The reconstruction of Walsh’s swing began in earnest at the beginning of his second full professional season. Former assistant minor-league hitting coordinator (and current Angels assistant hitting coach) Shawn Wooten began reengineering Walsh’s stance and swing mechanics to help him better bring his power into games. Walsh真正开始重建他的挥击，是在他的第二个完整职业球季的时候。 前天使小联盟统筹 打击助理教练(*在本篇文章(2019)完成时担任天使助理打教，现已离队。) Shawn Wooten 开始改造Walsh的站姿和挥击的机制，让他能更有效的把他的力量转化至实战中。 Walsh’s stance had evolved since college, when he rested into a squat but kept his upper half upright, with much of his weight on the heels of his feet. He had gone to a more upright and closed-off stance, with his hands still. Walsh的站姿从大学开始就不断演进，当时他采用蹲姿让上半身直立，让重心集中在双脚 脚跟上。 他後来也曾使用站得较为挺直，以及封闭式的站姿，双手保持不动。 Wooten started with Walsh’s lower half, returning him to bending his knees but instead putting most of the weight on the ball of his back foot, allowing him to drive in one motion toward the baseball to generate more force. He encouraged Walsh to drop his toe tap and instead incorporate a leg kick to put his body in motion before the baseball even approached the plate. Walsh’ s home-run total jumped from seven in 2016 to 11 in 2017. Wooten从Walsh的下盘训练开始，让他练习反覆弯曲膝盖，以取代击球时把重心集中在 後脚的习惯，使他能够做出朝向棒球猛力抽击的单一动作，产生更多动能。 他并鼓励 Walsh改掉他踮脚尖的动作，并且纳入抬腿机制，让身体在棒球接近本垒板前就开始启动。 Walsh的全垒打产量从2016年的7只，提升到2017年的11只。 “I could tell the difference,” Walsh said. “When the ball came off my bat, it was much more crisp. The flight on the ball was better.” 『我可以感受到差异』，Walsh说。 『当球从我的球棒击出後，感觉更清脆了。 球的飞 行也变得更好。』 Then, Wooten opened Walsh up in the batter’s box, with his front foot almost pointing toward the pitcher. He put Walsh’s hands in motion, allowing them to controllably rotate and remain fluid before his load. Wooten, former minor-league hitting coordinator (and current major-league hitting coach) Jeremy Reed and Brian Betancourth, then the hitting coach at High-A Inland Empire (now with Triple-A Salt Lake) worked on refining Walsh’s approach, looking to cut down on strikeouts. 接着，Wooten把Walsh在打击区时的动作改为开放式，让前脚几乎指向投手。 他把Walsh 的手调整为灵活摆动的，让双手在旋转时较能控制并且在蓄力前保持流畅。 Wooten，前 天使小联盟统筹打击助理教练(*在本篇文章(2019)完成时担任天使助理打教，现已离队。 ) 、Jeremy Reed(现任天使队打教)、Brian Betancourth，当时是高阶A Inland Empire( 现任AAA盐湖城蜜蜂打教) 一起为了改善Walsh挥击的轨迹以及机制，目标是降低三振。 But after finishing the 2017 season with Double-A Mobile, Walsh started 2018 back in High-A. 但在2017年结束了AA Mobile BayBears的球季後，Walsh在2018年回到高阶A开季。 “It was kind of back and forth,” Walsh said. “Sometimes I’d be like, ‘Aw this is awesome. I’m going to do great.’ Then other times, I’m like, ‘ Wow, I suck.’” 『这有点像是原地踏步』，Walsh说。 『有时我会觉得，喔这超棒的。 我要开始打出鬼 神成绩啦。 然後有些时候，我觉得，哇，我超烂。』 But the Angels’ front office presented the demotion as a challenge. Walsh had consistently been listed on the Angels’ minor-league performance charts from the time Billy Eppler took over as general manager following the 2015 season. With each step of his progression, each major tweak to his swing, Eppler and the rest of the front office grew more convinced of Walsh’s talent. 