University
of Miami baseball coach Jim Morris recently spoke with DA about his
former star catcher Yasmani Grandal. The switch-hitting backstop was
drafted 12th
overall by the Cincinnati Reds in this year’s MLB Draft.
DA:
What was it like to coach a player as talented as Yasmani?
JM:
When I first saw him play, I remember saying this guy’s outstanding,
and he’ll probably never go to college because he’s too good. Because
he could really catch and throw, and when I saw him he really hit
well that day being a switch-hitter. A prototype guy – a stocky,
strong, switch-hitting catcher that can catch and throw, and that’s
exactly what they’re looking for in the big leagues, and of course we
are too. He’s a guy that’s very motivated and focused, that works
hard everyday. He’s very goal-oriented to play in the big leagues,
and to get that done, whatever time he needed to spend, he was going
to spend.
DA:
What was that recruiting pitch like, knowing you had a guy who
already had major-league skills, to get him to play for your program?
JM: I
mean we try to recruit the best players, particularly from South
Florida, and hope that they’ll go to school. And he’s one of those
guys that did go to school versus sign pro, and we lost five of them
last night that didn’t go to school, so it works either way. But it
was great to have him here. He worked hard, he really improved his
value as a player. I think probably the biggest thing he improved on
was his hitting while he was here. He’s always been known as a really
good catch and throw guy.
DA:
So you kind of had an idea he would be a first-round talent from day
one?
JM: I
don’t want to say that. If I was that smart, [the Reds] would have
taken him in the first round and saved a lot of money. But I just
thought he was a pretty special player when I saw him play in high
school.
DA:
What particular aspects of his hitting did he improve on?
JM: I
think he improved both ways. He hit with power and average by the
time he left, and you can look at his statistics and see that he made
a lot of improvements while he was here.
DA:
What was the experience like for you and him on draft day?
JM:
We were right in the middle of the Texas A&M game [during
in-state regionals]. We had a rain delay, and he’d actually found out
before I did. He was out on the field so I went and saw him out on
the field and congratulated him. It had to be a pretty emotional time
for him to get drafted in the first round… It was actually right
before the game started. It was supposed to be in the middle of the
game, but we had a rain delay.
DA:
And obviously his family was all there to celebrate with him?
JM:
Of course. He’s a great kid that came over from Cuba, and when you
leave there… you leave everything. And you come here to start a new
life, and you bring whatever you have on your back to come and start
over. So it’s a big process for him, his family, and everybody. It’s
exciting to watch someone that’s worked so hard and is so
goal-oriented and is really a good player and a good kid.
DA:
What is the Reds organization getting in Yasmani Grandal?
JM:
The real deal is that when you can catch and throw and hit and you’re
a catcher like him, then you’ve got a chance to move pretty quick [up
the ranks of the system]. There’s no question that when they took him
in the first round that they expected him to move quick.
DA: I
assume you will be keeping up with him and keeping in touch?
JM:
Sure. It’s great for both of us, for him and the program, to have
such great success.
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