For Denard Span, patience is key.
Span, the Minnesota Twins' center fielder and leadoff man, has been patient at the plate through 10 games this season. As a result, his on-base percentage is at .408, second-highest on the team behind American League Player of the Week Josh Willingham. With four doubles and a triple among of his 15 hits, Span's OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) is .921, again second behind just Willingham.
In each of Minnesota's 10 games this season, Span has batted at the top of the order. In 44 plate appearances this season, he has swung at the first pitch just three times -- and two of those three instances came in Monday's 7-3 Twins victory over the New York Yankees.
What Span's patience at the plate has done is allowed his teammates hitting behind him to see plenty of offerings from opposing pitchers. Such was the case Saturday when the Twins faced Rangers starter Yu Darvish, whom none of Minnesota's hitters had previously faced. Span saw four pitches from Darvish before grounding out but got a look at three different pitches from Darvish and gave his teammates a chance to watch Darvish work.
"After my first at-bat, I kind of had a good idea of what I wanted to do the rest of the time off of him," Span said.
During the Twins' series finale against the Los Angeles Angels in which Minnesota scored 10 runs on 20 hits, Span was highly productive. He had four hits and drew a walk in six plate appearances, allowing Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau and Willingham to have big days batting in the heart of the Twins' lineup. That trio combined to drive in six of the Twins' 10 runs, with Mauer driving in Span in the fifth inning.
While Mauer and Morneau got the glory in that game, the credit was quickly deflected to the Twins' leadoff batter.
"I don't think we can overlook Denard Span's four hits," Morneau said after the win. "I think he's kind of the guy that sets the tone for the offense. Him being a great leadoff hitter, he gets on base a lot. It kind of trickles down after that. He's a great hitter, and then it makes it easier on the rest of us. We get up there, he's seen seven, eight pitches and allows the guys after him to see those pitches. He does a great job, and it kind of goes after that."
But there was a time when Span's career -- much like Morneau's -- seemed in jeopardy because of a concussion. Span suffered the head injury during a collision at the plate against Kansas City in early June of last season. He attempted to come back in August but struggled offensively -- he was just 2-for-35 with an on-base percentage of .132 in nine games -- and went back on the disabled list. Span once again returned for the final week of the season, a big mental hurdle for him to clear.
That's where his patience again paid off. Just as Morneau took time to recover from his concussion, Span went through his moments of doubt.
"It was a question mark. I wasn't sure," Span said. "It was more so I wasn't sure if I would be able to get back to playing at the high level that I was playing at before I got hurt. ... I'm just taking it one day at a time, just faithfully leaning on God."
Span had a scary moment during the series against Los Angeles, when he stepped on Angels reliever Scott Downs' foot at first base. As Downs fell to the ground in pain, Span tumbled past the bag and somersaulted before hopping up.
Less than a year removed from the concussion, any contact like that for Span will certainly raise a few worries. But the center fielder was fine on the play and has since continued to set the table for the Twins.
"I was concerned when he stepped on the foot. But he was great," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "He's got no problems. ... He says, 'I feel great.' He's getting some swings out there. He's playing well and feels well. That's a good thing."
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