(This is Part 1 of our two-part feature on Brock Holt: Click here to see Part 2.)

HOUSTON – "Come look at this," Wayne Graham shouts in his Texas twang as a visitor walks into his office at Reckling Park. "Look at his eyes. Look. Wow."



Graham, the head coach of the powerhouse baseball team at Rice University, knows his visitor is there to talk about Brock Holt, a former Owl. But Graham, 82 years old, is having fun on YouTube.



He shows video of Ty Cobb while reciting his career statistics with almost perfect accuracy and marveling over Cobb's desire to beat his opponent into the ground. "Watch him hurt this guy here," Graham says as Cobb plows into a catcher. "Boom. And he stood over him! Maybe he was concerned, maybe he wasn't."



He shows video of Mel Ott, who at 5-foot-9, 170 pounds, hit 511 career home runs. "Nobody would teach anybody to hit like this nowadays," Graham says, pointing at Ott's circling windup as he cocks his bat forward, then back, then swings.



Graham ignores the open Internet Explorer window on his computer and reaches for his worn-out Baseball encyclopedia. He flips open the book just a few pages away from where Ted Williams' golden numbers await, then confirms his first guess of Williams' RBI total from his rookie season: 145.



Though it's 10:15 a.m. on a Friday, the veteran coach has a surprising amount of energy. And while his rambling hasn't yet reached the subject of Holt, who made an unassuming rise to be the leadoff hitter of this year's Boston Red Sox, he's getting ready to tie it all together.



"You in a hurry?" he asks.



Graham has produced 41 major league draftees over the last six years, but none quite like Holt, a ninth-round pick after playing one year at Rice. Holt's previous two years were spent at a junior college, since he had no other options out of his football-crazed Texas high school.



Graham finally connects the dots.



Cobb played the game with desperation, as if his life would end immediately if he was thrown out trying to steal second base. Ott had amazing power for a player of his size. Williams didn't have a pure hitting style, any coach would agree, but he had unrivaled concentration, to the point where he would yell at anyone who blocked his view of a pitcher warming up.



Holt, Graham believes, has similarities to Cobb, Ott and Williams.

Holt's passion for the game is palpable when he takes the field. (Courtesy Rice University)

"That's the whole point with Brock," Graham finally says. "Somebody is going to discover you have a potential All-Star second baseman there. Dustin Pedroia is great for the same reason Brock is good. They've solved one of the essential problems in baseball: There's a drudgery in baseball. You know what the drudgery is? You're standing around, nothing happens, but you have to be ready, you have to process all the information that is necessary to be ready, and you might be out there the whole game and nothing happens at your particular position."



The slow pace of baseball has been noticed (and unappreciated) by more than just the casual observers. Anthony Rendon, a power-hitting infielder for the Washington Nationals and higher profile teammate of Holt's while at Rice, was recently quoted in the Washington Post saying, "I don't watch baseball – it's too long and boring."



Graham might stop breathing if he ever heard Holt say that.



"But that's the essential thing for me," Graham said. "I think Brock has mastered it. I think Brock pays attention. Where as Williams pays attention to one thing, I think Brock pays attention to the whole game. Otherwise how could he play all those positions?



"That sounds easy, but how many people master it? How many times, for instance, would you see A-Rod seem a little bit surprised when something happened in the field? Know what I mean? A superstar, he could get by with it. The superstars could get by with it, not paying attention constantly because of what they do."



Holt may have the ability to be super focused, but he isn't a superstar. He's an average guy with average height and average weight who had "a regular high school experience," he says. He's a believer in God, lover of television, a caring older brother to his younger sister, Shelby, and an admirer of his older brother, Garrett. He Tweets and Snapchats.

Brock Holt was supposed to be an infielder. That hasn't stopped him from making an impact across the field for the Red Sox. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

On the surface, there's nothing super about him.



On the baseball field, he's leading the major leagues in hits with 82 since May 20. He's played mostly right field and third base, some left field, center field and first base, a little shortstop and two innings at second base, the position he grew up playing. And he's completely shattered all expectations.



Manager John Farrell called Holt the biggest surprise of the season. General manager Ben Cherington said his ability to hit while playing seven positions is "just an amazing story" and Holt has reshaped the way the Red Sox view their outfield. Scouts say Holt never had "eye-popping tools," while one even proclaimed, "Brock Holt's best tool is his smile."



When Holt was recalled to the majors on May 17 to take the roster spot of injured third baseman Will Middlebrooks, all of the questions from media members were about why Holt was chosen instead of 23-year-old prospect Garin Cecchini.



Even now, while Holt is hitting .326, the questions haven't changed much: Is Holt's season just a fairy tale that will soon be over?