但天使的制服组把这次降级视为挑战。 Walsh自从Billy Eppler於2015球季担任总管後， 一直被列在球队农场表现的报表上。 每一步进展、每一次挥击上的小突破，都让Eppler 和制服组众人更加相信Walsh所拥有的天分。 So Eppler was aggressive with the 39th-rounder. After Walsh tore it up in High-A to start 2018, he was moved back to Mobile. He hit just as well there, so Walsh earned his first Triple-A call-up. For the first time in three years, Walsh wasn’t angry about his draft position. He felt confident in his swing. 所以Eppler开始对这位39轮仔变得更积极。 在Walsh2018从高阶A出发，大杀四方後，他 又回到AA Mobile。 他在Mobile也打得好，因此Walsh赢得他第一次的AAA之旅。 这是三 年以来Walsh首次没有为他的选秀顺位感到不满。 他对自己的挥棒充满自信。 The 2018 season proved to be career-altering. In 549 plate appearances over three levels, Walsh slashed .277/.359/.536 with 29 home runs and 64 extra-base hits. 2018球季後来证明对於Walsh的生涯来说是转变性的一年。 在横跨3个层级的549打席中， Walsh打出.277/.359/.536附带29轰和64只长打。 “It’s very big for them to be able to kind of utilize every tool in his tool belt, to understand the strengths of the player and the things that the player can contribute,” Eppler said, “And then to make those things repeatable and translate into performance.” 『对他们来说这是一件重大成就，能够让他解放他技能包里面的每项专长并且应用，了解 球员的强项以及球员可以贡献的地方。』Eppler说，『并且让这些事情重复发生，转化成 场上的表现。』 It was enough to warrant a more serious look toward his big-league future. But not serious enough. In December, when the Angels had the opportunity to place Walsh on their 40-man roster, they held off. Walsh remained within the organization as the other 29 teams passed on him. 这足以让其他人变得更认真审视Walsh的大联盟之路，但还不够。 十二月的时候，天使队 有机会将Walsh放入他们的40人名单，但他们推迟了。 由於其他29队没挑走他，他继续留 在天使系统内。 Pitching had become something of a hobby for Walsh. But he missed it. 投球已经变成Walsh的一项兴趣。 但他仍然怀念它。 As they both traversed the minors, Walsh often phoned David Sosebee, his former college roommate and a Yankees 28th-round reliever currently in Triple-A, just to talk pitching. Each of the past three offseasons, Walsh and Sosebee have worked out just outside of Atlanta with Royals right-hander Brad Keller, another Georgia native. Walsh would half-jokingly join in on Keller and Sosebee’s throwing sessions to see if he still had it, flipping in a curveball or changeup from time to time. They discussed other pitchers, spoke freely on mechanics and each broke down ways to attack hitters. 由於两人皆经常在小联盟中奔波，Walsh时常打给David Sosebee，他的大学室友，洋基第 28轮选进的後援投手，目前在AAA打拼，只为了讨论投球。 过去三年每到休赛季，Walsh 和Sosebee会和皇家队右投手Brad Keller一起在亚特兰大郊外练习，他是另一位乔治亚州 的州民。 Walsh会半开玩笑地加入Keller和Sosebee的投球练习，看看他是否还有点料， 不时丢点曲球或变速球。 他们也一起讨论其他的投手，对於投球机制和拆解各种攻击打 者的方式畅所欲言。 While Walsh hadn’t pitched regularly in years, he still was curious. His fastball would still touch the low 90s, leading Keller and Sosebee to joke that Walsh should convert to pitching instead of hitting. 即使Walsh近年来没有规律的以投手身分出赛，他仍对这一切感到好奇。 他的球速仍然有 low 90s的水准，让Keller和Sosebee会开玩笑叫Walsh弃打从投。 “I don’t think I ever really lost the love for pitching,” Walsh said. 『我真的不认为我失去了对投球的热爱』，Walsh说。 