RiffBlog

It only takes 32 seconds for Alex Hassan to rattle off the details of a chaotic time in his life, one in which a handful of organizations treated him more like a human pinball than a player with major-league experience. Over a six-month stretch from 2014 to 2015, Hassan was designated for assignment, waived, claimed or released six different times, including thrice by the Oakland A’s.

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Asked what he learned from a period that notably overshadowed his rise from a 20th-round draft pick into a major-leaguer, the Twins’ player development director briefly pauses in search of the lesson.

After reflecting upon his existence in DFA limbo, Hassan — now the Twins’ director of player development — followed with a lengthy answer he uses to relate to minor-leaguers, one about pushing through a difficult period in which he was on the 40-man rosters of the A’s, Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers and Red Sox by convincing himself that each stopover was an opportunity to break through with a new organization.

A psychology major at Duke, the 32-year-old Hassan understood that persuading himself to stay positive was the key to potentially reaching the majors again.

Despite his best efforts, Hassan never did. He retired at 28 after two more minor-league seasons.

But those experiences will influence how the Twins will develop minor-leaguers under Hassan, who is finally back around his players at instructional camp this month after COVID-19 wiped out the 2020 minor-league season. He understands that empathy is critical to his role and has found it to be especially important during an unprecedented season in which players were largely left to develop on their own.

“That has absolutely shaped my world view,” Hassan said. “I was one of the players that didn’t get invited to the offseason camps with tremendous regularity, didn’t get a big signing bonus, had to fight for playing time.

“But I had plenty of coaches and coordinators that poured time and energy into me. Had I not gotten that same or similar attention to some of the other players, maybe I wouldn’t have had the opportunities that I did. … I want to make sure, because I was that guy, we’re giving all of our guys all the resources we have and giving all of our guys similar attention. If they’re willing to put in the work and they’re willing to make it happen, that they know they have the support of the organization and everybody on our staff and we’ll do everything we can for anybody in our system to help them achieve their goals and their dreams.”

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The Twins named Hassan as their farm director on Nov. 8, 2019, when they promoted Jeremy Zoll to assistant general manager.

Zoll’s second in command for the previous two seasons, the Twins like that Hassan has learned player development from multiple organizations and also understands the difficulties associated with being a minor-leaguer.

“Alex is one of those guys who, much like Jeremy, is there to serve the players,” Twins director of baseball operations Derek Falvey said. “He’s got great experiences as a player. He’s learned a lot in his own career in the ups and downs and challenges. He can translate those into his role now in a way that is really helpful. I think everyone in player development really appreciates the way he goes about leading them.”

How Hassan would lead them this past season was much different than everyone had envisioned. This was supposed to be a smooth transition.

Then the pandemic hit and everyone had to scramble.

With no minor-league season, Hassan and his department had to improvise. Though they had to learn a bunch through trial and error, the Twins are more than satisfied with how their PD group handled the situation.

“Alex was so excited to take on his role,” Zoll said. “They were just about to get rolling and the carpet got pulled out from under them. … It was an interesting year to be a first one.”

Hassan is one of those guys. You’ve seen their names splashed across the pages of MLB Trade Rumors. They belong to a group nobody would prefer to be associated with, each enduring a seemingly endless cycle of career uncertainty, being passed from one team to the next like a faceless asset.

“It was challenging,” Hassan said. “You don’t know where your next opportunity is going to come from.”

Hassan’s experience began like most, a talented player pushed off a team’s 40-man roster because there’s simply not enough space.

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The Red Sox had too many outfielders and first basemen/designated hitters, including rookie top-100 prospect Mookie Betts. They also had six minor-leaguers they wanted to protect in the Rule 5 draft. So on Nov. 17, 2014, Boston discarded Hassan. Oakland was awarded the waiver claim on him.

Hoping to sneak Hassan through waivers and outright him to their minor-league system, the A’s immediately designated Hassan. But it didn’t work.

