Eckstein a hit

VIERA, Fla. - Rick Eckstein never played in the major leagues. He never played in the minor leagues. The pinnacle of his playing career came in 1996, when he got 75 at-bats at the University of Florida.

His batting average before an injury ended his dreams of playing: .200.

So how is it that the diminutive 35-year-old, who needs to stand on his tiptoes to see into a batting cage, has not only earned the title of Washington Nationals hitting coach, but also the respect of his entire roster of major leaguers?

“That’s probably the question a lot of people have,” infielder Kory Casto said. “And coming in, if you don’t know the guy, you might wonder that. But after talking to him for five minutes, you wouldn’t ever think of that again.

“He’s by far one of the hardest-working coaches I’ve ever met. He knows what he’s doing.”

Up and down the clubhouse at Space Coast Stadium, Nationals position players are echoing those sentiments. Eckstein has been working firsthand with most of them for only a few weeks, but he’s already made such a strong impression that he’s earned multiple nicknames.

Outfielder Ryan Langerhans calls Eckstein “The Guru.” Casto refers to him as “The Hitting Whisperer.”

Those two have had a chance to work with Eckstein longer than most others in the organization, because Eckstein spent last season as hitting coach at Class AAA Columbus.

Langerhans was a career .265 hitter in the minors before meeting Eckstein. Last season he hit .310 with an .864 OPS. Casto’s career minor league average was .270. His numbers last year: a .308 batting average and .881 OPS.

Now the Nationals hope Eckstein, older brother of Padres shortstop David Eckstein, can work the same magic on a big league lineup that was among baseball’s least productive in 2008. Promoted from within as a key member of Washington’s revamped coaching staff, the determined Eckstein is in the major leagues at last.

Not that he looks at this opportunity any differently than those he’s had before.

“To be honest with you, every day I’ve shown up in my life as a professional coach, I’ve always been in the big leagues in my mind,” he said. “That’s the way I prepare. So it really doesn’t matter who I’m working with. It’s the mindset that I take into that job.”

Eckstein’s approach hasn’t changed at any point in his coaching career, which dates back to the late 1990s at Florida, where he joined the staff upon graduating with a degree in health and human performance. It served him well during stops at Seminole (Fla.) Community College, the University of Georgia, Class A Vermont, Class AA Harrisburg and Class AAA towns New Orleans, Louisville and Columbus.

It’s also landed him spots on the coaching staff for the U.S. team that participated in last summer’s Beijing Olympics, the inaugural World Baseball Classic and other international competitions.

Eckstein’s hitting philosophy is simple: Every player has what he likes to call an “A swing” in him, the swing that produces the most impact. His job, then, is to get each of his hitters to find that swing every time he steps to the plate.

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