Circumstances would give him the chance to do both. By the time he reached Triple-A last season, Walsh became a regular volunteer to pitch once games got out of reach. 偶一为之的机会让他有办法尝试投打两端。 在他上季加入AAA的时候，Walsh自愿在当比 分差距拉开到一定程度後上场投球。 His fastball still sat in the low 90s. His curveball had great shape and drop. His changeup was effective enough to stay off hitters’ barrels. In eight pitching appearances at Salt Lake, he struck out more than a batter per inning and allowed just two runs (one earned). The Angels took notice, inviting Walsh and teammate Bo Way to the fall instructional league — to work as pitchers. 他的速球仍有low 90s的水准。 他的曲球有很棒的轨迹和下坠幅度。 他的变速球足够有 效避免打者击中甜蜜点。 在盐湖城八次以投手身分出赛的机会中，他平均每局K掉一位打 者以上，只掉了两分(一分责失)。 天使队有注意到他的表现，邀请Walsh和队友Bo Way一 起去打秋季指导联盟 - 并以投手接受训练。 In December, when the Angels informed Walsh that he was attending his first big-league camp, they told him he’d be doing so as a two-way player. Walsh quickly alerted a stunned Sosebee and Keller, hoping they’d help him figure out how to prepare. 十二月的时候，当天使球团通知Walsh参加他的第一个大联盟春训，他们也告诉他要做好 二刀流选手的准备。 Walsh随即向目瞪口呆的Sosebee和Keller发出投球警报，希望他们 可以给他一些准备上的建议。 “Every offseason, he’s played catch to be a first baseman,” Keller said. “ So, he asked me, how do I get my arm ready (days in advance)?” 『每年休赛季，他在传接球练习的时候都是练一垒手的内容』，Keller说。 『所以他问 我，我要怎样让自己的手臂(在投球前几天就)准备好?』。 In reality, Walsh was fortunate to be with the right organization, and at the right time. The success of Shohei Ohtani as a rookie two-way player provided the Angels with the framework to attempt the endeavor with other prospects. Last June, they selected William English as both a hitter and right-handed pitcher in the fifth round. Then, Eppler had Walsh and Way give it a go in instructs. Kaleb Cowart, a former first-round pick who has struggled as a hitter at the major-league level, began throwing bullpens at the end of last season. Currently, the Angels have five two-way players in their organization, far and away at the forefront of repopularizing the two-way player’s role. 实际上，Walsh很幸运在一个恰当的时机，待在一个正确的球团里。 欧塔尼桑作为二刀流 新人选手的成功，提供了天使队这样的架构，愿意让其他新秀努力尝试看看二刀流。 去 年六月，他们在第五轮以打者和右投手身分选走William English。 接着，Eppler给了 Walsh和Way绿灯，让他们接受适当的指导。 Kaleb Cowart，前第一轮选秀，作为打者在 MLB层级有点挣扎，在上个赛季尾声也开始到牛棚做投球的训练。 目前，天使球团共拥有 五位二刀流球员，在让二刀流球员重拾人气的行动中领先并扮演要角。 While Eppler has stated that Walsh’s status as a former 39th-round selection had little to do with the club’s willingness to allow him to try both hitting and pitching, it’s hard to deny that experimenting is easier when less is invested in a player. For example, Hunter Greene and Brendan McKay, two of the top four picks in the 2017 draft, were each seen as potential two-way talents. The Reds had Greene exclusively pitch after selecting him second overall, and the Rays recently had McKay drop hitting from his development curriculum in an effort to accelerate his pitching progression. Walsh, a reliever unlike starting pitchers Greene and McKay, felt his limited pitching workload might play more of a factor in the Angels’ willingness to let him try. 