Tre’ Morgan is one of the most promising prospects in the Tampa Bay Rays organization. Drafted 88th overall last year out of LSU, the 22-year-old left-handed-hitting first baseman slashed .324/.408/.483 with 10 home runs and a 158 wRC+ in 437 plate appearances between three levels this season. Moreover, he’s only upped his profile by continuing to rake in the Arizona Fall League. As our lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen wrote on Tuesday, Morgan “is making a case to be elevated into the back of this offseason’s Top 100 list.” Morgan — a New Orleans native with a well-deserved reputation for being both personable and thoughtful about his craft — talked hitting prior to taking the field for the AFL’s Mesa Solar Sox earlier this month.
David Laurila: Who are you as a hitter? In other words, how would you describe your style and approach?
Tre’ Morgan: “As a a hitter, I’m definitely contact over power. Swinging and missing is something that just shouldn’t happen too often. That’s how I was taught to hit, by my dad really. If I run into one, it sometimes goes pretty far, but I kind of stick to gap-to-gap, trying to play with the barrel.”
David Laurila: What is your father’s background?
Tre’ Morgan: “He played football, mostly — he played college football and had a couple of tryouts for the NFL — but he taught me everything I know about baseball. He said that he was better than me [at baseball] when I was growing up.”
David Laurila: You said that the ball sometimes goes far when you run into one. What have you had in terms of exit velocities and distances?
Tre’ Morgan: “I hit one this year that was 110 [mph] and went 440 [feet]. It was to straight center on a hanging curveball. I think that’s the farthest one I’ve hit in my career. I hit a couple of nice ones in college, but that was with a metal bat. The 440 is the one I hang my hat on a little bit.”
David Laurila: Have you changed much since coming to pro ball? For instance, are your stance and swing any different from when you signed?
Tre’ Morgan: “You would see a completely different hitter. The way I hit now is closer to how I hit my freshman year of college. I kind of reverted back to that base and built from there. I didn’t really like my last two years; my setup and process weren’t comfortable for me, so I went back to what felt comfortable and built off of that.”
David Laurila: What specifically did you go back to?
Tre’ Morgan: “I’d say it’s a lot of rhythm, movement, kind of always fluid. And I go with a leg kick now. I didn’t have the leg kick my sophomore and junior year; I was kind of in the ground already. My freshman year, I’d used the leg kick, and I brought that to pro ball.”
David Laurila: Leg kick aside, how would you describe your timing mechanism?
Tre’ Morgan: “When I’m getting in my setup, I’m kind of leaning into my front leg to stay balanced, and my hands are finding the spot that they want to lock into.”
