Former Major Leaguer Mickey Brantley holds hitting clinic for Catskill Little League

CATSKILL, N.Y. ( NEWS10 ) — Catskill native Mickey Brantley has worked with some of the best hitters in the world. Thursday night, the former Major Leaguer brought his expertise back to the Capital Region to share with the next generation of softball and baseball players.

Brantley hosted a clinic at Catskill High School for the Catskill Little League program.

A Catskill High School graduate himself, Brantley spent four seasons with the Seattle Mariners and played in 149 games with the club in 1988. He then transitioned into a coaching role, and served as the Toronto Blue Jays’ hitting coach from 2005-2007.

Brantley’s also the father of five-time MLB all-star Michael Brantley, and Mickey had the Catskill Little Leaguers practicing the same drills and keying in on the same areas that Michael did when he was just starting out.

“The three absolutes we call it: vision, balance and hands,” said Brantley. “When you’re getting a kid in a good position to be successful, they gotta learn how to track [the ball]; keep their head still. They gotta learn to rotate their body; how to hold their posture. So, they’re working on all three of those – and coordination – to make that happen.”

Brantley said his methods don’t change much from instructing professionals to kids. It’s just a simplified approach, with a heightened focus on the fundamentals.

“You know that they can’t do what the pros do, so it’s the process to get them there,” said Brantley. “Teach them, so they can learn in turn how to do it. Hopefully they have enough aptitude to kind of stay with it and then be successful and learn how to swing the bat correctly. What I teach is really hard to do, obviously, and they’re 9 through 12 [years old]. But they’re standing better. They’re seeing better; their hands are better, so they’re going to become better players.”

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NEWS10 ABC.