当Eppler声明Walsh作为第39轮仔，和球团愿意让他尝试二刀流没有什麽关系的时候，你 却很难否认，这样的试验比较容易发生在球团没有花大钱投资的球员上。 举例来说， Hunter Greene和Brandon McKay，两人都在2017前四顺位被挑走，之前都被视为投打两端 具有高度天分的球员。 红人在第二顺位选走Greene後，只让他专心投球，而光芒也让 McKay放弃打击的发展课程，以致力加快投球进步的幅度。 Walsh，作为一个後援投手， 不像Greene或McKay是先发投手，认为他有限的投球局数也许是天使球团愿意让他试试看 的原因。 “Not everybody’s going to be Ohtani, frontline starter,” Walsh said. “But it’s like if somebody can go out there and get out and take a load off the bullpen, why not give it a try?” 『不是每个人都会成为欧塔尼桑，一线的先发投手』，Walsh说。 『但这像是如果某个球 员可以登板然後减轻牛棚的负担，那为什麽不试试看呢?』 By the end of March, he showed himself more a prospect than a two-way sideshow. Each day in the corner of the Angels’ spring training clubhouse in Tempe, he fielded questions from a horde of Japanese media, each asking about Walsh’s venture into being a two-way player in a post-Ohtani baseball world ( “He’s the trendsetter,” Walsh would repeat). His at-bats flashed his newfound power. His pitching appearances provided intrigue. But he wasn’t a big-leaguer yet. 到三月底，他展现自己作为潜力新秀的成分比二刀流选手还多一些。 每天在天使位於 Tempe的春训基地中的一角，他还要处理日本媒体的一狗票提问采访，像是Walsh作为一个 投打双栖球员，他的二刀流之旅在後欧塔尼桑时代的棒球世界里会有什麽改变(他是个引 领新潮流的人，Walsh会这样重复叙述大谷。) Walsh新获得的长打能力在他上场的打数间 闪动。 他登板投球时则让人充满了兴趣。 但他还不是一位大联盟球员。 So Walsh got back in the car. His mother’s 2015 Grand Cherokee was again filled to the brim with “half of my entire life” as he maneuvered his way through the mountains in the middle of the night en route to Salt Lake City. This time, he thought of what he’d told Hogan, the scout who’d vouched for him to then-Angels scouting director Ric Wilson and former general manager Jerry Dipoto, after the Angels selected him: 所以Walsh回到他的车子里。 他老木的2015年份Grand Cherokee再次承载了几乎『我的半 个人生』每当他驾驭这台车在午夜时分穿越山丘，往返盐湖城的路途上。 这次，他想到 他曾经和Hogan说过，那位曾为了他向天使球探长Ric Wilson以及天使前GM Jerry Dipoto 拍胸脯保证，就在天使队选择Walsh之後: He was going to be a big-leaguer. 他一定会成为大联盟球员。 And then, through his first 166 plate appearances at Salt Lake, he’d already slugged 10 home runs. He’d already pitched five innings, allowing a pair of runs while striking our four. Even after starting with slim odds, he’d put himself on the Angels’ radar. 接着，经过了他在盐湖城最初的166打席，他敲出10轰。 他投了5局，被得2分，送出4次 三振。 即使一开始只有渺茫的机会，他让自己出现在天使球团的雷达上。 Two months later, Walsh left his mom’s Grand Cherokee in the Salt Lake City airport, where it’s racking up parking fees. Those, Walsh will worry about later. After all, he’d be starting at first base in a major-league game that night. He’d accomplished his dream. 两个月後，Walsh把他老木的Grand Cherokee停在盐湖城机场，让爱车在那里累积停车费 。 这些琐事，Walsh将会留到稍後再来担心。 毕竟，他今晚要在MLB比赛中先发担任一垒 手。 他就要达成他的梦想了。 “I guess I’ll eventually have to pay for it,” he said with a smile. 『我猜我最後还是得付那笔钱吧』，他边说边微笑。 