Atlanta Braves’ Jason HeywardKISSIMMEE, Fla. — Jason Heyward reaches into the basket, pulls out a ball, places it on the tee and stares out toward the empty mound.
He sweeps the bat once in front of his knees, pulls it back behind his left ear, pauses briefly and then — after slightly lifting his right foot and rocking back on his left — unleashes a mighty swing at the motionless ball, sending it flying into the netting.
Then he does it again. And again. And again.
It is here, in the isolation of the batting cages just beyond the center-field wall of Champion Stadium, that the Reconstruction of the J-Hey Kid takes place on a daily basis in spring training.
“Just get a feel for what you want. Just tell yourself, ‘One-on-one. Get in your own zone, put yourself in game situations,'” Heyward said. “When you get in a game, you don’t want to think that much. That’s where you get your thinking done, in the cage.”