A guide to glove work.

THE SETUP: Know the real estate

People ask me all the time, "Why are you always running into walls?" Well, if they watch me in Seattle or at Fenway, they won't see me running into any walls. Those walls are hard. At most major league parks, there's enough padding out there so you don't have to worry about killing yourself.

In B.P., I'm out there to take my jumps so I can get good steps. That is, I watch the ball off the bat to see how it's carrying. If the ball is carrying to right center, I know how I'm going to line up and how I'm going to have to get on my horse when the ball is hit there. Before games, we'll also hit balls off the fence to learn the angles so we'll know how the ball is going to bounce off it.

There's a lot going on in the outfield. Before each series, we go over scouting reports that show where the other team's base hits go. To be honest, all this scouting doesn't help that much, but you still want to be prepared. I like to go by feel, and that can pay off. For example, Rey Sanchez always hits to right--always. When he was on the Royals, I saw he was getting around on the ball and being very aggressive in his first couple of at-bats. Normally, I play him in right center, but that day I went with my gut and was right. He hit a fly ball to the gap in left center, and I was right there to make the catch. If I would have been playing him where I usually do, I probably wouldn't

have been able to track that ball down.

THE CHASE: Speed isn't everything

The first step is the most important thing. That and instincts. I know a lot of fast outfielders who suck because they take bad routes to the ball. You'll see them back up for a ball or go around it before they can make the catch. When you have to dive for a catch, it usually means you didn't get a good break on the ball. Ken Griffey is who I watched growing up. He doesn't have the greatest speed in the world, but you watch him. He always knows where the ball is going.