AUBURN | When Butch Thompson talks about how impressive Kason Howell has been during batting practice, well, you might be a little surprised by his reasons.
“He’ll go 40 minutes and he’ll dive in right-centerfield, he’ll dive in left-centerfield, he’ll go back to the wall,” Thompson explained. “Other parts of his game have gotten so much better, but if you want to see how much we respect Kason Howell, just come out to batting practice one day and watch how hard he works on his craft.”
Howell, a true freshman, looks at batting practice as the perfect outfield warmup for a scrimmage or a game.
“Coach Thompson always says you want to attack, and I want to see what balls I can get in practice,” Howell said. “I miss a few but I want to see my range and how the ball flies in the wind. Pre-game batting practice is huge for me and every outfielder to get a feel for how the ball is flying that day, where my range is and what ball I can and can’t get.”
And when it’s time to get in the cage, Howell has shown he can swing the bat pretty good too. The Argyle, Texas native hit .462 with six home runs and 39 RBI as a senior at Liberty Christian High School, although he calls himself more of a gap to gap hitter at this stage of his college career.
“He’s going to run the bases well. He’s going to be quick. I think he can go the other way a lot better than he could in the fall so he’s using the whole field as a hitter more. He’s really closed the gap in being competitive in all of his at-bats,” Thompson said.
Howell is set to start his first career game in centerfield for Auburn Friday. His father, Eric Howell, was a member of Tommy Tuberville’s staff in 2006.
“Everything is going great. I really love to being here. I’m just blessed to be here,” Howell said. “I really enjoy getting to work with all these coaches and these players. They’ve had my back since day one.”
The Tigers host Georgia Southern for a three-game series beginning Friday at 6 p.m. CT.
