Tatford Improving With Experience

Jeff Tatford did not accomplish what he had hoped to during his rookie season in 2007, but the new season brought new opportunities as he returned to Brooklyn before moving up to Savannah. Tatford is a hard worker who likes to keep things simple and that mentality leads to improvements the more time he spends on the diamond.

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Limited playing time last season with the Brooklyn Cyclones never afforded Jeff Tatford to find consistency. The Mets’ 15th round choice in the 2007 draft was one in a platoon of catchers who had to perform their way into playing time as is usually the case in the lower levels. Unfortunately, the 6-foot-3 catcher-turned-utilityman did not produce enough, hitting .169 in 28 games last season.

Yet, things are different this year for Tatford. He began the season back in Brooklyn but after 15 games, he moved on to Savannah to clear up space on the Cyclones roster and to give him a chance to play multiple positions with the Sandgnats. That promotion, he says, has made all the difference in allowing him to build consistency.

“Getting more at-bats this year and having a consistent approach, and being consistent at the plate every day, has really brought me a long way since last year. My playing time last year wasn’t nearly as consistent as it is this year and that’s allowed me to do a good job improving,” he explained.

In 28 games in Savannah entering Friday night, Tatford holds a .293 average while predominately playing first base with time behind the plate and even in the outfield as well. Since being slotted in the starting lineup for nearly the entire month of August, there has been a maturation in his approach and consistency in his timing which lacked when he saw sparse playing time.

“The playing time I’ve had this year allowed me to produce more and stay through the middle of the field instead of pulling off the ball or swinging late.”

“Being in the lineup as much as I’ve have, I’ve been able to stay concentrated through the middle of the field whenever I’m hitting. I was in Extended Spring Training so I got a good two months of really working at that which was very helpful.”

Tatford also attributes the move from behind the plate as one of the leading reasons for his growth this year. No longer concerned with learning the catcher’s position and managing a pitching staff on every day basis has freed him up to focus the majority of his energy on his offense.

“I think my game has opened up because I’m not worrying about building a game plan for the pitchers. I still work on those things, but it’s not an every day thing and I don’t have the grind on my body and losing my legs from catching so often. That’s really helped me grow in the box as well and keep my body fresh,” Tatford continued.

“With enough at-bats, I should be able to figure things out or at least know what I need to fix. If I can’t get consistent enough playing time, I may be standing up there seeing an 89 MPH fastball and reacting like its 94 MPH if I only get up there once a week. I’ve been able to slow things down and I think that’s helped me out the most.”