Sunday Morning Chat Part III: Lewis Brinson
In our final part of our three-part interview, Lewis speaks about his time in rookie ball after the draft and an eye-opening trip to the Dominican with other Rangers prospects. Enjoy!
HSBN: Soon after the draft, you left for rookie ball. Walk us through a typical day in rookie ball.
LB: Ah, Arizona…wake up at maybe 10-ish, go down, eat breakfast at the hotel, go back up, get dressed, go to the field, ’cause it was within walking distance from the hotel. So you walk to field, get in, get dressed um, have lunch, ’cause we get to the field at maybe 12:30, one o’clock for a 6:30 game. Get there, have lunch, get dressed go out for a cage, early cage work, go back in change into your BP outfit and go out there and take a few fly balls maybe a couple drills, take BP, that’s around, maybe 5. That it ends around maybe 5. Go back in and relax, have a little snack, maybe pre-game snack before the game, listen to some music, watch TV, maybe relax, play a little game or something with the guys or just chill out before the game. Game starts at 6:30, gotta be up there by 6. So, walk back out to the field, get a stretch in, get a little run and play a game and game’s over maybe depending on how long it is maybe, a typical game would be over by like 10, maybe 9:30, ten o’clock. Go back in, eat dinner, take a shower, go back to the hotel, maybe go back out to maybe get a little mid-night snack or something. Drink a protein shake, go to sleep, wake up the next day, do it all over again.
HSBN: So the rookie season ends and you find out they want to send you down to the Dominican. We talked a little bit before about this, you know everybody, players think that, you know, once you get drafted that high that everything’s just roses from there, but… Talk a little bit your Dominican experience.
LB: It was, it was rough. It was a little bit rough. I didn’t know what to expect. I mean, some of the older guys told me during the season, like, “Listen, it’s not all fun and games down there, nothing nice.” I mean, it’s the Dominican, it’s a third-world country. They don’t have that much. They barely have electricity. They barely have water. You can’t drink the water over there. I’m like, oh man, this is gonna suck. So I mean, went down there and, a couple guys that got drafted too went down there with me and we roughed it out together. I mean we had one room with maybe…six or seven bunk beds. I think maybe 12 players and like five coaches all stay in that one room. So, I mean, better rough it out. Sometimes we didn’t have water to, wait, we couldn’t drink the water, and sometimes the electricity would go out or sometimes the water would shut off in the shower, so you’re standing there all soaped up and there’s no water, so there’s no hot water and, so you gotta take a cold shower, you gotta rough it out after a workout. So, I mean, it’s a rough experience, like I said, but I mean, it was a good experience ’cause I got to see where my teammates come from because most of my teammates are Dominican and from Latin countries. So I got to see where they grew up and how they had nothing and how it turns into how they act over here when they get something new and “Wow, this is awesome and I’m in the States. I’m in Arizona.” Got to see kinda where they come from, how they grew up, what’s their style of baseball. Kind of the culture of the Dominican Republic down there. They did take us out on a couple of nice dinners down on the beach, and that was nice. We went to the beach a couple times. I had some fun but, overall it was, I’m glad I went. I’m not gonna say, “Oh I hated it. I’ll never go back.” I’m glad I went. If they asked me to go right now, I’d be kinda iffy to go [laughing] but I mean, if I had to go for a reason, if that’s going to give me the big league factor, send me over there. But um, I wouldn’t want to stay more than a month, lets just say that.
HSBN: One of the things we talked about was how the coaches kept changing your stance around and trying new things and you know… Explain a little bit to the players out there what those coaches were looking for and that and not necessarily that it was results oriented. Explain a little bit about what the process was and why they were doing that to you from a mental standpoint.
