"The Thrill" is back? - Belt compared favorably to Will Clark

ONE OF MY ALL-TIME GIANTS FAVORITES - WILL "THE THRILL" CLARK

By no less than an authority than Will Clark himself, BTW. One of the sweetest swings in Giants (baseball?) history and we have a chance to see it again? I can't wait for 2011 to begin.

The following quotes from Clark and Giants minor league managers and instructors like Jim Davenport and Steve Decker are an early indication that this kid could be another ROY candidate in the future. He may need some AAA seasoning and like Posey could be a mid-season candidate for promotion if someone else falters, but that's OK. Some things are worth waiting for.

Having Belt as a potential power bat lessens the need for the Giants to have to overpay for a veteran bat or a corner OF with power. Once again, kudos to the scouting team that has drafted well for the Giants in the past 3-4 years. The seeds that were planted from those drafts are now being harvested on the major league roster.

From mlb.com report:

By Chris Haft / MLB.com

SAN FRANCISCO -- Seeing Brandon Belt take his cuts last year prompted San Jose Giants hitting coach Gary Davenport to recall another graceful and gifted left-handed batter: Will Clark.

Davenport mentioned this to Clark one day when the six-time All-Star, now a special assistant for the big league Giants, visited the organization's high Class A affiliate.

Clark quickly disagreed.

"He has a better swing than I did," Clark said.

That might sound preposterous to legions of fans who cherish the memory of Clark's syrupy, yet savage, stroke. But it reinforces the notion that Belt's an uncommonly talented performer who might become yet another first-year offensive dynamo for the Giants, following Pablo Sandoval (2009) and Buster Posey ('10).

"I'm just amazed how he lays off pitches at such a young age," Davenport said, adding that Belt's refusal to chase pitches forces opponents to throw him hittable strikes. "Like Barry Bonds, when the ball is two inches off the plate, he's not going to swing at it."

Part of Davenport's job description is fixing a hitter's flaws before they become habits. He didn't have to work much with Belt, a fifth-round selection out of the University of Texas in the 2009 First-Year Player Draft.

"I saw him for half a year and I kept looking for weaknesses," Davenport said.

"If you get Brandon out a certain way, he has the ability to make adjustments," Decker said. "A lot of times, it takes 1,500 at-bats in the Minor Leagues for guys to be able to do that."

Davenport praised Belt's skills at first base: "He's very close to J.T. Snow, [Travis] Ishikawa, that caliber."

"He's very self-effacing and ultra-competitive once the game starts," Skeels said.

"I don't think Major League camp will bother him," Decker said.

Even with these glowing reviews, unless Belt is at the top of the batting average leader board in spring training, he seems destined for AAA out of camp. And that's OK. Hopefully, lightning strikes twice for the Giants with hitting prospects.

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