In a game defined by box scores, Hampton Tignor’s name has been near irrelevant the past two years.
The catcher’s career began with promise, starting 23 games his freshman year. But in the two seasons since, he has started a total of 20 games.
Entering his final season with the Gators, Tignor is not focused on the arc of his playing career.
Rather, he enjoys mentoring freshman Austin Maddox, freshman Mike Zunino and sophomore Ben McMahan.
“I’ve always had players around me who were very good at bringing me along, teaching me the game and teaching me the right way to go about the game from a mental perspective,” Tignor said. “I feel like that’s translated into where I am today as a player.”
As an underclassman, Tignor admired former Gators Matt LaPorta and Brian Jeroloman, who are now in the minor league systems of the Cleveland Indians and Toronto Blue Jays, respectively.
LaPorta was disciplined and self-motivated, and Jeroloman knew how to handle the diverse personalities of the pitching staff.
Tignor shares those lessons with the underclassmen, but he has more advice: Don’t get too excited, and don’t get too upset.
Even with a level head, a 56-game regular season can be tough to adjust to.
“The best high school teams will play 32 games total, including a state championship game,” Tignor said. “We’ll play 32 games in 35 days.”
McMahan did not get worn down by the grind of the season last year. Instead, he had the opposite problem. McMahan said he struggled to get into a groove, batting .100 in 30 plate appearances.
But he regained confidence and improved defensively last summer while playing in the Cape Cod Baseball League, which features more than 400 college players and some of the best pitchers in the nation.
After rarely playing in 2009, McMahan hopes to surprise Southeastern Conference opponents.
“People really don’t know me in the SEC too well right now,” he said, “so it’s my chance to step up and make a name for myself.”
Working mostly at first base in the preseason, Maddox is unlikely to crouch behind the plate. Head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said he might move sophomore Preston Tucker to right field if Maddox proves to be a capable first baseman.
But the experiment is predicated on the 6-foot-3, 230-pound Maddox becoming a more fluid player.
Coaches have spent the preseason improving his footwork and throwing, as Maddox said defense was not his priority in high school.
“I didn’t work on it nearly as much as I should have,” he said. “I’ve been blessed with a lot of talent, so I’ve just been able to go out there and do my thing and not really focus on the mechanics.”
Regardless of how much Maddox’s defense improves, O’Sullivan said he has found UF’s cleanup hitter.
During a batting practice session two weeks ago, Maddox hit five opposite-field home runs, each one banging off the scoreboard behind the right-center field fence.
But for all their raw talent, Maddox and the other young catchers don’t have the experience Tignor does.
And he can’t wait to use it. Not to get himself more playing time, but to help the underclassmen improve so he can do something he never has: celebrate a championship.
“If that’s not your motivation for a season, to win a ring,” Tignor said, “then you’re playing for the wrong reasons.”
