Sunshine State spotlight: MO2 interviews Triston Casas
By Joe Frisaro @ManOn2nd
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — You can tell a lot about a ball player based on his practice habits.
That’s certainly the case with Boston Red Sox prospect, Triston Casas. The 21-year-old first baseman is all business any time he steps on the field.
Yes, and it begins with practice.
Casas is laser focused during pregame stretching, infield drills and in batting practice.
Listed at 6-foot-4, 252-pounds, Casas is a left-handed hitting first baseball with plenty of power. He throws right-handed and is an option to play third base as well. But first base and designated hitter are where he’s best suited.
A South Florida native, Casas attended American Heritage in Plantation, and he was the Red Sox first-round pick in 2018. He’s currently one of the top prospects in baseball, and has the makings of being a future star.
When you possess the kind of power that Casas has, where he plays isn’t as much a factor as making sure you have his bat in the middle of the lineup.
Whenever you play him in the field, you know this: Casas will make sure he’s plenty prepared.
ManOn2nd recently caught up with Casas at the Arizona Fall League, where he is playing for the Scottsdale Scorpions. Through 15 games, he’s batting .304 with an .829 OPS.
Casas is meticulous about his preparation. In our interview, which is posted on the Five Reasons Sports YouTube Channel, he talks about how players get better in practice, and that the games are fun.
Some examples of how he prepares, Casas gets extra work at first base on digging throws out of the dirt. But instead of throws, one of the Scottsdale coaches stands at second base, and with a bat, slaps grounders to Casas, who works on scooping the ball from the dirt.
In batting practice, some days, Scottsdale hit off a pitching machine. And when they faced a lefty, a coach who throws left-handed threw BP.
Casas has a very advanced two-strike approach as well. While he possesses immense power, he’s not just swinging for the fences on every pitch.
Against lefties and hard-throwing right-handers, when he had two strikes on him, he widened his stance and choked up on the bat. His focus was putting the ball in play. ManOn2nd had the video of Casas drawing an eight-pitch walk against the lefty, after he fell behind 1-2 in the count.
Casas has had a busy 2021. He played at Double-A, and also was on the United States Olympic team that won the Silver Medal in Tokyo, Japan. Now he’s finishing up the year playing in the Arizona Fall League, where a case can be made he’s the best overall prospect in the league.
In our interview, Casas also talks about leadership, and his desire to be at the plate with the game on the line. He said, he believes because of his preparation, he has earned the right to have the weight of the big moments on his shoulders.
Casas is a prospect MO2 will be closely following, especially in 2022.