Batting Practice with Ozzie Albies

you get things done 22 extra-base hits already nine bombs I'm saying to myself I hit nine bombs is a utility guy that's that's like a phenom you're the best guy in the game that was his April I want to I want to dive into like your switch hitter I don't know if you put in the same amount of time both sides of the plate you're certainly seeing a heck of a lot more right-hander so I would think you're more concerned about your left-handed approach but you but you tell me what's you're showing up tonight to the yard you got syndergaard on the mound do you even entertain swinging from the right side during batting practice at all I might do some flips on the right it's just a little flip just get it loose where it doesn't gaze you bring a left hand after whatever that day calls for it that's who so what the Oregon yeah if you're facing a lefty if Matz is thrown in this series you're not even out there you can like some flips or one wrong turn BP on the left side may just focus on right side there so take us on behind the scenes a little bit inside the cage with kevinsites or what are you what does Asya everyone does things a little bit differently I was a huge tea guy front flip guy and then I went into BP and when I was scuffling I like the curveball machine but what's I'm sure Mikey likes a few different things as well but what are you working I work on on my left side I just work on hitting from the tee line drive to short stuff do you move the tee around you manipulate it high low does my hip just around my hip and just trying to hit the ball straight the shortstop the whole time and then you do any when I'm loose I go flips same thing Shore South Shore South Shore stuff everything at every directed but I I want to go deeper sure something why because you want to stay through the ball through the ball oh my bad my sweet spot off the bat that's best always always in the song I don't want to come off every time I come off during the game it's a ground ball oh yeah let's dive in a little bit we got Sun nice side I can go ahead Kazi hit and left-handed I mean no big deal you're fighting for your life reason yeah this is just like back home right show a side angle right after this swing right here because you got a lot of moving parts so pause it for me there's a lot of moving parts in this swing you start your hands your rocking your hands to take me through kind of take me through your swing how did you get to this point were you a toe tapper in the minor leagues leg kicker I was a big lad kicker just like my leg to my elbow come on yes I used to do this and all the time they tried to talk oh I'm used to actually hit it I hit it all the time and we aim to do that no just regular really yes to generate power I mean I wasn't I'm still not a power hitter I'm just all right so you get to the big leagues who get you to kind of temper the leg kick down now when I saw more like the pitches was better than pitchers are you know when to see your repart they go there the most so I had to shut it up and try to put the ball in play so that's why I showed it up and just more awesome so talk about racket back to where his hands the separation of his hands cuz he was saying something in the break working with kevinsites or some of the things he believes in the Braves hitting coach I used to be I used to be in front and I wasn't getting the separation I needed to be ready to attack the ball so it's always like kind of Raw Sheamus so now I'm back I'm more than like separating just ready to see the pitch recognize it because a lot of guys say they don 'old s'en talks about the rubber band effect they want to walk away I heard Eric Hosmer I want to almost walk away Casey says it that didn't work for I loaded down I don't know how I have you went about it all for me down was really worrisome for me because I felt like if I was down then I just went straight up so my biggest thing was my top hand since I was always such a big pull hitter that's why I love what he says about the cage the other way cuz my cage work even with a pull hitter was all right Center because I felt like if I was dialed in on that swing the pulls the pulls always gonna be there cuz that's what I've done my whole life what I love about this can we go back let's go back like a couple frames is that possible absolutely this is what I love look at--look it so he's in the middle of his stride right now and then as we move forward just as notice his head so he's the head stride down all the way through contact and what I doesn't move yes that's what I love so you mentioned moving parts and that's okay everyone's different like I was always so jealous of Alba pool holes because I songs like this and it looked like he tapped like this and he was ready to explode I couldn't do that it's just my trigger so when I look at Ozzie swing from the left side there is a nice load a big separation but the head is key it's like load load Lola when we explode the head starts here and stays here and I think that's outstanding if some young hitters are looking at this and saying hey we can generate the separation you need to be able to get yourself into a