Sam Morris

By Sam Morris

Fri, Mar 28, 2008 (2 a.m.)

“You can observe a lot by just watching,” Yankees legend — and master of the malaprop — Yogi Berra once said. And what holds true in the majors is equally true at other levels of the game.

When he’s taking practice swings in the on-deck circle, Del Sol junior Chris Hampton makes the most of his time for that very reason. “I’ll concentrate on what the pitcher’s throwing. I watch for things. If he twists his hands when they are behind his back like he’s going to throw a curveball. Little things like that,” the third baseman said.

“I kind of study him and think about what I’m going to do when he throws me an outside fastball or throws me an inside curveball.”

Though Hampton also plays football, his passion is the diamond. “I don’t know. The game gives me more of an edge. I don’t get the same feeling I get when I play other sports. It’s a mind thing.”

Maybe he was thinking of this Yogism:

“Baseball is 90 percent mental and the other half is physical.”