With the 1st year player draft pool being announced this past weekend, we thought we would take the time to look back at the D-Bag's last year's first round pick, 1B Matt "Down Home" Doyle.
Doyle was a decorated star coming out of University of Texas, having one of the better careers the college level had ever seen. He left school with the highest batting average ever sitting at .410, with 3 of his 4 years besting the .400 mark. His OPS still sits 4th as well as his OBP and he ranks in the Top 10 of most every other major category over the college career.
Needless to say, Jersey was ecstatic when Doyle fell all the way to them at pick number 18 in the first round of last's year's amateur draft. Pre-draft lists and reports had him going between 10-15, but as high as 7, so GM Josh Swain and co. jumped on the opportunity to add the collegiate star.
At age 22 at the time of the draft, the Virginia native was eager to jump into professional baseball and show his merit. Jersey Shore sent him to their A-ball affiliate Manhattan to play for the Meatheads. Doyle played in the Meatheads final 21 games after being drafted and things did not go as planned. Instantly you could tell that pro ball pitching was much different than Doyle had seen at the college level. He struggled immensely only managing 14 hits in 83 AB's for an impossibly low .169 average. Combine that with only 3 walks in 86 PA, and his OBP was less than a 1/3 of what it was at Texas.
Doyle on his struggles, "It was frustrating. I went from a level where I hit everything, had extreme confidence and was having fun. I get drafted and I couldn't have been higher, but once you start slumping it messes with your head. Instead of going out there and having fun, I was out there mad at myself, trying to hard and wasn't getting results. It was a long off season, so many things going through your head and I just wanted to get back out there."
In the off season Doyle spent time back in his high school gym hitting with his old high school coach just to get back to the basics. About 3 weeks before Spring Training started Doyle flew down to Jersey's training complex and spent time hitting with Jersey Shore stars Parker Morrow and Mason Bonniface.
Despite his struggles of 2011, Baseball America named him the 41st best prospect in VBL6 before the season. Whatever he did in the offseason took immediate effect as he came out in April and hit .291, bashing 4 HR being thrust into the cleanup spot in Manhattan. Through July his numbers are immensely improved from his first 21 game stint as a rookie. He has put up a respectable .253/.333/.392 line while hitting 13 HR and knocking in 64 RBI. He leads the team in RBI and is 2nd in HR. He knows that those stats aren't going to stick out on a page, but a much needed improvement for the still young 23 year old.
If everything goes to plan Doyle should find himself tested with a promotion to Gainesville for the last month or so of the season. If he continues to improve we can only help that we will see him manning 1st base for the D-Bags in the future.
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