Springer has 'unbelievable' day with Astros

[Stephan Bobb]

Springer has 'unbelievable' day with Astros

By Brian McTaggart / MLB.com | 08/20/11 12:02 AM ET

• first round pick George Springer, a center fielder, took batting practice on the Minute Maid Park field after being introduced to the media Friday. Springer, drafted No. 11 overall out of the University of Connecticut, signed for a bonus of $2.525 million.

Springer, wearing an Astros jersey with the No. 4 on the back, took swings in the final hitting group, which included Matt Downs, Jose Altuve and Jason Bourgeois. Springer's parents, grandmother and sister and a handful of Astros brass watched from behind the cage.

"It's one of those things where you try not to miss the first one, and then after that it sort of calms down," Springer said. "This has just been an unbelievable experience. It's inexplicable to me. As a kid, it's something you dream of, and now you're here on the field and it's something special."

Springer on joining Astros

00:03:46

8/19/11: Astros first-round pick George Springer meets the media in Houston and discusses the start of his career

Tags: press conference, Houston Astros

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Springer will fly to the Astros' Spring Training facility Saturday to work out for a few days at Kissimmee, Fla., before finishing out the season with short-season Tri-City of the New York-Penn League. John Kosciak, the scout that signed Springer, gave a glowing recommendation.

"The best way to describe him is he's freakishly athletic," Kosciak said. "He comes from a very athletic family. His father played football and baseball at UConn and played in the Little League World Series, and his mother was a gymnast at UConn. At a young age, the whole family was in gymnastics, and that's why he's got great agility."

Springer said he always plays the game hard and said he'd be willing to run through a wall or up a wall to make a catch. When asked if he's willing to run up a hill -- namely, Tal's Hill in center field -- Springer was game.

"I guess I'll have to find out," he said.