Interview with Tri-City Prospect Jordan Scott

Just like last year, Greeneville Astros MVP Jordan Scott made himself available to us for a few questions. Jordan was very receptive to our request for an interview and easy to interact with. Give him a follow on Twitter @jtscott1

You've put together a couple good seasons since being drafted, including being named the MVP for Greeneville this year. What areas of your game do you see as opportunities to improve? There’s room for improvement in every aspect of my game, but my outfield work is what I’d like to focus on the most. It’s been an adjustment to see the ball coming from left field instead of center field like I was used to growing up, so I need to improve on reading the angle of the ball and taking more efficient routes to it.

Do the players pay any attention to what guys like me are saying about them? Obviously any player would be curious about how an outsider perceives them on and off the field, but as players, we tend to focus on the feedback coming from inside the organization rather than the outside.

What do you have going on this offseason? Have the Astros given you any indication of its plans for you next year and going forward? I think offseason is really important to prepare myself for another season, so once instructional league is over I’ll take a few weeks off and start working out at Acceleration Sports Institute with trainers and a few other minor league players. As far as plans for next season, I can never be one hundred percent sure of where I’ll end up, I’m just preparing myself for wherever I do go.

What was your favorite moment this year, both on field and off? On the field: Playing with the Lexington Legends in my home town against the Greenville Drive (see next question). Off the field: Rooming with my Korean teammate Chan J. Moon. Helping him learn how to pump gas and use his cruise control for the first time was entertaining. We had some major cultural differences, but we got really close. He’s a great guy.

Early in the season you had a chance to play in Greenville. How did it feel being back home as a visiting player? It’s always been my dream to get drafted and play professional baseball. To actually do it and in front of my friends and family was an experience I’ll never forget.

It seems like the younger players, such as yourself, are more in tune with social media outlets like twitter. What do you, as a ball player, feel are the benefits and drawbacks of having that level of fan interaction? Has the Astros organization given players any guidance concerning the use of social media? I think having social media helps fans to connect with me on a more personal level which is cool. But sometimes I feel bad for high profile players because it seems the more popular you become, the harder it is to keep professional life separate from personal life. The Astros tell us to be careful of what we post on social media because once you post something, it’s there forever.

What made you want to play baseball? Growing up, I played a lot of sports, but I excelled in baseball and felt most comfortable with it. That’s why I chose to pursue baseball.

What was your favorite team growing up? Favorite player? Atlanta Braves and Andrew Jones

At what point did you start to realize you were going to be drafted? I started to realize I was going to get drafted probably the summer after my junior year. I was playing with a pretty good ball team that summer called the Carolina Cyclones and played in a lot of showcase tournaments around the country. A lot of scouts came to the games and watched me throughout the summer and towards the end they started talking to me after the games and a few actually came to my house. So by the end of that summer I realized it was a possibility I was going to get drafted.

What did you do to celebrate? I was on a senior trip in the Dominican Republic and all of my friends and I just went out and had a good time that night. When I got home my parents threw me a going away party which was nice and had a lot of fun.

What’s the best part of minor league life? The worst? The best part would have to be getting to visit all the cool stadiums the minor league has to offer. Worst would have to be definitely the bus rides and the not so nice hotels you stay at.

What major league player do you compare yourself to? Jacoby Ellsbury. He is a 5 tool player that can do everything well. He has worked real hard to be where he is today and I’m pushing myself to become as good as he is.

I’ve been lamenting the lack of good baseball nicknames the last several years. Do you have a nickname? Most everyone on the team calls me Skinny.

What teammate do you think will be getting people’s attention in the next few years? I played with 3 teams this year and there were a lot of really good ball players I played with. Some guys that I think will be getting a lot of attention in the next few years would be Chase Davidson, Ariel Ovando, Jean Batista, George Springer, Delino Deshields, Mike Kvasnicka.