Three days after Oakland grabbed Hassan, he was claimed again, this time by Baltimore.

Hassan was invited to spring training in Sarasota, Fla., with the Orioles. But he didn’t receive an at-bat before he was DFA’d again to make space for Everth Cabrera, who signed a one-year deal in February 2015.

With Hassan free to all yet again, Oakland claimed him once more.

Hassan had to break his spring training lease in Florida and headed for Phoenix. He injured his hamstring after joining the A’s, but Hassan managed to appear in nine games that spring, producing a .974 OPS in 19 plate appearances.

Yet his second Oakland stint ended when Cody Ross was signed on April 8 and Hassan was designated for assignment once again to make space on the 40-man roster.

One day later, Hassan was claimed by the Texas Rangers. His first official at-bat of the regular season arrived on April 11 at Triple-A Round Rock.

But Hassan’s time with the Rangers ended May 2 when Texas DFA’d him to make space for Kyle Blanks.

The claiming team once again was Oakland, which had designated Ross for assignment. But prior to Oakland claiming him, Hassan told the Providence Journal he wasn’t sure if he wanted to be claimed or instead outrighted so he could remain with the Rangers’ Triple-A Round Rock team. He didn’t want to move yet again.

“Do I prefer to be claimed by another team and have to break my lease and have to move my family and have to go find another apartment and take another short-term lease and get settled — and have to perform right away, knowing you’re the last guy on the 40-man roster?” Hassan told the paper at the time. “Or would it be better to stay where you are and get some stability and hopefully play well enough to where you might earn your way back up there? I don’t know the answer to that.

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“Family-wise, part of me is like, ‘Man, I just want to stay in one place. I don’t want to deal with this.’ Professionally, you never know where your best opportunity is going to come. It’s a hard, hard situation.”

Six days and 15 plate appearances at Triple-A Nashville later, Hassan was designated for assignment one last time and given his outright release.

Afforded a chance for stability, Hassan signed a minor-league deal with Toronto on May 20. He joined Triple-A Buffalo and played his first game there May 30. Despite hitting .314/.357/.419 in 305 plate appearances the rest of the way, Hassan wasn’t called up in September.

Five years later, Hassan said his only defense was to try and stay positive throughout an ordeal that saw him move from Massachusetts to Florida to Arizona to Texas to Tennessee to New York.

“As best as I could, I tried to look at it as another opportunity and not focus on the fact that I was probably the last guy on the roster at that point,” Hassan said. “Look, this is a difficult business (with) difficult odds for the players. … How can I overcome that? How can I tip the odds as much in my favor as much as I possibly can? That’s the challenge in the minor leagues.”

It’s a philosophy Hassan now wants to instill in Twins farmhands. He tries to emphasize that point by sharing his story during every individual player meeting at the start of spring training. Hassan said he feels responsible to help each minor-leaguer do whatever he can to potentially develop into a future major-leaguer.

“Anytime someone goes through adverse experiences or faces adversity, goes through those ups and downs, they now know what it feels like to be on the other end of that,” Falvey said. “Alex blends an understanding of that, the empathy he shows, that’s actually what he leads with. He leads with care, and I think that’s what we want all our leaders to do.”

Hassan went undrafted out of Boston College High School. He never was considered a top prospect. He was the 618th player selected overall in 2009. So he knows the struggles endured by the majority of the players he’s tasked with overseeing.

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“Not many of those guys are expected to reach the major leagues,” Hassan said. “I try to be really empathetic to what these guys are going through. This is a very difficult pursuit. The odds are really stacked against you. And it’s really easy to get down on yourself and struggle mentally or with confidence or struggle with your play in the field. I try to remember how difficult it was. …

“I was not the most talented player.”

He made up for it with effort, which led to progress.

Every season, Hassan tried to be open-minded about how he could improve. Every season, he performed and was promoted.

Step by step, Hassan got closer to making his major-league dream a reality.

