Travis Snider was perched in front of his locker, head phones on, just groovin' several hours before participating in his first-ever Major League Baseball home opener for the Toronto Blue Jays.
Snider said he was listening to a little Hip-Hop – Paul Wall if you must know – to get him in the mood for the Detroit Tigers.
Hard to believe this kid is only 21 the way he carries himself – self-assured in his talents but not cocky or over-bearing in the slightest.
“I'm sure when 7:07 rolls it's going to be go time,” Snider said when asked if he is ramped up. “Up until that point you're just trying to stick to your routines and what you've done in the past … and allow those to carry into the game and mentally prepare yourself.”
Although Snider hit .381 during spring training, Toronto manager Cito Gaston will be batting the rookie ninth for the next little while.
“He will move up if he continues to hit the way he's hit,” Gaston said during his pre-game meeting with reporters. “I've left him there, he's been comfortable there and he'll move up in time.”
It's also interesting to see how Gaston has deployed two of his other left-handed hitters with DH Adam Lind hitting fifth and Lyle Overbay seventh.
Overbay had just a dreadful time with the bat during spring training, hitting a paltry .174 and Gaston hopes batting him seventh might help to re-awaken his stroke.
“Just to take a little pressure off him right now and see if he can work his way out of his slump he's been in most of the spring,” Gaston explained of his thought process regarding Overbay.