LB: They just wanted to see, I bet a lot of players hear this now, they’re seeing if you’re coachable. They’re seeing what you’ll do to get better and, they’re just seeing what they can do to kind of maybe, not manipulate you but, see what will break you down and um, what works for you. It’s actually beneficial. It actually helped me ‘cause, changing around my batting stance a lot maybe during the winter maybe went through 16 different batting stances and maybe 250 at-bats. So you know, that’s a lot if you think about it. But it kind of helped them to help me to figure out what I needed to do and what worked for me. So it was, I needed to do all that to figure out who I am as a hitter and what I need to do at the plate so. I mean, when coaches are doing that, you know, that they are not worried about results. They’re worried about how you react and how, what they need to do, what kinks they need to work out. And if you strike out, you strike out. We’ll fix it. We’ll go in the cage after the game, we’ll go in the cage tomorrow, we’ll fix it. You know what I mean, it’s not that big of a deal. But obviously you gotta provide and you gotta perform, so it’s not like you just don’t have to perform, it’s all about development. It’s a big, development’s a big part but you also have to perform. But, it’s just seeing if you’re coachable and what you’ll do to get better.
HSBN: What was the toughest adjustment to your lifestyle from here at home and life out there on the road in rookie-ball.
LB: Staying in a hotel. Kind of getting used to waking up in a hotel when you’re sleeping in a hotel for three months. I mean, it gets rough. You have car and you have to find ways to get around and you know, get something to eat, find stuff to do around there. You’re not familiar with surroundings so, you don’t know what’s going on, you don’t know what to expect. I mean, it’s Arizona, so it’s 120 degrees everyday and no rain whatsoever. It’s hard to get used to, it’s not hard to get used to but it takes a little time getting used to. If you’re not used to being away from home a long time, it takes a little bit of time, maybe, get adjusted, kinda get used to staying with other guys. ‘Cause you have a roommate, sometimes you have two roommates so, you just got to get used to living um, with other guys, living on your own and providing for yourself.
HSBN: We had a conversation when you first came back about the difference in the pitching that you saw in high school and what you were seeing in pro ball. And what can you tell the pitchers more, out there about, you know, a lot of these guys throw 90-plus, and they think that’s their ticket to the big leagues. But what would you say was the biggest difference you saw from guys who just throw hard and what you faced in rookie ball?
LB: Guys in high school, they just, the guys that did throw hard, they just threw the ball. They really didn’t have maybe a sense of where it was going, or what they were trying to do. I mean some guys did, don’t get me wrong, but in pro ball, it’s totally different. Guys get trained and watch video on you to know how to get you out. And nowadays, high schools do have that. High schools do have video. They’re trying to step up the game a little bit. But in pro ball, it’s totally different now. Guys don’t just throw hard. They throw hard with movement. And they mix their pitches, and certain counts you think a fastball is coming, a change-up will come. And just, it’s non-predictable. And then, it takes a little getting used to from high school pitching to pro ball pitching. ‘Cause in high school, you don’t face 95 everyday. You face maybe 92 every two weeks or something like that, when you face a really good pitcher. But everyday you’re facing a lefty or a righty throwing 92 in your grill trying to get you out. So I mean, and they don’t care if they hit you or not. So they got curve balls, they got sliders, change ups, everything. So I mean, it’s a big adjustment but once you get used to it and if you have a good eye, it’s really not that hard to get adjusted to.
HSBN: It’s only been one year, but how have you already matured as a player? How do you think you’ve matured as a player?
LB: I’ve matured a lot as a player. Just my mental part of the game is maybe, maybe like 80 percent, 95 percent better. I know how to deal with striking out. I know how to deal with not getting to a fly ball I know I should have got to. I knew how to deal with, maybe getting out, getting called out on third strike that wasn’t a strike but, you know… you just got to walk back to the dugout and take it in. My mental game has changed a lot and I know how to prepare myself for a game. And how to take care of my body now because that long grueling season was not easy. And, going from 22, 23, 24, 25 games to 58 games playing everyday and jogging out to center field playing everyday. Going from that to playing pro ball, it’s a tough adjustment, tough mental and physical adjustment. So I’m matured, my body’s matured, my mind’s matured. I know how to take care of myself to make me last for the whole season.
HSBN: So would you say that the majority of what the Rangers have worked with you and all the young guys on is the mental approach to the game more than the physical stuff?
