going to hit me pretty hard and right here thinking about it makes me feel a different type of way. It’s something I am looking forward to but I’m not banking on that 100%. My main thing is just trying to prepare mentally for the next day or the next game or the one at hand right there and just playing every single day as hard as I can. You never know. I could be hitting 313 and it’s the bottom of the 8th, 3-2 count and then my hand breaks. Do I think I had a shot there towards the end? I do, but it’s not something that I’m going to bank on and just steel clear from playing hard and all that other stuff. I have to look ahead for that and if they do make the call then they make that call but I’m not in control and that’s not up to me.”
“I have done that. A funny thing is that when I was a freshman, Andrew Collazo hit a ball down the right field line it kicked off my glove a little bit and I just slow played it over there and I picked it up and threw it to second base and threw him out by a couple steps. I got in the dugout and coach Seely pulled me over to the side and said ‘hey that’s a great throw but don’t you ever do that again.’ It’s definitely something that I take pride in and I take care of it and being accurate is the main thing.”
“If I had a dollar for every time somebody asked me that: ‘how do you throw like that? How do you throw that hard’ there really isn’t a secret. My brother had an extremely strong arm and he’s about 5’10, was a really fast guy and had all the tools in the word and could really throw. We had a little horse pasture next to our house and he took me out there one day. We just had a little backstop, chain link that my dad had put up for us and it was all grass with that chain link and he said ‘whenever you take that lead knee through there, it’s almost like it’s your God. I just want you to throw these baseballs as hard and as far as you can and try to throw it through that backstop.’ So we would keep backing up and over the years we were throwing water logged footballs, waterlogged baseballs and you don’t think about it when you’re a kid but the arm strength just built and built and was able to help me build a little accuracy too.”
“There were a couple plays this year where I noticed that they don’t run unless it’s a very close game. The one I remember the most was when we were playing the Oriels AA affiliate and it was in extra innings inside of a double header and was probably 11 o’clock. There was a hard grounder up the middle with a guy on second base. If I threw him out I’d tie the game and it kind of got stuck in my glove and I double pumped and threw it as hard as I could and it barely beat him and I threw him out. That is starting to show me that they are giving me respect but whenever you have to run you have to run. You have to make a play like that, and its not even trying to make a perfect throw, it’s about doing what you do. It’s just like Brody taking double play balls. He’s not thinking about making it perfect and touching the bag every time, he’s just going to do what he does and just let it happen.”
“Probably not. You can say hitting a homerun in a big situation because those come far and few between like a walk off or something but whenever you can do something defensively like all the weight is at the plate you know, everyone knows you have an arm and want to see it, and the anticipation is built and that fly ball is coming to you or its on the ground and the guy is on second or third it is. It’s almost like a gasp of air through the whole stadium when you throw him out."
“I came on an unofficial visit and long story short I went ahead and signed with San Jac and got some letters from Texas and Baylor and thought that one of those would be for sure, and I hadn’t even talked to A&M until really really late after I had already signed with San Jac. I really considered going to play pro ball and I talked to coach Childress one more time and something just kind of rang my bell and I just knew it was what I needed to do. Everything he told me is exactly what is happening right now in my life and it’s just a blessing to have him and that coaching staff who come through there and help me that much because words can’t even describe what they have done for me and they will never know.”
“I do appreciate the respect but I wanted to make sure that game and the games leading up to that weren’t about Tyler Naquin because it’s not. It’s about the team and about coach Childress and it’s about our mission to win a championship. People would ask me about a 10 game hitting streak and that’s awesome, and they ‘hey you got 20’ and the suspense does build but if I start thinking about that then I’m not solid at the plate and I need to go up there with a clear mind. They intentionally walked my twice and unintentionally walked me two more times and my last at bat I chased a fast ball and it was just an immature at bat. If I would have taken my other walk I could have brought that hit streak onto another day because a walk is a walk and it’s not an at bat. The way I look at that is just that it was immature. If I have the strike discipline I have now then I may have had a 35 game hit streak. It doesn’t weigh on me but it was fun while it lasted and we had one heck of a team and you know it was a whole lot of fun.”
“It was surreal. It’s almost like it didn’t happen. You wait so long for it to happen and then the moment is there. You see Wacha getting that last ground ball to second base to Charlie Curl and all of the sudden it’s time to pack it up and head to Omaha. It’s a different feeling and I wouldn’t change it for the world. I wish that it went different yes, but you make memories out there and relationships with guys that will never be broken. It was a lot of fun.”
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