Talking Hitting with Mike Barnett
The Houston Astros’ batting coach talks about how the Astros, including rising star J.D. Martinez, approach the plate.
By Jake Sittler [email protected] The moment he scoops a pinch of chewing tobacco out of his mouth before shaking your hand and agreeing to an interview, Mike Barnett personifies a professional hitting coach. In his early 50s he certainly looks the part, with a burgundy #31 Astros jersey and dark sunglasses on in the early March sun. He addresses and answers questions honestly and earnestly; you know he’s looking you in the eyes through those glasses. His coaching style is no-nonsense as well. “I don’t like to let things slide,” Barnett said. “More than anything it’s going to be constant reminders, staying on top of guys and staying with a solid plan every day.” Barnett is a baseball lifer and has been working in baseball since 1982, when he was named the assistant administrator of baseball operations for the New York Yankees. He landed his first coaching job in 1988 at the University of Tennessee. According to an interview with a Toronto Blue Jays blog, when Barnett was with the Yankees he was one of the first to use video to analyze players’ mechanics at the plate. In the interview Barnett recalled he and Lou Piniella spending hours a day breaking down film in the early 80s, before that kind of study became commonplace. Barnett always seemed to surround himself with winners. Besides his stint with the George Steinbrenner-led Yankees, Barnett also was the hitting coach for the White Sox AA affiliate, the Birmingham Barons, from 1993-1995. There he coached a raw, athletic outfielder by the name of Michael Jordan, whom Barnett regarded as one of the hardest workers he’d been around. When he worked in the Blue Jays’ organization from 2002-2005, he also helped turn that roster into a top-10 batting club statistically in three of those four seasons. Barnett’s attention to detail is one of the first aspects of his personality to stand out - no surprise considering he once pioneered the use of technology to break down the minutiae of an at-bat. “Each guy has their own set of individual drills that they do each day that gives them the feel to get in the mode to progress each day,” Barnett said. “That’s kind of like the game of baseball, you’re constantly preparing the same every day.” Barnett mentioned using individual keys for each player as the main way that he tries to keep his hitters focused and prepared each day. Through notebooks full of pitcher information and tendencies to video catalogs of every pitch any opponent has thrown, the amount of information available to his hitters is staggering. “Not only do they keep books on what pitchers throw them and what their mindset was against them,” Barnett said, “but they also keep feels and things like that. They may find something that clicks in their head that they were feeling on a particular day where they were really swinging the bat good.” One of Barnett’s best weapons is 24-year-old left fielder J.D. Martinez. Martinez was called up for the first time in late July of last season, and got roughly 200 major league at-bats under his belt. He entered spring training as the starting left fielder and has begun his first full season on a tear. As of April 23, he was batting .309 with 3 home runs and 14 runs batted in. Martinez ranks in the top 20 in the National League in batting average and his 14 RBIs are good for fifth. He also ranks in the top 10 in both OBP (on-base percentage) and OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage). Barnett said that the individual keys for Martinez included getting set up properly in terms of timing at the plate as well as hitting off the fastball. “Sometimes he’ll get periods where they’re throwing him nothing but breaking balls and changeups and he’ll get sitting on them. That’s the thing usually that’ll get him in trouble,” Barnett said. “We just gotta constantly remind them day in and day out, stay with your couple keys.” The Houston Astros are not expected to contend for postseason play this season. The roster is extremely young, with only two hitters on the 40-man roster over the age of 28, and very few of those hitters are recognizable to the casual baseball fan. But Barnett has the attitude, track record, and work ethic to mold young, unpolished hitters into patient, productive veterans at the plate. |
Check out the full videos for even more on Coach Barnett and the Astros
Barnett on his coaching style:
Barnett on the methods the Astros use to improve at the plate:
Barnett on the use of mental keys for each of his hitters:
J.D. Martinez on how he personally prepares for games:
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