That depends. How much stock do you put in a person's desire?



--



"Swing the bat like this," Holt's parents kept trying to tell the young boy in Stephenville, Texas.



Brock insisted on swinging left-handed and his parents, who had never played the game and knew little about it, fought against it at first. But when Brock was playing baseball he was too happy to argue with.



"He always wanted to be a baseball player," his 23-year-old sister, Shelby, said. "In the car on road trips he would practice his autograph. I'd tell him which ones looked cooler. That's all he's ever wanted. I think he's always known. You have to have some confidence to make it, especially when people are telling you you can't."

A look at Holt (1) in his earliest baseball days. (Courtesy friends of the Holt family)

And Holt heard that a lot.



Weighing 84 pounds when he entered high school, Holt wasn't exactly an athletic freak. Even now he checks in at about 180.



At Stephenville High School, a quarter of the town's 18,000 population would be at the weekly football games. Holt played through his freshman year. He ran great routes at wide receiver and, by all accounts, was quite good. He wanted to keep playing, which wouldn't be a problem for some of the best athletes, the ones who could trip and fall into success, but Holt wasn't one of them. He had to work at everything he did, and a season of football would take time that could be better spent on the baseball diamond.

"It's always been that way for Brock," said Julio Jimenez, Holt's high school coach.

Unfortunately for Holt, Stephenville was known for football. Neither baseball scouts nor college coaches made it to the school's baseball field.



"It was tough at Stephenville, " Holt said. "Nobody cared about baseball other than (Jimenez), me and a few other guys. The guys that played did it just because it was something to do."

Holt made the team as a freshman. And while he was, quite literally, half the size of some of his teammates, he fit the mold of the team's mascot, a Yellow Jacket.

Yellow Jackets are known for being aggressive and energetic, buzzing around on sugar-highs. Holt didn't have much power or the strongest arm, but his energy and quick feet caught the eye of Jimenez.



"If you were to ask me back when he was an 84-pound second baseman if he was going to play in the big leagues, I'd be lying if I said yeah," Jimenez said. "It's just the work ethic."



Holt, who often hung out with the older kids in school, just wanted to prove he belonged.



"I could barely hit the ball out of the infield," Holt said recently at Minute Maid Park. He paused for a second, looked up at the infield and realized he had short-changed himself. "Well, maybe that's an exaggeration. But I remember one time I got thrown out at first from right field because the right fielder was playing so shallow."

Holt clearly understood everything fighting against him. Energy, hustle and desire aren’t attributes that light up on radar guns. And if it wasn’t for a particularly rainy spring in Stephenville back in 2003, there’s a fair chance Holt would’ve never been discovered at all. But the rain flooded the high school fields and the only way the Yellow Jackets were going to play baseball was if a college donated their facilities.

Navarro College, a small junior college in Corsicana about two hours away, graciously opened up its doors and invited Stephenville to play two games there. "We got on a bus and drove down," Jimenez said. As soon as the final out was recorded, Navarro coach Skip Johnson came running over to the Stephenville bench.



"You know who your best player is?" Johnson asked Jimenez.



"Yeah, I know," Jimenez said. "It's my little second baseman, my little 84-pound second baseman."



Holt walked over, Johnson said, "don't let anybody tell you can't play this game," and offered him a scholarship on the spot.



"That's how good I thought he was going to be," Johnson said. "A tough kid, had all the skill level, hands feet, a guy you want to drive hours to watch play because he plays with such passion. That hit me with a right hook."



Holt played four years at Stephenville and hit well, "but not .500 like you see a lot of high school kids hit now," he said. The little second baseman never received another scholarship offer.

--

Holt arrived at Navarro still small and hungry, his desire out-pacing his belief. Worry crept into his mind rarely, rare enough where even his sister couldn't spot it. But a stress fracture in his lower back threatened his freshman year and everything he had worked for.

His back limiting his ability to walk, Holt hit .356 with one home run, playing most of the season until his body finally fought back.

Even with his talent, Holt had to work hard to stand out on the field. (Courtesy friends of the Holt family)

"I couldn't even stand up straight, had to bend over so it wouldn't ache like a sharp pain in my back," he said. "That summer I had to wear a brace for six weeks just to keep everything straight. That wasn't fun."



Holt's confidence was dwindling, Navarro coach Whoa Dill thought, and Holt needed his confidence. He needed his enthusiasm. Some can get by on talent, but talent alone is never enough for the small second basemen.



"There were times we had to tell him, 'Look, you have a chance to play in the big leagues,'" said Dill, who took over for Skip Johnson in 2007. "He didn't believe that at the time. But once he played with everyone else he knew he was good enough."

