IN THE SPOTLIGHT: IN A PINCH : MULTI-TALENTED HANSEN A HIT OFF BENCH.Byline: Joe Haakenson Staff Writer Get up, go surfing. Go to the ballpark, play baseball. Come home, play the guitar. Sounds like the life of a typical Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, kid in the summer. Only, we're talking about a 30-year-old kid. Dave Hansen
Just because he's in the big leagues now, with a wife and two daughters, Hansen sees no reason why he can't continue to enjoy those things. Hansen, though, respects his job with the Dodgers enough that he'll stay off the surfboard during the baseball season. When the season winds down, surf's up. As for the guitar, it's been in his hands as much as a baseball bat for most of his life. And if he can handle the guitar like he handles the bat, it's safe to assume he can pick it pretty good. Hansen has become one of the best pinch-hitters in baseball. He's more than halfway to Dodgers coach Manny Manny may refer to: In nobility:
As a pinch-hitter, Hansen has a career batting average batting average n. Baseball A measure of a batter's performance obtained by dividing the total of base hits by the number of times at bat, not including walks. Noun 1. of .288 with six home runs and 43 RBI RBI abbr. Baseball runs batted in Noun 1. rbi - a run that is the result of the batter's performance; "he had more than 100 rbi last season" run batted in . Pinch-hitting is regarded as one of the most difficult tasks in the game because players often sit for several innings, then enter with the game on the line. ``It's more of a mental game than physical,'' said Hansen, who is hitting .275 this season with two homers and 13 RBI. ``Guys that are in the flow of the game early have a tough time (pinch-hitting) because it's usually done late. I try early to get into the flow mentally, but not physically. ``Adrenaline is a big part of it. You have to harness your adrenaline. When you're up there, you have to block out the situation because, usually, it's a tight game. That's when you turn into a Little Leaguer lea·guer 1 n. 1. A siege. 2. The camp especially of a besieging army. tr.v. lea·guered, lea·guer·ing, lea·guers Archaic To besiege; beleaguer. - see the ball, hit the ball. You try to make it simple.'' Hansen credits his teachers - former teammates Mickey Hatcher Michael Vaughn Hatcher (born March 15, 1955 in Cleveland, Ohio) is a former Major League Baseball player and a current coach. Most notably, he was Kirk Gibson's replacement for the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1988 World Series, batting .368 (7/19) with two home runs and five RBI. , Chris Gwynn Christopher Karlton "Chris" Gwynn (born October 13, 1964 in Los Angeles, California) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. During his 10-year career, Gwynn spent 7 seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers (1987-1991, 1994-1995), 2 seasons with the Kansas City Royals and Mitch Webster Mitchell "Mitch" Dean Webster (Born May 16, 1959, in Larned, Kansas), is a retired Major League Baseball outfielder. Webster played for six different ballclubs during his 13-year career: the Toronto Blue Jays (1983-1985)), Montreal Expos (1985-1988), Chicago Cubs - for helping him become a good pinch-hitter. And, of course, ``Manny's still around. We still talk about it. I'm lucky that way.'' ``He's patient at the plate; he's selective and he knows the strike zone,'' Mota said of Hansen. ``He doesn't try to kill the ball; he makes good contact and puts the ball in play. He's very disciplined and very professional. And he knows every pitcher in the book.'' Despite his success, Hansen still wants to be an everyday player. He's had his share of starts - 98 at third base in 1992 - but finds himself in a peculiar situation. Since a quality pinch-hitter is so difficult to find, he actually hurts his chances of being a regular player by being successful off the bench. ``That's true, but I'm not going to do bad to try to get into the starting lineup For the line of action figures, see . A starting lineup in sports refers to the set of players actively participating in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes ,'' Hansen said. ``I accept my role on the ballclub and I enjoy it. But I do hope to be an everyday player one day. That keeps me going.'' Either way, Hansen always has his guitar. ``I'm not a rock star; I'm a baseball player. I don't confuse the two,'' Hansen said. ``But for me, it's something I've always had. It runs in my family. My father (Guy) plays, and my uncle played drums. I played in my share of groups in high school. And my cousin is doing it professionally now with his band.'' Hansen has a guitar in a back room near the Dodgers' clubhouse. Every now and then, he'll round up a few other players who play music and they'll jam. A few years ago, Hansen often would play with Mike Piazza Michael Joseph Piazza (born September 4, 1968 in Norristown, Pennsylvania) is an American Major League Baseball player who currently plays for the Oakland Athletics. He began his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers and played for the Florida Marlins, New York Mets, San Diego Padres , who plays the drums. Now in his second tour with the Dodgers - he left after the 1996 season, played one season with the Cubs in '97 and in Japan in '98 - Hansen appreciates being so close to the ones and things he loves. ``I enjoy being home,'' he said.``You appreciate it more when you play somewhere else and come home. And you realize why you like Southern California so much.'' CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Dave Hansen has a .288 career batting average with six home runs and 43 RBI as a pinch-hitter. Hansen is more than halfway to Manny Mota's record for career pinch hits. Mark Lennihan/Associated Press |
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