LB: Yes, because you can have talent. All those guys in pro ball have a ridiculous amount of talent. Not all of them have the mental side where they need to, like everybody says, baseball is like 95 percent mental. And, if you strike out, it could ruin your whole week. One strikeout could ruin your whole week of baseball. So, I mean, it just, it eats away at you, ‘cause, in baseball, baseball is different than every other sport; you got a game today, you strike out, you got another game tomorrow, so you got to forget about it real quick, have a short-term memory. So, it’s just, it’s easier to maybe get mad at yourself in pro ball, ‘cause you’re gonna fail a lot more than you did in high school. You were a superstar in high school. You’re gonna fail a lot more in pro ball. So it’s easier to get that mental side kind of screwed up a little bit.
HSBN: How has your diet changed, and you know, is that something that you think could help some of these high school players at all?
LB: It’s changed a lot actually. I can eat whatever I want because I’m very slim and very lean, but still got to eat right. I got to eat a lot to gain weight because I’m trying to gain weight, so. In high school, you might as well start in high school. You might as well start eating right if you think you got a chance to get drafted or you want to go to college, even when you’re going to college, eat right ‘cause you got to, you got to keep your body in shape. ‘Cause even in high school, even though guys are like, “I’m in high school, I don’t care. I’m gonna live it out now and then when college comes or if I get drafted it’s whatever.” You might as well start now ‘cause it’s gonna benefit you. And if you really have that set goal on you want to play D-1 baseball or you want to play big leagues and every high school player will tell you that, if you really want to do it then you gotta have a strict diet if you’re trying to lose weight or trying to gain weight to maybe impress the scouts a little bit. So, you got to do what you got to do.
HSBN: What improvements still need to be made, and have you spoken with the Rangers about what the plan on where you’ll be playing next season?
LB: Hitting, defense, everything important, there’s no stopping with improvements. You can always get better or even if you’re the best you can always get better, so…
HSBN: Let me rephrase that question. In your mind where do you think your biggest improvement has to come in order for you to reach the big leagues in the quickest amount of time?
LB: Oh, consistency. At the plate, in the field, everywhere. To me, consistency. I have more consistency in the outfield because um, I think I’m better in the center than I am a hitter, people will tell you that. People will say I’m equal, I, knowing myself I know, I think I’m a better defender than I am at the plate…and I’m working on that. So consistency would be the biggest thing getting me to the big leagues because I know I have the talent and I know I’m working on my mental side which is pretty good right now for my age. And just being consistent and staying on that right path all season throughout all your at bats since the pro-ball. And at the end of the season, those grueling days after your first two at-bats you’re like, oh man, I don’t want to go up there. You just get tired really easily and if you strike out you’re like, oh, I’m gonna strike out again. You gotta keep at it and you gotta stay consistent you gotta go on making sure you have a set routine of what you need to do to get to the next level. So, my biggest thing to get to the big leagues is consistency, being consistent.
HSBN: And, have you talked to the Rangers about their plan for you this season?
LB: Yes I did. In the Dominican, probably will be going to Low A, Hickory, North Carolina next year after spring training. So yeah, so they told me that in the Dominican they wanted me to go up there. Skip Short Season A which is which is in Spokane. So um, you can count that as skipping a level. So, progress is pretty good right now.
HSBN: Looking back on the entire experience that is your life over the past year, what would be your advice to South Florida players that are going through this, that will be going through this process in the coming years?
LB: Stay humble. Stay focused. Watch TV, watch big league guys talk and interview and watch their stories. Actually take time and read, maybe pull up some stuff online. I know high school guys don’t like reading because they stay in school all day but, if you really, like I said, if you really want this as bad as half of them say they do, you gotta take the time and maybe do a little studying, baseball studying on your own and just be grounded. When you go to a party, put the drink down. Maybe leave when something’s about to go down. Maybe something that you know is gonna get you in trouble because these scouts are watching your every move and whatever you put on Twitter, whatever you put on Facebook, whatever you put on Intstagram, they’re looking at. So I mean, you gotta make sure you have true friends that won’t mess you up, that aren’t jealous and you gotta surround yourself with the right crowd.
HSBN: Alright well, on behalf of the HSBN staff, we’ve always been fans of yours and we wish you continued success moving forward.
LB: Thank you. I appreciate it.
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