A video of a 9-year-old swinging a baseball bat was posted to a Twitter account that aims to help young players get advice and, at older ages, gain exposure as they try to extend their careers to college or the pros.
This page, started by Twitter account @PitchingNinja, is followed by some professional baseball players who will occasionally chime in and interact with upcoming athletes.
On Feb. 17, a video was posted of a kid named Jax Nystrom. The 9-year-old had a good swing already, a particularly when considering his age.
Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman took notice, commenting “Great swing” on it.
Nystrom saw the reply.
From Jax’s dad. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/1yONWyEPPK
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) February 19, 2019
Bregman, in Florida for spring training, extended an arm to see if the excited kid was in town.
Y’all in Florida? I’ll hit with him
— Alex Bregman (@ABREG_1) February 19, 2019
Nystrom lives in the Atlanta area. He boarded a flight — his first flight ever, apparently — and was on his way to meet the All-Star.
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) February 22, 2019
They got to work, hitting on the tee and soft toss.
Bregman gave him pointers on footwork, bringing the barrel around and how to hit to the opposite side of the field.
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) February 22, 2019
Bregman is a good player to take advice from. The right-handed hitter broke out in 2018, hitting .286 with 31 home runs and 103 RBI.
While he had far more hits to the left side, spray charts show he spread the ball around the field last year, lending credence to his oppo-advice.
And whether or not Nystrom eventually joins the MLB ranks, this is a memory that will stick with the youngster for a long time.
