For most people, it all happens too fast to see. But when you watch it thousands of times a year, you start to pick up on that stuff. As hard as guys hit now, you have to anticipate. This can get you in trouble sometimes, of course, because you can get caught leaning the wrong way. But more often than not it helps you get to a ball you would never have reached otherwise.

As you might imagine, this requires intense concentration. You have to be 100 percent focused on every single pitch. It’s pretty hard when you’re young; attention spans aren’t always there all the time. Even now it’s tough, to be honest. What works for me is allowing myself to just kind of space out in between pitches so I can put all my energy into the pitch and swing and being ready for the ball to come at me every single play.

Wotus taught me, too, to sprint every time the ball’s put in play. Why? Because it allows me to play way off the bag. I want to cover as much ground as possible defensively. So to do that, I literally have to sprint to the bag on every single play. I have to reach the bag not just in time to take the throw but to be “an athletic position’’ to take the throw. You have to position yourself for a throw in the dirt, over your head, up the line.

Over the years in the dugout, Wotus and I would look at other really good first-basemen, like Adrian Gonzales or Paul Goldschmidt, and watch how far they played off the bag, especially against a right-handed pull hitter. He’d tell me, “If those guys can do it, you can do it as well.’’ I’ve gotten tons of info and encouragement, too, from J.T.Snow and Will Clark when they’re around.

So I worked and continue working. I still put just as much time and effort into my defense as my hitting.

But a weird thing happens sometimes when you put so much work and time into your defense. You field and catch so many balls every day during BP that without realizing it you can get a little complacent. It happened recently. I noticed I wasn’t scooping throws like I usually did. I felt weird throwing the ball. I don’t even feel comfortable catching it. It takes another set of eyes sometimes to what’s happening. Wotus was right on it. He and I worked together, and it immediately changed — after just one session.

If you get out to the park early enough, you can see me on the field taking grounders and throws at first base. I do it to make sure that I take care of the other infielders out there. I do it to take care of the pitchers. And I do it to give the team the best chance to win a ball game.

No matter how long you’ve been in the big leagues, you never stop learning. You never stop improving. Which is great. If you feel like you’ve mastered something, it’s not nearly as fun. And I don’t think anyone has ever felt they’ve mastered baseball.

Thanks for reading!