I caught up with WSU shortstop Dusty Coleman on the bus Thursday. The U.S. National team plays the Newport Gulls in Newport, R.I. tonight. Coleman is off to a solid start during the team trials. He has played in four of five games since joining the team, three at second base.
He is hitting .300 (4-12) with a wood bat with four RBIs and two runs. He is working on switch-hitting in practices and will hit it hard this fall with WSU. A right-hander, Coleman said he switch-hit in high school. Coleman is a superior athlete and a hard worker, so if there is a guy who handle this, it’s him. Off-speed pitches give him trouble, so this is a smart way of handling that issue.
“I really like not having pitches that are breaking away from you,” he said. “You can take that advantage away from the pitcher.”
The National team tour is winding its way through the New England states. Entering tonight’s game, Team USA is 5-2. You can follow results here. The 36-man roster is cut to 22 on June 24.