In His Words: Tanner English's 2016 Season

His talent and athleticism helped him get to the point where he began his 2016 season with the Ft. Myers Miracle. English can now see clearly a path to further success, and maybe even a major league career.

“I’ve been blessed with some natural abilities that I can thank the good Lord for, and my parents, but I think that everything’s caught up with me.” English continued, “I think I’ve been performing enough my entire life to get to the point where I was, but to advance my game any more, I needed to put myself into the best position I could.”

When English was in grade school, he started wearing reading glasses. In middle school, he was encouraged to start wearing contacts.

“It didn’t work. So I gave up on it. The rest of high school, and even in college, I tried hundreds of pairs of contacts, and none have ever worked, for whatever reason. Maybe I’m a diva.”

English said his eyesight, without enhancement, was around 20/50. Not terrible, but certainly not near 20/20. Eyesight is crucial for a baseball player. Hall of Famer Ted Williams was found to have 20/10 vision. Tony Gwynn also tested at 20/10. 20/8 is said to be “perfect” vision.

From a recent San Diego Union-Tribune article, “Optometrist David Kirschen, of Brea, who specializes in studying the eyesight of athletes to achieve optimal sports performance, says the average major league baseball player’s vision is 20/12 and 3.9 percent have 20/8 eyesight.”

English had been encouraged to get contacts in his physicals with the Twins too. About two weeks into the Miracle season, Twins minor league field coordinator Joel Lepel asked English how his contacts were treating him. English again reported that he wasn’t wearing them. That turned into a conversation with English, Lepel and Twins minor league director Brad Steil. A couple of days later, English had Lasik surgery.

English reports, “Now I’m reading the 20/10 line in some cases and can read the 20/15 line easily.”

The plan was to miss three weeks of the season. By doctor’s orders, he wasn’t supposed to do anything for the first two weeks. Then just one more week of rehab to get his legs back under him and get a few at-bats, and he was to head back to the Miracle lineup.

Or, that’s what was supposed to happen.

“I played one (game). Got my second one. The last inning of that second game is when I hurt my ankle. That three week time frame turned into another eight weeks. That was not fun at all!”

Can you imagine the frustration?

English struggled with the decision to miss three weeks for the Lasik surgery but decided it was in his best interest. He knew that injury was part of the game, but it obviously isn’t what any competitive player wants.

“It was going stir-crazy. I was in my walking boot for five weeks, and I had to rehab for another three weeks.” He continued, “I was seeing the ball like I had never seen it before. So I was chomping at the bit to get back on the field, and then I got hurt. That’s what happens in baseball. Everything happens for a reason. I don’t really know what that reason was, I’m just trusting the good Lord’s plan and taking things as they come.”

He returned to the Miracle in early August and played in just 22 games with the Miracle. After missing so much time, he was behind the curve, but despite hitting .247, he got on base 36% of the time. And that’s the type of offensive weapon that he is.

“I would like to be that table setter guy. No matter if I got a hit, if I walk, if I get hit by a pitch. Shoot, if I hit the ball and the shortstop makes an error. I want to get on base because I know that once I am on first base, we have a good chance of scoring one run. And in a lot of games, one run goes a long way. Once I get on first, I know that I can steal second. I could get to second base on a passed ball and score on a base hit. A couple of times this year, I scored on base hits from first base. I’m pretty confident that if I get on, I can help the team out and put a run on the board. That’s my goal every at-bat. It changes a bit here and there, like if a runner is on second base. Same thing if a runner’s at third base. I’m not expected to be driving in runs all the time. There’re other guys in the lineup expected to do that. I’m paid to get on base and score run. That’s what I’m trying to do.”

It may seem easy, but it is a realization that each player needs to come to. They need to grow and mature as a player and a person to realize the type of player they need to be. It is a process.

“I think that’s half the battle. I battled with myself when I was a little bit younger. In high school, I was able to hit the ball over the fence. When I got to college, it was an adjustment I had to make, and I’d still be swinging too big. Then when I got into pro ball, my eyes started opening up. I realized it more every day. We also play more, so I can see it. It took me awhile to realize it, but when I did, it helped my game out a lot.”

When the calendar turned to September, English had another surprise, though this one was positive.

“We were coming back from Jupiter. It was about 1:00 a.m. When I hit the bus, I put my headphones on. and I find my happy place and I’m out. Smitty (Miracle manager Jeff Smith) walked up and shook my leg. I opened my eyes real groggy. He’s like, ‘Hey, just got a call. Buxton got moved up, and you’re going to New York in the morning. You’re going to fly into Rochester in the morning.’”

Great news for Tanner, of course, though he did have a quick phone call to make.

“My parents had just crossed the state line to get into Florida to come watch me play my last few games. I called my dad and said, ‘I’ve got some really bad news. I guess it could be good news. I just got moved up to Rochester, so you guys have to turn around and go home.’ They had to drive all the way back. That phone call was cool. I didn’t sleep that whole night.”

English wasn’t completely sure what he was going to do with the Red Wings, but he was excited for the opportunity, even if it was only five days.

“I thought I was just going up there to fill a spot in case somebody got hurt and needed a backup outfielder. I didn’t know that at the time they only had two outfielders on the roster and needed a center fielder. I went up there and met with (Rochester manager Mike) Quade. I said, ‘Hey, I’m Tanner. Nice to meet you. Thanks for having me.’ He said, “OK. Here’s the signs. You’re hitting ninth tonight and playing center field.’ I wasn’t expecting that, so I had to prepare for that. It was awesome.”

After going 0-6 in his first two games, English ended the season by going 5-11 with a double and a couple of stolen bases over the final three games.

“I wasn’t really going up there trying to impress anybody. I was just trying to go up there and have fun and really enjoy the experience. I ended up playing really well. I think having that mentality of just go enjoy it, it’s baseball, don’t put any extra pressure on yourself. I think that helped me the most. It’d be really easy to get thrown into that situation and get really tight and try to do too much. I’m glad I didn’t do that. I’m glad I took it pitch-by-pitch and played with a smile on my face. I know that might sound silly, but I just thoroughly enjoyed myself. The weather was beautiful. The fans were great. It was a really fun experience. And the guys were really great, they were all really good to me.”

He also was in the clubhouse when Mike Quade informed the Red Wings that James Beresford was heading to the big leagues.

“Being able to see how all the guys reacted to James Beresford getting called up. It was a really cool experience. It was a really fun experience for me to see those guys get called up and be like, I’m right here. It’s really motivating. It was a good time man.”

The regular season was over. Combined, with Ft. Myers, rehab appearances in the GCL and the late-season stint with the Red Wings, he played in a total of just 41 games. He was an ideal candidate to send to the Arizona Fall League for some additional experience.

We’ll discuss the Arizona Fall League experience, what he was hoping for in the Fall League, how he felt about it and more later in the week with additional thoughts of Tanner English.