Tenacious "D"

When Dante Bichette Jr. was selected in the second round (51^st overall) in the 2011 draft, it was criticized.  Keith Law called the selection an over-draft and ignored his athletic ability, already relegating him to a corner outfield position. If he was that connected, he would have known already that the scouts contacting the Bichette family had him pegged for the 1^st or 2^ndround. That’s what Law does though, he ignores facts.  He didn’t pay any attention to the fact that Dante was a highly skilled tennis player that had the ability to remain at third-base.  When Dante was raking in the Gulf Coast League, Law said he was only doing so because the more advanced pitchers hadn’t signed yet.  When “D”, as his mother calls him, didn’t stop smoking the ball to all fields, Law was nowhere to be found.  He then went on to claim that Dante was an “all or nothing hitter” which is funny considering his advanced approach at the plate for somebody so young.  Look at the On-Base Percentage and his pitch recognition ability, Law.  It’s Okay to admit that you were wrong.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s move on.  Dante is in a slump right now but he is still getting on-base.  The overall stats might say otherwise to those who only look at the box scores & form their conclusions. When you look at the difference between his batting average and the on-base percentage, you can tell that his approach at the plate remains the same, and that is a good sign.  His lack of strikeouts shows that he is not being overwhelmed with South Atlantic League pitching, he’s just in a bit of a slide right now.  Considering his age, it’s perfectly normal and he is going to bust out of it.  It is actually pretty good that a player who has seen success his whole life to struggle because that shows the character of a person.  When you struggle, that is when you learn about yourself, and a high character person like Dante Bichette Jr. is going to overcome anything that comes his way.  Whether he is on the field or off it, one thing that is certain and that is he will always make a positive impact because he not only possesses the skill, but the fire to want to improve.

 Twitter: @trevwolff