Article: Get To Know: Twins OF Prospect Shane Carrier

[Seth Stohs]

20-year-old Shane Carrier was the eighth round pick of the Minnesota Twins in 2016 out of Fullerton College in California. In college, he hit .387 with 12 homers and 59 RBI. Following the draft, he was assigned to Elizabethton where he hit .275 with 14 doubles, six homers and 29 RBI.

 

Carrier has a lot of power and is certainly one to watch over the coming years. He was kind enough to take some time to answer our questions.Please continue to learn more about Twins outfield prospect Shane Carrier.

 

Seth Stohs (SS): Growing up in Southern California, which was your favorite team and who were some of your favorite players?

 

Shane Carrier (SC): I was actually a Diamondbacks fan growing up. The first baseball moment that I remember was the walk-off hit against the Yankees in Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. I always love watching certain players hit. Some of my favorites are Matt Holliday, Giancarlo Stanton, Paul Goldschmidt, and Justin Upton.

SS: Drafted by the Twins in the eighth round... is that about where you thought you might be selected before the draft?

 

SC: I honestly did not know what to expect. Before the season started I was just a Juco player fighting to continue his baseball career. I just did my best to put in the work and I figured the rest would take care of itself.

SS: How difficult was the decision for you to sign, knowing you had other options in front of you too?

 

SC: Playing professional baseball is something I have worked for my entire baseball career. It was a dream come true and it was an opportunity that I couldn't pass up.

SS: What was the biggest adjustment you had to make, going from college to the pro game? On or off the field?

 

SC: I would say the biggest adjustment is taking care of your body. In college we only played about three times a week. Making the adjustment from that to playing almost every day was a challenge.

SS: In these early stages of your career, what would you say are your biggest strengths as a player?

 

SC: I love to hit, so I would like to say offense is my biggest strength.

SS: What were some of your focuses at Instructs? What are the things that you feel you need to improve over the offseason and going forward?

 

SC: At Instructs I was trying to develop every part of my game. I tried to take in as much information as possible and challenge myself to apply everything that I learned. This offseason I'm also trying to develop every part of my game. Speed and agility is a major part of my game that I am focusing on this offseason.

SS: What were some of the highlights of your high school and amateur career? (What other sports or activities did you participate in?)

 

SC: Living in SoCal we play baseball year round, so I really didn't have the opportunity to play any other sports in high school.

SS: How did you feel about your first professional baseball season? How did you enjoy your time in Elizabethton?

 

SC: I had an awesome experience this season. Elizabethton was a blast and it was a nice change of pace compared to where I live.

SS: What are some of your plans for the offseason? Baseball training, but also what do you enjoy doing away from the game of baseball?

 

SC: During the offseason I spend a lot of time training. I love being in the weight room and in the cages. Besides baseball I love to fish and golf. I am also a huge hockey fan so I plan on going to a lot of Ducks games this offseason.

SS: Who are some of the coaches and others who have helped you get to this point in your career?

 

SC: I would say the coach that taught me how to grind and challenge myself was my high school coach, Joe Hoggatt. His passion for the game impacts his players in a way that can't be described. The coaching staff at Fullerton College probably impacted me the most. The head coach, Nick Fuscardo, welcomed me with open arms when I decided to come play at Fullerton after being out in Texas for my first semester of college. One of our assistants, Jason Smith, taught us all how to be students of the game and play loose. He always preached about handling adversity and to always find a way to keep moving forward. I'd say our hitting coach, Mitch Levier, had the biggest impact on my physical game. Most college coaches force their hitters to hit one way, but Mitch let us all have the freedom to be who we are. He worked with what we had and taught us a professional approach to hitting.

SS: Favorite baseball movie?

 

SC: Without a doubt, Bull Durham.

Thank you to Shane Carrier for taking time to answer our questions. Please feel free to ask questions in the comments section below.

 

Click here to view the article