Cricket star Brook visits with Cards ahead of London Series

JUPITER, Fla. -- Leaning against the batting cage while trying to absorb and understand the many differences in rules, lingo and technique between baseball and his chosen sport, English cricket star Harry Brook analyzed Nolan Arenado’s powerful swing and found a link between himself and the Cardinals superstar Friday.

“I hold my cricket bat the same way you do,” Brook said to Arenado, pointing to his littlest finger being strategically placed on the end of the bat knob. “I like to have my finger there so I can pop the bat.”

Responded Arenado, who was just fresh out of the cage after launching several home runs into the muggy Florida air: “That’s something I’ve done since I was a kid. I feel like I can control the barrel better with my hands down there. This [front arm] is my rudder, but I don’t want it to control my swing.”

“Interesting,” replied Brook. “I feel the same way in cricket.”

Brook, 24 and a professional cricket player, was in South Florida on Friday during the Cardinals' 8-3 win over the Marlins to help promote MLB’s London Series, which will feature the Cardinals and the Cubs playing at London Stadium on June 24 and 25. The two-game series between the bitter rivals is a return to London for MLB after an absence related to the pandemic. In 2019, the Yankees and Red Sox played the first regular-season games in Europe in June 2019.

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“We’re here to try and raise awareness [of the London Series] to the English public, and I think they are going to love baseball,” Brook said. “[Baseball] is such a big sport in America, and I think a lot of people are going to be interested in seeing the games. Today is my first baseball game, and I’m loving it.”

In addition to throwing out the first pitch before the Cardinals and Marlins faced off in Grapefruit League action, Brook took several rounds of batting practice in cages behind Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. First, though, the international star needed tips on the mechanics of swinging a baseball bat as opposed to a cricket bat, and former All-Star slugger Ryan Ludwick was by Brook’s side most of his day to offer pointers and answer questions. When Brook’s eyes widened after seeing the way Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras drove several balls out of the park, Ludwick told Brook: “You can make some money in this game hitting home runs.”

Brook knows a thing or two about making money after his rights were purchased for 1.3 million English pounds. A native of Keighley, Yorkshire, England, Brook started playing internationally a year ago and scored 468 runs in a recent Test series in Pakistan.

After learning the basics of the baseball swing from Ludwick -- first, off a tee and then with soft-toss throws -- Brook stepped into a batting cage and attempted to hit off a pitching machine firing pitches in at 85 mph. Largely because of the uppercut swing he uses in cricket, Brook hit mostly line drives and pop-ups. His highlight of the day: Recording a 93.1 mph exit velocity on a smash off the pitching machine.

Joked Cardinals catching prospect and Australian native Jake Burns: “That’s the way my whole high school team looked trying to hit a baseball.”

Brook’s uppercut swing in the cage prompted this exchange from St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol and Ludwick, who serves in a special advisor role for the Cardinals:

Said Ludwick: “Harry’s already got the launch angle thing down. You won’t see him hit into any ground-ball double plays.”

Added Marmol: “I’ve never seen anyone never hit a ground ball. I’m in on that. Sign him up.”

Brook, who relies more on his stellar hand-eye coordination than his slim physique to have success in cricket, enjoyed meeting musclebound Cardinals slugger Tyler O’Neill. O’Neill, who grew up in a family of bodybuilders, took some good-natured ribbing from coaches about the size of his tight-fitting Cardinals T-shirt.

“You guys are so much bigger and hit the ball further,” Brook said after meeting O’Neill. After O’Neill said he was just trying to keep pace with the likes of Arenado and Contreras, Brook remarked, “You are a big boy!”

“Can’t miss arm day, right?” O’Neill remarked.

When Brook pointed out that he had been told the secret to being a good hitter -- both in baseball and cricket -- was strong legs, O’Neill smirked and said, “That’s the irony, huh?”