With new outlook, St. Louis Cardinals’ top pick Scott Hurst looking to build off college success

Cal State Fullerton baseball coach Rick Vanderhook watched as Scott Hurst started to figure out the game for himself this past season.

Hurst spent the first two years of his college career constantly worrying about his batting average and getting down after poor at-bats. Early in his junior season, when Hurst went through a short slump, Vanderhook spoke with him about his mindset and focusing on putting together good at-bats.

It was their only conversation on the topic in 2017. Hurst enjoyed a stellar season for the Titans, became the St. Louis Cardinals’ top pick in the MLB draft at No. 94 overall and started a new chapter in his career with the State College Spikes last week.

“He had the most consistent at-bats as we’ve had a guy for a few years,” Vanderhook said. “With his defensive abilities and his legs and different things, that’s what made him the player he is and why the Cardinals took him where they took him.”

Hurst led Cal State Fullerton with a .328 batting average and 12 home runs after struggling during his freshman and sophomore campaigns. After his breakout season, the Cardinals selected the center fielder with their third-round pick — they didn’t have selections in the first or second rounds — and assigned him to the Spikes. Hurst started in center field and hit leadoff in his first two professional games Friday and Saturday, going a combined 1 for 7 with a double, three walks and three strikeouts.

In his short time with the Spikes so far, manager Joe Kruzel sees the same skill-set that Vanderhook described — Hurst can drive the ball, runs well and has a strong arm.

“He’s got some really, really good tools,” Kruzel said. “I think once he gets settled in and gets his spikes in the ground so to speak, I know he’ll be a solid player for us both offensively and defensively.”

Hurst was a highly touted player coming out of high school after playing on the U-18 USA national team and hitting .419 as a senior at Bishop Amat in California. But he wasn’t a standout at Cal State Fullerton right away. Hurst hit .250 in 41 games and suffered a back injury as a freshman, and he hit .215 in 51 games as a sophomore.

In 2017, the junior left his results-oriented approach in the past.

“This last season, I just said, ‘You know, I’m just going to go out there and have fun and just hit the ball hard,’” Hurst said.

Vanderhook saw Hurst mature as a player in his final season. When Vanderhook talked to Hurst early in the season about letting the game come to him, the center fielder understood the message and applied it on the field.

“It’s like going to Las Vegas and chasing your money. There’s a reason why they have those big hotels,” Vanderhook said. “It’s because people chase their money and lose more money, and he figured out how not to chase his at-bats.”

Hurst later told Vanderhook their conversation made sense to him as he learned from his failure in baseball. Vanderhook never saw him struggle with the same issue the rest of the season. After he made an out, he returned to the dugout the same confident player, ready for his next at-bat. After his first at-bat, he knew how opposing pitchers were attacking him and made adjustments.

The lessons will serve Hurst well in professional baseball. He’ll have to adjust to pitchers like he did in college. He’ll have to work his way through more slumps. His focus needs to remain on putting together good at-bats.

“There’s years to go by before you can figure out how to do that,” Vanderhook said. “That’s why you need thousands of at-bats, and guys play three, four, five years in the minor leagues. That’s 500 at-bats a season. That’s 2,500 before they’re experienced enough to go play in the major leagues for most guys.”

Hurst learned how to take that approach in college with his new focus on having fun and hitting the ball hard.

“It kind of built my confidence a lot more,” Hurst said. “It helped me out quite a bit. It’s hard to explain exactly how it does that. It was a great season.”

This story was originally published July 4, 2017 at 8:24 PM with the headline "With new outlook, St. Louis Cardinals’ top pick Scott Hurst looking to build off college success."