Posted by: Jack Mankin (mrbatspeed@aol.com) on Mon Jul 26 16:43:27 2004

>>> Johnny Damon has talent, but he is not a pull hitter. He sprays the ball all over the field, and that is why he is successful and makes a lot of money.
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Without talent, technical strategy won't do you much good. You will be playing in a beer league. <<<

Hi Doug

You are a professional scout, and therefore, what you convey in your posts to coaches and players carries a lot of weight. In your last couple of posts, you have stressed “talent. ” I was just wondering what message do you mean to send?

Many young players have not yet acquired the skills that would allow them to reach their full potential as a hitter. It would be sad if they took your words to mean that all good hitters are just born with the “talent” to hit. They might conclude from this that perfecting their timing and swing mechanics has little or nothing to do with the end result. They might conceive that if they had talent they would be hitting – so why spend the time and energy perfecting something they don’t have?

I am sure this is not the message you mean to convey. However, I do think it would be more constructive had you described players like Damon and McGwire as hitters who acquired the skills to reach their full potential rather than just saying they have “talent.” Many very talented players never acquire the batting skills to become great.

I would agree with you that only a few possess the potential to become great pro hitters. And as a scout, I believe you would agree it is extremely difficult to determine what the true potential of a hitter is (or in your terms - how much final talent he will achieve). Mike Piazza was not drafted until the 63rd round and I am sure you could sight many similar cases. Until proven otherwise, I will continue to teach skills to my students as if they all have that potential.

Jack Mankin