“I was always making subtle adjustments,” Hassan said. “I wouldn’t say there was one adjustment that really propelled me forward. Pretty much every year it always felt like I was trying something new to try and get an edge or try to improve on my skillset or current abilities. I can’t point to one thing, but there was a litany of things I tried to make work.”

Hassan wants his players to be open-minded about potential adjustments. But Zoll figures that to be the end of Hassan’s demands. He’s known him for nearly five years and doesn’t think of Hassan as a my-way-or-the-highway kind of guy.

“It was clear it was never going to be about “Well, this is how I did it and therefore this is what we need to do,’” Zoll said. “That’s not always easy for those with playing experience to break away from as quickly as Alex did, but he found a way to create that separation in short order and strike the appropriate balance of his experience with finding new and better ways to do things.”

Hassan merely wants his players to be comfortable with new ideas. Change isn’t always comfortable and Hassan knows that. But being open to change can potentially reduce the long odds a player faces.

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“If it clicks or we develop them a certain way, they have a chance,” Hassan said. “We’re responsible for all of these guys’ development, not just our first-round pick. I try and maintain that mindset of ‘I wasn’t expected to get there’ and I was drafted later. But people invested in me and gave me the resources that I needed to be the best player I could be, and I try to keep that in mind for all of our guys no matter where they’re picked or how they were acquired.”

The Red Sox gave Hassan a chance on June 1, 2014.

Injuries to Mike Napoli and Ryan Lavarnway opened space on the active roster.

Suddenly, Hassan found himself in the lineup at Fenway Park, a short 10-mile drive away from his home in Milton, Mass.

Not only had the 26-year-old achieved a dream he’d been pursuing since he was 10, it was for the team he supported as a child. Hassan was playing in front of friends and family at the home of the Green Monster.

He started in right field for the defending World Series champions and batted two spots behind David Ortiz, nestled in between Jonny Gomes and David Ross.

Jon Lester was on the mound.

Though Tampa Bay pitcher Erik Bedard ended Hassan’s first at-bat with a called third strike with the bases loaded, two innings later Hassan singled to center and scored on a Brock Holt double as part of a three-run rally.

Hassan also drew a walk and finished 1-for-3. The Red Sox won 4-0.

“It was pretty special for everybody,” Hassan said. “I really don’t remember the crowd. I was just thrilled I got a hit and was playing in the major leagues and trying to get the major-league team a win.

“It was a great feeling like you were contributing to games that really matter. The major leagues, it’s a pretty intense environment and the games count. They matter. A lot is on the line for a lot of different people. Feeling like you’re contributing, that was the best part.”

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Hassan’s first stint in the majors lasted nine days. He earned two more days of service time during a second promotion in mid-August.

After a slow start, Hassan got going. Including his three major-league games, Hassan hit .322/.407/.489 with 29 extra-base hits in 307 plate appearances from June 1 through the end of the Triple-A season.

But in a sign of things to come, Hassan’s name wasn’t called when rosters expanded on Sept. 1.

As his career began to wind down, Hassan was curious if he still had a future in baseball and decided to find out. That’s when he met Zoll.

The assistant director of player development for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Zoll met Hassan after batting practice when Triple-A Oklahoma City played in Tacoma, Wash., during the 2016 season.

“Alex grabbed me one day towards the end of BP,” Zoll said. “It was immediately clear he had at least some level of interest in pursuing a career in baseball after playing and was extremely thoughtful with his questions.”

Hassan found Zoll equally engaging. He also appreciated Zoll’s enthusiasm for his inquiries about a future in player development.

“We kind of hit it off,” Hassan said. “I would ask him a bunch of questions when he would come into town and he would always make time for me and always was really open and willing to share his experience.”

With the Dodgers in hiring mode, Zoll approached Hassan, who retired after that season, to see if he wanted to join the front office.

Hassan wasn’t sure. He’d bounced around enough to be weary of a life spent moving from town to town as a coach or always being on the road like scouts.

