 "Photo: Molly Connolly")
 "Photo: Eliot Meyer")
See ball, hit ball. It's a cliche for the simplest approach to hitting a baseball. Easy as it sounds, everyone will tell you it's really not that simple.
Everyone except Brandon Belt. It's just not that complicated for Texas' first baseman.
"He said, 'If it's outside, I hit it to left field; if it's inside, I hit to right field,'" associate head coach Tommy Harmon said of Belt. "That's about as simple as you can get."
And regardless of how many times you ask him, prying for him to reveal some kind of secret to his success, Belt insists there's really not that much to it.
"I just put the bat on the ball," the left-hander said. "I don't care where it goes to be honest with you."
Whether or not you believe getting hits is that simple, Belt's production is unquestionable. He leads the team with 42 RBIs and 74 total bases, behind a .319 batting average and a .525 slugging percentage.
The Hudson High School product out of Lufkin has all the numbers, despite an awkward batting stance. Just like former major leaguer Jeff Bagwell's, Belt's stance is wide and squatty.
"I was talking to coach Garrido about this the other day and he said, 'Ya know, you can't fix that,'" junior Travis Tucker said.
Given Belt's success, the Longhorn coaching staff hasn't tried. When Harmon recruited Belt to come to Texas, he warned Garrido about Belt's unusual stance.
"I told him, 'This kid's different, but we're going to have to leave him alone,'" Harmon said. "[The first time Garrido saw him] he was hitting line drives everywhere, so he was an easy sell. If he hadn't been hitting that first day it might not have been that easy of a sell. But we don't really care if you stand on your head, if you get a base hit."
His stance is strange to everyone else, but it's all Belt has ever known. He traces it back to his Little League days in Nacogdoches and his coach Kenneth Beck. As a member of Beck's Cardinals, Belt said he just hit like Beck told him to.
"He really worked with me on my hitting, and he really got me hitting the way I do," Belt said. "It has worked for me ever since, so I just keep on doing it."
And while his teammates mock his stance in the batting cages, no one can replicate Belt's effectiveness with it.
"We always just swing and miss," Tucker said. "I don't see how he can hit like that. It's just one of those things, you can't do it. I don't see how the barrel [of the bat] can get there like that."
Belt catches a lot of flak about his stance, but reminding his teammates of his numbers is usually enough to silence them. The first baseman's production was actually a pleasant surprise to Harmon and Garrido after they recruited him.
Belt was a highly coveted pitching prospect out of high school and originally committed to Texas. But after being selected by the Atlanta Braves in the 11th round of the Major League draft, he decided to attend San Jacinto College. From there, as a draft-and-follow, he could have gone pro after one year with the Gators, but Atlanta's offer wasn't tempting enough, and Belt opted for a transfer to Texas.
His time at San Jacinto revealed his power at the plate. He finished with a .441 batting average and 10 home runs as a pitcher and designated hitter for the Gators.
"When we recruited him he was pretty much just a pitcher," Harmon said. "When he went to San Jacinto last year and was one of their best hitters, that was somewhat of a surprise. We had a void at first base, so it worked out well."
Aside from excelling at the plate, Belt is also developing into a force on the hill. The sophomore (1-0, 1.93 ERA) has two saves in eight appearances and 9 1/3 innings.
For a guy that contributes so much to his team, Belt already should be loved by his teammates. But Belt is even more likeable as a person than he is as a ballplayer. His East Texas drawl and straightforward, no-nonsense personality make him one of the funniest guys on the team.
Nicknamed Jethro (from the Beverly Hillbillies in the 1960s) because of his resemblance to character, Belt almost always has a smile on his face and constantly keeps his teammates laughing.
"He actually looked me straight in the eye and goes, 'Why is it every time I say something, you laugh at me,'" catcher Preston Clark said. "He was dead serious, and I just started cracking up right then."
Harmon added, "He'll come up with some things that really just crack 'em all up. They're just so genuine and so simple, but so true. He's a genuine person and real. Great kid."
Belt has a unique mindset, but that's what makes him a joy to be around. He may have a different way of doing things, but he flat out gets it done. And he and everyone else around him have fun in the process.
Be the first to comment on this article!