Walsh found out the news from Salt Lake manager Lou Marson on that Monday, May 13, fresh off a two-hit day in which he’d slugged a seventh-inning home run. Walsh was given strict orders to keep the news quiet — after all, the club’s decision to option Justin Bour didn’t become official until the following evening — so he limited who he told. Walsh called his mother, who booked a flight to Minneapolis to meet her son before Jared could even get a ticket. Walsh周一从盐湖城蜜蜂的总a ，Lou Marson那边得知这件事，5月13日，就在他单场双安 ，包含一只在七局时击出的全垒打之後。 Walsh被要求守口如瓶 – 毕竟，球团决定下放 Justin Bour的事情还没公布，直到隔天傍晚 – 因此他能分享好消息的对象有限。 Walsh也打给他妈妈，妈妈并且订了一张飞到Minneapolis的机票去见他儿子，甚至在 Walsh能够弄到一张球票之前。 “She was asleep,” Walsh said. “She has to wake up pretty early for work. I think she was fine with me waking her up that night, though. She had no problem getting that call.” 『她当时睡着了』Walsh说。 『她每天都要早起工作。 我认为她对於我那天晚上打电话 没什麽问题，尽管把她吵醒了。 她对接到那通电话完全没问题。』 Then he called Hogan. Instead of offering an “I told you so,” he simply broke down and thanked him for giving him the opportunity. “No,” Hogan said, “it was all you.” 接着他打给Hogan。 但他并没有讲干话像是『早就和你说过了吧』，而是简单的和他说谢 谢，给了他机会去证明自己。 『不』，Hogan说，『这一切全部源自於你的努力』。 “When you get a kid like that, who just says from day one, ‘Hey, I’m making it to the big leagues,’ that’s just the heart and the drive of a winner,” Hogan said. “His back’s against the wall, the 39th round. He gets out there and he proves all the all the skeptics wrong.” 『当你得到那样的年轻球员，从第一天就说着，'嘿，我一定会打到大联盟去的'，那代表 着赢家的心态和动力』，Hogan说。 『他破釜沉舟，从第39轮一路打上来。 他从那麽後 面的顺位出身然後证明所有质疑他的人都错了。』 The next day, Keller was sitting in the video room at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, preparing for that weekend’s start against the Angels in Anaheim. He got a text from Walsh. 接着隔天，Keller坐在堪萨斯市Kauffman Stadium的影片室内，准备着周末即将对上在安 纳罕的天使队的比赛。 他收到一封来自Walsh的简讯。 “When are you guys getting to LA?” Walsh asked. Keller said Thursday night. 『你们什麽时候要来LA?』Walsh问。 Keller说周四晚上。 “I’ll see you there,” Walsh responded. 『到时候见啦』，Walsh说。 “I was super excited for him,” Keller said. “I know how hard he’s worked, especially after this offseason when they told him he was going to be a two-way guy.” 『我真的为他感到超兴奋的』，Keller说。 『我了解他是多麽努力，尤其是今年休赛季 时当他们和他说要为二刀流做准备。』 So Walsh spent that Tuesday afternoon in Minneapolis, one of a handful of people with knowledge of the life-altering news. He wandered the city with his mother, dining near the team’s hotel. Just as he’d done the entire drive from Georgia to Arizona, and the subsequent drive from Arizona to Salt Lake, he thought about his journey and the odds against him to make it. 所以Walsh花了整个周二下午的时间待在Minneapolis，而知道这件改变他一生的消息的人 数不到一只手就数得出来。 他和妈妈一起漫步在这座城市，在球队下榻的旅馆附近 吃晚餐。 就像他曾经完成的长途驾驶旅程，从乔治亚到亚利桑那，接着是从亚利桑那到 盐湖城，他思索着这趟旅程以及他走到这一步的机率到底是多少。 The next day, in his big-league debut at Target Field, Walsh went 3-for-5 with a pair of sharply hit singles. Walsh’s first hit made it safely to the visitor’s dugout, but when Walsh looked for the baseball in his locker after the game, he couldn’t find the actual ball. Instead, there was a scuffed-up ball that read, “First career hit, way to go!” 隔天，在大联盟的初登场在Target Field展开，Walsh打出5之3，有两只强劲的一垒安打 。 