Features

M&F sat down with one of the game's best athletes to chat about training and his off-season move to the west coast

By Mark Thorpe | Photo courtesy Los Angeles Angels | Homepage photo by Shannon Stapleton/Reuters

Torii Hunter headed to the Los Angeles Angels this off-season for the kind of money ($90 million) that usually involves multinational corporate mergers. No matter. The Angels got a deal. Hunter brings seven gold gloves, 192 homeruns and 711 RBIs to an increasingly potent offense, as well as a veteran's leadership and an old school, play-or-die attitude. We talked to him in February about his role with the Angels and about the mental and physical aspects of succeeding on the Major League level.

Q: Why did the Angels want you?
A: I'm one of those guys who goes out and plays the game the right way. I play hard. I run the bases well. My defense never goes anywhere. I'm pretty sure my defense is one of the reasons they added me to the lineup. I've been hitting for power the last five or six years. I bring a total package.

Q: What's the perfect scenario for Torii Hunter and the Angels?
A: Getting to the World Series and winning it. Everybody knows the money was great, but if the Angels sucked, I wouldn't be here. It's all about winning. I love the way the Angels play the game. I'm here to run over a catcher if I have to, take out a second basemen, make a diving play or a game-winning hit.

Q: How do you maintain your 32-inch vertical jump?
A: When I train, I do a lot of footwork and jumping and bursting exercises. I do frog jumps. You hold a medicine ball above your head, then bring it down between your legs, then swing it out as far as you can and jump with it.

Q: What's the hardest part about a 162-game schedule?
A: Among baseball players we have something called the Dog Days of August. August and September are when you get tired mentally. Physically you're tired, but mentally this time can make you very tired.

Q: How do you stay focused?
A: The routine you've had the whole season, you keep it going. I think about how far I've come in my life or in the game. I close my eyes and visualize that. I put everything in perspective, and I tell myself, "This is not the time to quit now, let's go!"