Mini-Profile on SS Alex Todd

I didn't get the opportunity to talk to SS Alex Todd while I was in Lexington, but I did talk to Hitting Coach Josh Bonifay about one of his most improved hitters. Last season in Greeneville, Todd hit .159/.287/.215 over 33 games but did show definite signs of improvement in his final 16 games at Lancaster with a .298/.310/.421 batting line. Through 18 games in 2012, Todd is hitting .300/.375/.414. He already has almost as many RBI's as he had all last season and is showing indications of much better power.

Coach Bonifay attributes the improvements to hard work, pure and simple. The key for Todd, according to Bonifay, is to work on keeping his lower half closed to create more torque in his swing. Todd has worked hard to make the adjustments and is seeing good results. "He works his butt off. He's in here early. He's in here often and he really grinds and and gets after it."

I also asked Jordan Scott, one of Todd's roommates, what Todd was doing differently this year. He said that Todd had tried about 15 or 20 different stances and swings last season and was really struggling. Now, according to Scott, Todd has found confidence in what he's doing at the plate and that has made all the difference for him.

I'm looking forward to seeing what Todd can do over a full season. [UPDATED TO ADD: I should never try to write in too big a hurry. I forgot to mention that Todd was a 27th round pick in 2011 out of Sonoma State, he's 22 and bats right-handed (although you can see that from the picture).]

Alex Todd April 2012