Walsh的首安球安全的回到客队休息室中，但当他在赛後寻找自己置物柜中的首安 纪念球时，他却找不到实际的那颗球。 倒是有颗磨损的棒球上面写着『生涯首安，再接 再厉!』。 “It looks like a toddler wrote it,” Walsh said of the handwriting, which he suspected was Wooten’s. 『那看起来像是小婴儿写的字』，Walsh描述上面的字迹，他怀疑是Wooten的字。 “I don’t know what they did with it. I don’t even care. This is actually a better piece of history for me than the real ball. Somebody’s dog was chewing on this ball.” 『我不晓得他们干嘛这样。 我完全不在乎。 其实这甚至比实际那颗安打球对我来说还更 有历史意义。 可能谁家狗狗咬过那颗球吧』。 Walsh eventually got his hands on the baseball. A week after his debut, it had company after he made his major-league pitching debut at Angel Stadium, pitching the ninth inning and allowing a run against the Twins. On Sunday, a third trophy ball entered the mix — his first career walk-off, a blooper that fell in between the Rangers’ Elvis Andrus and Hunter Pence to cement a 3-2 Angels victory. Walsh也终於有机会把实战的纪念球弄到手。在他的大联盟首次亮相後一周，伴随着他在 天使球场的MLB初次登板投球，在九局对上双城队，失掉一分。 接着在周日，第三颗战利 品加入这组蒐藏 – 他的生涯首支再见安打，是一只落在游骑兵队Elvis Andrus和 Hunter Pence之间的德州安打，巩固了那场3-2的球赛胜利，天使队赢球。 Since Major League Baseball’s amateur draft scaled back from 50 to 40 rounds prior to 2012, only two players selected within the draft’s final two rounds in their final draft year have reached the major leagues. 自从2012年开始MLB将业余选秀轮数从50减到40轮後，只有两位球员是在倒数两轮获选还 能上到大联盟的。 Both were selected in the 2015 draft. Daniel Zamora, a lefty reliever, debuted for the Mets last August after being selected in the 40th round by the Pirates. Then there’s Walsh, who re-crafted his swing to the point where it is almost unrecognizable and bent baseball’s traditions to debut as a two-way player. Even now, weeks into his big-league career, Walsh can’t believe he’s here. 这两位都是2015年获选的球员。 Daniel Zamora，後援左投，在2018年八月代表梅子队登 板，他当年被海盗於第40轮选走。 再来就是Walsh，那个从头改造他的挥棒以致几乎认不 出来，并且改变了棒球的传统以二刀流初登场的球员。 即便是现在，距离他开始大联盟生 涯已经过了几周，Walsh仍然不敢相信他就在这里。 “But when we can get out there and go find a Jared Walsh, and then you have that type of story and he makes the big leagues and, golly, he does that, man that’s storybook,” Hogan said. 『但我们球探可以出门进到球场，发现Jared Walsh这样的球员，然後你有这种类型的故 事而且他上到大联盟，就像是，天啊，他真的做到了，老哥那可以写成一本故事书了』。 Hogan说。 Walsh no longer thinks of himself as a former 39th-rounder. He no longer thinks of himself as an experiment or a project, someone who had to make drastic changes and blur the lines between positions in order to get noticed. Now, he’s just a big-leaguer. Walsh再也不认为自己是个39轮仔。 他再也不认为自己是个实验品或是计画，某个需要大 幅修改自己技术或动作还是在不同守位间切换定位以吸引注意的角色。 现在，他就只是 个大联盟球员。 “I used to be mad about it,” Walsh said. “Now, it’s like I couldn’t have asked for anything better. I think I got luckier than anybody in the draft. I ended up where I wanted to be.” 『我曾经对这件事情很火』，Walsh说。 『但现在这就像是，我没办法要求任何更好的结 果了。 我觉得我比选秀会上的任何人都还要幸运。 最终我来到那个我曾经想要到达的所 在。』 --

※ 发信站: 批踢踢实业坊(ptt.cc), 来自: 150.117.141.123 (台湾) ※ 文章网址: https://webptt.com/cn.aspx?n=bbs/Angels/M.1621161225.A.0CB.html ※ 编辑: jjlooney (150.117.141.123 台湾), 05/17/2021 22:27:32