Hangin’ Out With … Matthew Batten

Matthew Batten (Shelton, Conn.) with the El Paso Chihuahuas (Jorge Salgado/El Paso Chihuahuas)

How would you describe yourself as a player?
“I just like to be gritty and just do everything possible the right way like running hard and diving for everything. I think I’m kind of like an old-fashioned player, just kind of show up and do the job. There are a lot of things in baseball you can’t control; you can hit the ball hard but right at someone. My biggest thing every day is just trying to do everything at 100 percent and have the right approach.”

Are there any current or past Major League Baseball players you’ve tried to emulate or just enjoy watching?
“I loved watching how Derek Jeter played the game every day. He pretty much never took anything for granted, ran out every ground ball, and pretty much wanted to do everything right that you can. There’s a lot of things you can’t control in the game, but the way you approach it and the way you hustle is one of the qualities you can. That’s definitely what attracted me to him. I like to watch a lot of different guys, smaller guys that are similar to me and have to play the game the right way. Someone I’ve been watching recently would be Kike Hernandez (of the Los Angeles Dodgers) because I like how he goes about things, plays multiple positions, and it looks like he just has a good time out there. I’ve actually enjoyed watching him because he is someone who has a pretty similar role to mine currently.”