Holt returned for his sophomore year and hit .405 with seven home runs. He was a team leader in the dugout. He was happy, doing well in school and suddenly college coaches from around the country wanted to talk to him.

"He did things that caused his team to win," Dill tried to explain Holt's ability. "He was the dirtiest guy on the field, that kid who was 5-6, 130 pounds, but he just turned your head. His arm action, his feet; he could field it, throw it, hit it.



"After his freshman year I knew he was going to be really special. There was no doubt. He was the best player to walk through Navarro College. Chris Davis (the Baltimore Orioles first baseman) played here. But (Holt) is the best all-around player I've ever seen. Chris has the best power, he's a better hitter. Brock was a better all-around player. Just the little things."

For the first time in his life, Holt was in demand.

“You start competing against better kids you start thinking, ‘Hey, I can do this,’” he said.

Rice University wasn't far away in Houston. Graham has a history of converting college players into major league draft picks. Holt wouldn't stand out at Rice, where the students running along the sidewalk could pass for part-time bodybuilders, but he would at least play against the best, so he chose Rice for his junior season.



"There's always a bias against the smaller player," said Graham, who coached Holt for one year at Rice. "The smaller player has to prove himself every step of the way."

Holt has had to deal with being labeled a "small player" for a long time. (Courtesy friends of the Holt family)

In the field, Holt is quick on his feet with almost-instant reaction times. But his simple approach at the plate is what won coaches over. He crouches down low and keeps his bat in a ready position, offering a quick smack with a smooth swing path that allowed him to catch up to any fastball. He had "sneaky power," one scout said.



"Of all the players I've had, (Holt) was the player you couldn't throw the ball by," Graham said. "You see anybody throw the ball by him in the big leagues? Nope. He has a quick bat. That was the most distinguishing part of him as a player."

Injuries came and went, Holt's coaches rarely hearing about them. Graham had been told stories of Holt being injured at Navarro and believed he played his entire season at Rice with a broken hand, but Holt played so well Graham couldn't really tell.



Anthony Rendon was the big player on campus, winning awards as he crushed 20 home runs with a .388 average in 2008. Holt quietly hit .348 with 12 home runs.

Trophies with Rendon’s name on it currently line the shelves in the baseball office at Reckling Park.

--

There's a bias against smaller players in baseball, not because they can't hit, but because major league general managers and front office number crunchers are terrified of injuries.



Injuries will kill a team's season immediately, and they can't be accounted for in preseason projections.



"The major league season is a grind," said Cherington, who has had good luck with smaller players but understands the perceived bias. "It's a tougher season than any other baseball season. It's the toughest baseball season in the world and it does require certain physical and mental stamina to get through that. I suppose it's possible that's why it's harder for a scout or anyone in the front office to be convinced on a smaller guy, because a smaller guy can face more challenges."

In the 2009 first-year player draft, the Pittsburgh Pirates, who had scouted Holt ferociously at Rice and thought highly of the little second baseman, selected him in the ninth round, making him the 265th player chosen.

“We felt like he was an interesting guy to take in the top 10 rounds,” Pirates general manager Neal Huntington said. “He was just a battler. Commanded the zone, put the barrel on the ball and was just a tough out.”

Graham advised Holt to stay in college another season and see if he could make more of a splash in the draft the following year.

Holt during his days at Rice University (Credit: Tommy Lavergne, Rice University Photography)

"I thought Brock was a very good player," Graham said. "I thought if he makes it, he's going to have to prove himself every step of the way. And Brock evidently knew that because I didn't want him to leave. He didn't get a lot of money to sign. I wanted him to comeback his senior year, he was a really good player. I tried to talk him out of it. I think he might've gotten a little over 100 grand to sign, but he realized, 'I want to play in the big leagues and I'm going to have to make it every step of the way.' That's the way he had to do it."



Holt sat on the decision for a week. But this wasn't about money or pride. Being a ninth-round pick for Holt was no different than being a first-round pick or a 49th-round pick.



He had a chance. That's all that he kept thinking about. He had a chance.



"At first I was a little disappointed," he said. "But I just decided I've had to prove myself every step to this point, might as well get into pro ball and try to prove myself there as well."



On June 22, 2009, less than two weeks after Holt was drafted, he played in his first professional game for the State College (Pa.) Spikes of the New York-Penn League. He went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts.



"Uh oh," he thought. "I should've gone back to college."

(Click here to read Part 2.)

Follow MassLive.com Red Sox beat writer @JMastrodonato on Twitter. He can be reached by email at jmastrod@masslive.com.

