Frostad finding comfort behind the plate for Blaze

BY Mason Kelley, Bakersfield Californian staff writer
Photo by Alex Horvath

He steps to the plate, holding a tan Louisville Slugger. It's in the second inning, so the sun is still setting behind the wall in center field, creating a pink and purple horizon.

Once he's in the batter's box, he lifts the bat behind his head. It drops down, almost touching his shoulder. It slowly pistons back up, wiggles briefly and, as the ball crosses the heart of the plate, he rips the bat through the zone with concussive force.

The ball lands over the fence in center, and he begins his trot around the bases.

Emerson Frostad always seemed to be a man between positions.

Until now.

Through college and his early minor league career he found himself in a backlog of talent.
At Lewis-Clark State in Lewiston, Idaho, Frostad bounced from third to first and even caught briefly.

Then, after signing with the Rangers in 2003, Frostad started at third base, until he found his way to the majors blocked by Hank Blalock, a perennial .300 hitter.

So with his future up in the air, the Rangers made a move. They asked him to switch to catcher.
It's hard to find a left-handed hitting catcher that hits for both average and power.

Frostad agreed to the switch. Now 28 games into the season, the 23-year-old is still finding his way, but he's close.

He's found a position, now it's a matter of growing into it.

"If I could catch, that would give me another tool in my bag that would definitely help me make it all the way quickly," Frostad said of his thought process while making the switch.

o o o

It's the top of the second inning. The runner takes a comfortable lead off of first base. As the pitcher winds and delivers, the runner takes off. The catcher is waiting to spring, the ball can't hit his glove soon enough. As the ball smacks the center of the mitt, the catcher is up. He fires a strike to second base, but it's high and outside. The runner is safe.

Growing up in Canada, a country known more for hockey than baseball, Frostad got his baseball fix playing with the Calgary Dawgs youth development club.

The Dawgs took Frostad into Washington, Idaho and Arizona and he caught the eye of several college coaches, most notably Lewis-Clark State coach Ed Cheff.

"I liked the bat a lot," Cheff said when looking back on how Frostad caught his eye. "The fact that he was a left-handed hitter with a nice swing."

Cheff always knew Frostad would make a good catcher. He said Frostad had the pain tolerance and instincts all catchers need.

But after redshirting his freshman year, there wasn't much of an opening for Frostad to catch.
Cheff said he planned to groom Frostad to be a catcher his junior and senior seasons.

Then Frostad was drafted.

So, after two years at third base, and two NAIA national championships, Frostad moved on to the Rangers.

"It was awesome," said Frostad, summing up his collegiate experience.

o o o

The catcher settles into his crouch. He spreads his mitt as wide as he can, giving the pitcher a large target. He sets up just off the plate, waiting for the pitch. As it smacks his glove, he frames it right on the corner, but the umpire won't bite.

For most players, a position change requires a few adjustments: where to stand, situations to look out for and what throws to make.

But to switch to catcher, a player must envelop himself in baseball. He is forced to study opposing hitters. He needs to learn the quirks of the pitchers on his staff. He must learn things that seem simple, like throwing the ball back to the pitcher.

"You've got to do it perfectly, especially if there is a runner on third," Frostad said.

This year, spring training became a crash course in catching. He worked with Rangers catching coordinator Damon Berryhill and Scott Servais, the team's director of player development.

Frostad spent days trying to figure out when to drop to his knees and block a ball and when to catch it in the air.

He practiced throwing out runners and calling a game.

And, while he still makes plenty of mistakes, he's getting better.

"For only starting to catch this spring, he's unbelievable," Blaze pitcher John Bannister said.

"He looks like a major league catcher."

Before Mike Nickeas suffered a hamstring injury, Frostad was catching about every third day.

When he wasn't catching, he was following Nickeas around, asking for suggestions.

During batting practice you can find the two behind the batting cage or roaming the outfield shagging flies.

They're always together, always talking about improving their games.

"Unfortunately, Mike Nickeas got hurt, but that allowed me to start and play more," Frostad said.

"That's when I really took off. It's unfortunate for him, but I had to take advantage of it."

o o o

There is a runner on second base with one out. As the pitcher goes into his windup, the runner goes. The pitch hits the glove, strike three. The catcher leaps from his crouch and throws to third base. The umpire pumps his fist. Out No. 3, for the strike 'em out, throw 'em out double play.

The one thing that has eased Frostad's transition from the infield to the backstop is his bat.

He's always been a hitter first.

"Especially with how baseball is going these days, that's pretty much everybody's ticket," said Frostad, who was hitting .324 with a team-high six home runs heading into Saturday's game against Rancho Cucamonga.

If he ever hits a fielding slump, his bat helps keep his confidence.

For Frostad to make the majors, he has a lot of work to do. But power-hitting, left-handed catchers are a commodity that should get him a look.

Either way, Frostad has a home.

He's found his position.