position to do damage which I think ultimately is what we all want to do but that heads got to stay still because as you start stop it right there blowing forward man you make 92 look like 97 sliders look masters that's something head wiser you have like a conscious effort to say hey we got to keep that in one day when I started the year this year I was a little tall in my stance and I was trying to go low and swing so I was moving a lot of and I wasn't seeing it that good so I told myself and we worked I work with size size on me he used to be different last he used to be morning your legs so since then I was warning my legs and everything was keeping it like everything was from there attacking I wasn't doing yeah the movement a lot you were talking about your leg right here where'd you want to go with that I mean where I'm at now I like it there I would be higher yeah I would too no higher than that yeah no higher than that look at the Phillies guys looking at you like who's this rookie coming up here with all this so Ozzy flipped us around just right-handed is it a very different where you're naturally a right-handed hitter I am which I am because that for me is is a big adjustment because the number of at bats you're gonna get yeah left-handed versus righty so when you're on the right side are you always oh we got right-sided a really big Lackey I'm always that's what you're used to that's what you do when you so nine years old yeah it's that's interesting that's really interesting I did a big leg that side same thought process I was watching that game you didn't know if that was gonna stay no it started foul and came back in the wind was extremely hard to see fast guys can get away with that yeah slow guys gotta get out of box or else it's just a single yeah I mean the right side I tried to right side I pulled the ball more but I always work stay to it and in the game is just see it and hit it do you worry about and not to steal your question but before we dive into second base we were talking about exit velocity and launch angle you guys concern yourself with that I mean we talked about it but I don't I don't put myself to worry about stuff like that I just like I said like yeah alright we're real quick for lack of actually having second base I want to talk to you because I came up a shortstop Mikey Lowell came up shortstop second base oh yeah in college yeah that's all I play yeah anyway when I moved over to second base Glenn Hubbard was the Braves coach long time second baseman and and we talked about making sure you got to second base with the left foot right left foot and then everything was a small see yeah and it was you know back here boom I wanted to come across boom now there's no fear of really getting taken out like when we had guys like Jayson Werth and Preston Wilson and these guys wanted to like really take your life from you you had to get added there but now I I want to know kind of what Ron Washington's teaching you on turning the double play he's he's teaching me the same same stuff you said going across going back but wait the replays nowadays I got a stay okay yeah that's very interesting because okay I think it was get the ball and get out yet get it out of there as fast as can and here with replay it's make sure your foot stays on the base I always made sure like I'll still try to get out by the when I get out I'm still like on the base in the neighborhood and the umpires kind of gave it to the infielders because guys were coming in so hard to take them out that I think they gave them the in the neighborhood now when we got all the super slow-mo cameras you got if I come off a little early let's say I come off right here and catch the ball did you play it safe error on me guys on base i we can score it they can score we lose the game I could stay here and pick his brain okay you're killing it thank you so much for coming in outstanding overly blazer fun tonight Thor get the head out oh well

Channel: MLB Network

Views: 193,601

Rating: 4.9660492 out of 5

Keywords: mlb network, mlb, atlanta braves, mlb central

Id: arVJusPIpzE

Length: 9min 22sec (562 seconds)

Published: Thu May 17 2018

Reddit Comments

[u/Gate_of_Divine]

He has made better choices in life than I did in my first 21 years. Hope this kid keeps his head level and he will go far. So happy for him.

[u/NoQuartersGiven]

That was fantastic!!

I saw him on the show a few weeks ago but guess I missed this segment.

[u/cburl08]

MLB is trying to generate more youth interest in the game and guys like Ozzie and Acuna hopefully will do that, and maybe generate them all as young Braves fans. No one needs a Joey Gallo saying "I hate playing third" and practicing terrible plate recognition. Ozzie is the type of ambassador we need for the game.

[u/[deleted]]

He is awesome, I just wish he would stop looking like Lonnie Smith all the time.

[u/ToddGack]

I'm gonna end up watching this video 10 times a year for a while. Needs to fix his leg kick vs LHP and he might be aight.. (kidding about being aight, serious about minimizing his mechanics)

[u/PDshotME]

Ozzie is such a good dude.

[u/Oldman_Dick]

Mike Lowell, but who's the other guy?