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Remember Brian Buchanan? One of the four players the Twins received in the Chuck Knoblach trade to the Yankees in 1998. Well, he's doing quite well as Theo Tollefson caught up with the Royals Triple AAA hitting coach prior to the Saints game Saturday night. Image courtesy of Theo Tollefson ST. PAUL - 20 years ago, Brian Buchanan started his season with the Minnesota Twins squad that defied all odds to win the AL Central, advance into the 2002 ALCS, and keep the team in Minnesota for the decades to come. The downside for Buchanan with the '02 Twins squad was him being traded on July 12, 2002, for future Twins shortstop, Jason Bartlett. Now Buchanan is in his fifth season as the Royals Triple AAA hitting coach with the Omaha Storm Chasers. He sees a lot of resemblance of his old Twins teammates in the many prospects that the Royals have had going to the Majors the last two seasons. “There’s a lot of comparisons with what’s going on here to that 02 team. We all played together in the minor leagues and came up together. They’ve all played together, they’re going up there now, getting the experience, and they’ve all been playing together for at least four to five years,” said Buchanan. Having personally gone through what many of the Royals top prospects are experiencing now, Buchanan has been one the best mentors the Royals prospects can have when it comes to the mental side of hitting. One prospect in particular that has benefited from Buchanan’s coaching this season is outfielder Brewer Hicklen. Hicklen is leading the Storm Chasers this season in home runs (27), RBI (78), batting average (.257), and OPS (.893). The success for Hicklen has earned him a couple of cups of coffee with the Royals this season, and he attributes much of his success to Buchanan. “Each day we just make sure I go up to the plate with a plan, process and approach and trust that each and every day. One thing he’s big on is just forgetting what happened yesterday and each day is a new slate. It's a clean page, you know? Just make the most of that opportunity you have that day. Brian’s a positive guy who is always there for us,” said Hicklen. Royals prospect Brewer Hicklen at the plate against the Saints on 9-3-22, a player who has gained a lot from Buchanan's tutelage, Photo Taken by Theo Tollefson Buchanan’s coaching method is primarily focused on the mental side of hitting. As at this level of playing the game, Buchanan says, “Your swing is your swing and there's not a whole lot of tinkering you can do.” “Hitting is mostly about game planning, decision making, swinging hard at stuff that you can hit and picking up on stuff you can’t. At the Triple-A level, the pitching is a little different than the Majors. Pitchers can pitch you backward at times two-one sliders, three-one sliders, some off-speed stuff for heaters, counseling. You just got to help them with how they're gonna pitch you in certain situations that come up during the game,” said Buchanan. Buchanan is now in his 12th season as a coach in the Royals farm system spending the majority of that time as a hitting coach. When Buchanan began coaching in the Royals system in 2011, he started at the Royals rookie-level affiliate Idaho Falls, missing out on coaching the prospects that would later be a part of their 2015 World Series squad. He has still seen a fair share of talent come through the Royals system in recent years that are now with the Major League Squad. Those players include MJ Melendez, Drew Waters, and Bobby Witt Jr. “Bobby was here last year. He's as great as an athlete you can have. MJ Melendez is right up there too. He came down here and had a really good year last year and this year he came here and he struggled a little bit. All those young players that are up there now that were here, they're all very, very talented. The sky's the limit for those guys. At this point, it's just a matter of those guys getting up there and getting the experience.” With the Royals still in rebuild mode for their Major League squad, experience against MLB pitching is needed for the talent they want to build their franchise around according to Buchanan. “Not that the triple-A pitching isn't good. The step from this level to the big leagues is night and day. All those guys up there are throwing harder than ever and these guys we have, have the potential to be very good, big league players.” Looking back on his time with the Twins, Buchanan is grateful for what the club provided after an unexpected trade for Chuck Knoblauch to the Yankees. “I think that was a big success in the 2002 season when they finally went to the playoffs. They all knew each other, it was a great clubhouse and everyone was cool with each other. There's always a soft spot in your heart for the team that you came up with. I got traded over there and I'm very grateful for the opportunities that they gave me in this game and to always be with them.” View full article