Initially, Hassan decided to return to Duke to finish his bachelor’s degree. Zoll and then-Dodgers farm director Gabe Kapler understood but still convinced Hassan to take a part-time role as a consultant during the 2017 season. Hassan could finish college and get experience at the same time.

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After graduating, Hassan and his wife, who was pregnant at the time, moved back to Boston and he accepted a position in a marketing/sales development program for Dell Technologies in August 2017. He enjoyed the program, but when Zoll called again after taking a job with the Twins, Hassan became more intrigued.

Zoll offered Hassan an assistant director of player development position for the 2018 season. Though they’d want him to eventually move to the Twin Cities, Hassan and his family initially could stay in Boston for the time being after the baby was born.

Hassan joined the Twins in January 2018 and his family moved to St. Paul that August.

“His thoughtfulness and thirst for knowledge was striking,” Zoll said. “As we continued to get to know each other, it was clear that he was motivated by the fast-pace environment of player development, which isn’t for everyone. His blend of curiosity, critical thinking and experience has allowed for him to grow into an awesome leader in a short period of time.”

Things are a little bit calmer now that Hassan and his development staff are participating in instructional camp with 50 players in Fort Myers, Fla.

The last time everyone was in Florida, that wasn’t the case. Hassan didn’t have much time before his leadership abilities were tested.

The 2020 minor-league season was scheduled to start on April 9, which meant players had just begun to settle into camp when the coronavirus forced baseball to shut down on March 12.

Nobody knew how long the shutdown would last. The only certainty was everyone was headed home.

“It was just surreal because it was a really short period,” Hassan said. “It all happened so quick. Each domino was a bigger domino and all of a sudden, we were gone before you know it.”

Hassan and his family flew back to Minneapolis with the Twins on March 16. His players all scattered across the country to return home.

One of two first-year PD directors in baseball, Hassan quickly had to learn how to keep track of the organization’s 200 players remotely.

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“You’re forced to be more creative,” Hassan said. “I think we’ve learned a lot as a group during this time about ways we can better optimize the offseason or just tools we can use to better optimize the offseason and processes we’ve had to develop out of necessity during this time to make sure our players get better.”

With no organized games to play at that point and no season on the schedule, the Twins chose to break up their group into a bunch of pods. Each staff member was given 6-8 players to keep track of their progress with a handful of crosscheckers providing oversight of the entire group.

“It was a bit imperfect in terms of figuring out how to exactly divvy everything up,” Zoll said. “There was a lot of opportunity to think about new things, try new things, which I know was exciting for Alex.”

The start of the Major League Baseball season in July provided new opportunities for a limited number of minor-leaguers who could work out at the team’s alternate site in St. Paul. Though it was nothing like a typical game day, the Twins designed their alternate camp to provide players with a hybrid of getting them prepared for games while providing instruction at the same time.

Hitters participated in daily simulated games in an attempt to be ready if they were promoted to the majors. Rookies Ryan Jeffers, Brent Rooker and Alex Kirilloff all credited the way the Twins arranged the camp to prepare them for the possibility of MLB games.

Similarly, Hassan has designed the instructional camp to be efficient and useful. He understands there’s no way to make up for six months of lost game action.

But instead of focusing on the negative, Hassan wants players to maximize the five weeks they have together to learn and prepare for the 2021 season.

It’s the only way he knows how.

“I’m proud of our group for the way they’ve handled this year,” Hassan said. “Derek, Thad (Levine) and Jeremy have invested a ton into me and ultimately trusted me with quite a bit early in my career, which I’m indebted to those guys for. I came in and was given a lot of responsibility. … I’m honored to be in this position and having the chance to ultimately impact our players but also our staff members. I’ve been put in an incredible position that I don’t take lightly and I’m trying to do everything I can.”

(Top photo of Hassan during his major-league debut in 2014: Jared Wickerham / Getty Images)

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