April 18 — David McCabe

Columbus Clingstones broadcaster Jack Johnson visited with infielder David McCabe at Synovus Park in Columbus, Georgia. 

McCabe discussed his powerful start to the season, his background as a switch hitter, and the birth of his first child during the offseason.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome back to the Columbus Klingstones pregame show. Happy to be joined by Klingstones infielder David McCabe, who's off to a great start this season. You have four home runs for your first ten games played. So I want to start there. What's been the key to your hot start this season? Because in spring training, saw some injury time and some limited action, but seems like it hasn't really mattered so far.

SPEAKER_01 0:22

Yeah, I think I ended off the year pretty well last year, you know, kind of finished strong, started hit some more homers towards the end of the year, which was nice. So just kind of building off the swings that I took at the end of last year, taking that into the offseason, putting some good work in, and just able to come out and thankfully I've been able to put some good swings on some balls and hit some homers.

SPEAKER_00 0:40

You're a switch hitter. What were some of the drills that you worked on as a kid to develop switch hitting? And which side do you feel like came more naturally to you as a kid versus what it might be today?

SPEAKER_01 0:51

Yeah, I don't know if there's any necessarily drills that I would do. I would just hit a lot from both sides. So growing up I was a natural righty, but I started switch hitting when I was like four, so just taking a bunch of swings, righty and lefty, as I was growing up, and yeah, just kind of led me to where I am today.

SPEAKER_00 1:08

Is there any switch hitter that was in the major leagues or that was around in your life growing up that you kind of felt was like the model for you?

SPEAKER_01 1:16

Yeah, I think growing up, Mark Dechero was a big one. Um I don't know if necessarily a role model, but just one that kind of looked up to a little bit from a switch hitting perspective. And then yeah, I had some good former MLB players around me back home in Canada who helped coach me and guide me through both sides of my swing, so that was a big help too.

SPEAKER_00 1:35

You ended the season with Columbus last year on an absolute tear. I mean, you had a bunch of home runs that week, a bunch of RBIs against Biloxi, you were Southern League player of the week, then you go to AAA for the first time in your career. What was the main difference between AA and AAA that you felt like you experienced, and just overall, kind of what was the experience like?

SPEAKER_01 1:53

Yeah, the biggest thing is obviously they have ABS up there, so you know, compared to this league, the zones are a little tighter, the umps are always locked in because they've had ABS all year. Um pitching, guys just really know how to pitch. They know what they're doing, they know where they're attacking, they don't really miss a whole lot. So those are kind of the main differences. Games just a little bit quicker, but I mean, you know, it's still baseball, so still going out there and doing the best I can.

SPEAKER_00 2:17

Who were some of the guys that you already knew beforehand because different roster construction of AAA that you kind of instantly connected with, or it was good to see again when you got up to AAA?

SPEAKER_01 2:28

Yeah, seeing Hayden Harris, Blake Burke, Halter, Wadi, um, seeing those guys was good, and then Jar shorted up shortly after. So, you know, kind of had a little bit of familiarity, which was nice. Wasn't just going in blind and meeting a bunch of new guys for the first time.

SPEAKER_00 2:42

What was the uh offseason like for you? Anything non-baseball related that was a big part of your offseason?

SPEAKER_01 2:49

Yeah, had my first daughter born in January. Um, so that was a big deal. It was awesome, it was great. Um yeah, the rest of the offseason was just spent preparing for her to come, you know, my wife and I getting ready for that and just being able to spend our last couple months as a non-parent. So, what have the first couple months of being parents been like for you? It's been great. My wife's a rock star, she is the best wife I could ask for. She takes care of our daughter, amazing. Um, so it's been awesome. She's a little blessing, and going home and seeing her smile, like the day always fades away. So there's nothing that beats it. It's the best feeling ever.

SPEAKER_00 3:29

So, one thing I've noticed this year, swinging at 3-0 pitches, took one against Jackson Baumeister last week against Montgomery. You crushed a 3-0 pitch out of Cenovis Park this week. Is there some intention behind swinging 3-0, or what is kind of the mindset when you get to that count? Now, because I know you know that you draw a ton of walks. You can draw a ton of walks, but it seems like there's maybe more of a green light this year than in years past.

SPEAKER_01 3:53

Yeah, just looking for a good pitch to hit. I'm like you said, I take a lot of pitches, so I'm just trying to be super selective. 3-0, you know, find a pitch that I can hit a homer on, and if I can't, then move on and go to the next pitch. But yeah, a little bit of focus on just being able to really keyhole a pitch and get a good swing off 3-0.

SPEAKER_00 4:12

What is it like playing in a lineup so far with Columbus? This is the second most amount of home runs hit through 13 games since 2005 in the Southern League. And a lot of it is guys that were here last year as well. It's not just you getting off to a hot start, it feels like everyone. So, what is kind of the vibe or the energy and the dugout so far to start this season?

SPEAKER_01 4:33

Yeah, it's been a ton of fun. We're swinging it well, pitching it well, playing good defense. So winning a bunch of ball games, that's always fun. So we're just trying to keep it rolling. What has it been like to play with Nestor Perez here in Columbus in 26? Nestor's great. He's I played with him. He was my first Pro Bowl manager in Lowa when I first got drafted in 22. So he's awesome. He's tons of energy and loves to have fun. So it's been a really good time. Dave, appreciate the time, man. Thank you.