2022 LSU Gumbo - Book - Page 58
Jacob Berry had never been to Louisiana before. He knew a
few things about the state’s relationship with baseball, but he had
never experienced the passion and energy for himself.
So when there were nearly a dozen cameras filming his first
interview on LSU baseball’s Media Day, along with numerous
other recording devices, Berry looked overwhelmed. He had
never seen anything like this.
“I didn’t even see them in [Nebraska],” Berry commented on
the amount of media attention present. “So that’s a little bit new
to me.”
He gave a shaky smile and continued. “Just trying to do the
best I can right now.”
Berry grew up in a suburb of Phoenix, Arizona in a town
called Queen Creek. The oldest of four, the Berry family loved
baseball and softball. Arizona is a hotbed for the game, with
the Cactus League taking place all over the state for some
MLB spring training, and the Arizona Diamondbacks making
their home in Phoenix as well. Perry Berry, Jacob’s father, was a
massive influence on his children’s lives, and one of the easiest
ways was taking Jacob and his family to Diamondbacks games.
“I remember watching Paul Goldschmidt growing up,” Jacob
said. “Just the way he played the game was unbelievable. A great
character guy, plays the game and just did everything the right
way. That’s how I approach my game and how I want to play as a
player.”
When he wasn’t watching games at Chase Field, Jacob was
working with his seasoned veteran of a father. Perry played four
stellar seasons in UL-Lafayette as an infielder and was drafted by
the Houston Astros in the fourth round of the 1990 MLB draft.
He spent four years in the minor leagues but never made a major
league appearance.
Since then, he has served in the Arizona public school system
as the Queen Creek County School Superintendent, where he got
to be very involved in his son’s growth as a player and a person.
“He’s been my biggest supporter in everything: baseball,
school, and life,” Jacob said fondly of his father.
The strength of their relationship was palpable with his
words. One of the first things he taught his son on the field
was to switch hit, something most players don’t develop into a
legitimate skill until much later in their careers.
“I’ve been switch hitting as long as I can remember,” Jacob
said. “My dad had me switch hit because I couldn’t hit a breaking
ball. He was a pretty good player, I thought, and he taught
me both ways. I’ve just been doing it for so long, and it’s been
working out pretty good for me now.”
“Pretty good” might be an understatement. Berry led his
Arizona team in home runs (17), RBIs (70), slugging percentage
(.676) and OPS (1.115) and was second in batting average
(.352) as a freshman. He was awarded numerous All-American
accolades from multiple media outlets, as well as Collegiate
Baseball’s National Co-Freshman of the Year and a Dick Howser
Trophy semifinalist. Arizona made it to Omaha but lost in two
consecutive games in an early exit. With Goldschmidt-like
power and Chipper Jones-like versatility at the plate, Berry was
spectacular last season.
Jay Johnson saw it firsthand; as the Wildcats’ coach last season,
he was able to understand what made Berry so special as the
most prolific switch hitter in the college game. What he observed
played a large role in his effort to bring Berry to Baton Rouge.
“Hitting is hard, so to manage both sides is really hard,”
58
Johnson said of Berry. “I think a couple things that helped him
with that is he started at a young age and is very simple and has
really sound fundamentals, and he’s incredibly strong. With an
aluminum bat in his hands and all of those qualities, he sees the
ball really well and has great plate discipline, so the pitches he
swings at are usually ones he can impact.”
“I’ve had such a great relationship (with Johnson) for about
five, six years,” Berry said. “He gave me the opportunity to finish
my college career here, and I was really thankful for it. I’ve just
had such a great relationship with him, and it’s the reason I’m
here now.”
Following Johnson to Baton Rouge has not been easy for
the 20 year old. Berry was an Arizona kid after all, and to pick
everything up and move 1,000 miles away at that age to pursue
as specific a goal as getting LSU back to Omaha and building a
strong scouting report as the MLB draft approaches is a difficult
thing to process. Berry mentioned how amazing it was to see
4,000 people show up for LSU’s fall scrimmage against ULLafayette.
Yet, despite all the cameras and growing popularity, Berry is
staying true to himself while meshing his interests with what
Louisiana has to offer. The humble sophomore must have
inherited some of his father’s love for the state. The result: A
young man who is confident in who he is in spite of the culture
shock.
“The food’s amazing, and one of the things that I love to do is
hunt and fish,” Berry smiled and said. “I’ve actually gotten to go
duck hunting a few times, and I went bass fishing.”
Berry’s relationships with his teammates have bloomed
quickly. Before even arriving on campus, he met the only player
on LSU’s team with a higher OPS (by 0.001) last season while
playing on Team USA—Dylan Crews. Together, the two built
their friendship and hitting prowess, putting the SEC on notice
before Berry even reached to Baton Rouge for the fall. Crews was
very impressed with Berry’s consistent dedication to his craft,
and the duo love to compete and push each other to get better.
“As soon as I saw him pull his name out of Arizona, I had a
good feeling that he was coming over here,” Crews said. “It was
awesome. Hitting in front of him, hitting behind him, it’s just
been great. Having a guy like that, it rarely happens.”
Cade Beloso has been at LSU for four years now. He has the
privilege to play with hit king Antoine Duplantis, dynamic hitter
Daniel Cabrera, and just last year the astounding season Dylan
Crews had. It takes a lot for him to see something new and
noteworthy—Jacob Berry fit the bill.
“I’ve never actually gotten to see a switch hitter before, so that
was pretty cool,” Beloso laughed. “He rakes from both sides. He’s
always just so focused on the moment.”
It is a perfect recipe for success when the best players are the
hard workers, and Berry is a key contributor to that. The switchhitting kid from Arizona, son of a Louisiana baseball father, who
works hard and hits the ball harder is going to be a player LSU
fans will fall in love with this year. There was no reason for Berry
to be overwhelmed on Friday; this is a perfect match.
Bryce Collins saw Berry play for a full season together at
Arizona as freshmen. His reaction to Berry’s abilities is probably
the most fitting conclusion on who Jacob Berry is: Watch what I
do, not what I say.
“You guys just need to see what he’s going to be able to do,”
Collins said with a knowing grin.