Player Profile: Steven Goldstein

Steven Goldstein is a Freshman at State University of New York at Stony Brook, better known as the Stony Brook University SeaWolves. He is 5’11” and a very stocky 175 lbs. He bats and throws left-handed and has played in LF since joining the Bourne Braves. This past spring he was named a Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American and competed in the College World Series. He hit .337, drawing 22 walks and striking out 21 times, in 166 at-bats. He collected 8 doubles, 3 triples, and hit 4 home runs. His most impressive stat is a .909 OPS (on-base plus slugging). He flashed his speed around the basepaths going 14 for 19 in steal attempts. On June 10, 2012 in the Baton Rouge Super Regional Championship, Steve shined brightly with the spotlight on him; he went 2 for 5 with an RBI. For the Braves, he was a late season addition. Through 6 games, he has 23 at-bats, 6 hits, 4 runs, 1 double, 2 walks, and is hitting .261 with a .320 on-base percentage. I am excited to watch him step-up in the CCBL playoffs the same way he stepped-up against the LSU Tigers on June 10th of this year.
    In the field, Steve takes great routes to fly-balls and covers a lot of ground. I love the fact he sprints to the spot of the baseball and is waiting underneath it before it lands.  He has made two outstanding diving plays, so he has appeared outstanding in the field. His hitting mechanics changed last game, but I would like to breakdown what I saw the first 5 games he played. He starts with a batting stance very similar to Jeff Bagwell (picture below).

He then takes a small step that borders on a toe tap. With his low stance he might have problems with keeping his head behind his hands (borderline risk in slow motion). However, I have a lot of faith in Steven's athletic ability, so he should be able to adjust. The most interesting thing about his swing is the way he aligns his entire body with the baseball. Most hitters like to stay strong through their core muscles and drive the baseball. The only other hitter I know to align their body with the ball is Major League Baseball's best contact hitter, Ichiro Suzuki. (picture below)

In fact, Steven stays even lower and more aggressive in his crouch. The first is a pitch chest-high. A lot of pitchers will try to blow a high fastball by a player who stands like Goldstein. He fouls it off in the video, and shows how tough of an out he is.

 

Another pitch to compare to Ichiro is the outside fastball. A lot of MLB pitchers pitched Ichiro outside because they felt that he was leaning away from that pitch. Unfortunately, they were pitching it exactly where Ichiro wanted it. He slapped the ball the other way and legged-out infield singles. In this picture set, Goldstein aligns his shoulders and hands with a belt-high outside fastball, and Ichiro attacks that pitch. I hope the reader can see that their upper bodies are aligned with the pitch, but Steven is in a lower crouch.

 

      There is no doubt in my mind that Goldstein has a very rare swing. However, I feel that he should be confident in the box. If he has confidence in that stance, and with those swing mechanics, then he should continue to use them. There is a lot to be said about a hitter having confidence when he steps into the box, and I feel like it is the most important thing involved in getting a hit. My notes on this Seawolves' Outfielder's swing: needs to keep his head behind his hands, he shows great plate coverage despite unorthodox approach, shows ability to square-up baseballs, and hits well to all fields. I feel like those are all positives. I have also noticed how fast he was out of the box. He was 4.19 down to first twice, and had a 3.76 on a bunt the other game! He finishes his backswing early to get a head start down to first like most fast left-handers (discussed here: John Murphy).

     As for a rundown, Goldstein still has another year of development before his draft-eligible summer. I hope he is back with the Braves, because he seems to be in the middle of a lot of big plays in his short time here. I think he is one of those players that makes things happen. His baseball mentality has been forged in the Aaron Payne mold of doing all the little things that help a baseball team win games. As for tools, I feel like he is a plus fielder, above average runner, and can hit for average. I have not seen his arm frequently enough, but arm strength can always develop. As for hitting for power, Goldstein hit 4 HRs in college, has an extremely powerful base, and plenty of hand speed. I think that certainly shows power potential. However, he needs to decide whether to hit like the Bagwell/Ichiro hybrid he is now, or change his approach. The decision is his. I just hope the Braves welcome him back next year, so that I can see it myself.