From Cowboy Dreams to Baseball Glory: The Rise of Kameron Misner

TAMPA — Yes, he could’ve been a cowboy.

With his rodeo time as a kid, rural upbringing, half dozen pairs of boots (traditional leather, ostrich, caiman) in rotation, brimmed Stetson hat and countrified accent that includes the occasional “Thank gosh,” Kameron Misner very well could have been — to borrow from his walk-up song — ridin’ his pony on a cattle drive.

“Oh yeah, I think so,” Misner said. “I mean, I grew up around horses, and I loved it when I did it. And I still do. It’s just part of me.”

Misner learned to rope and ride growing up in southeastern Missouri, lending a hand with the cattle on his grandfather’s farm, competing in steer riding competitions (winning a ribbon in his first) until his mom told him to stick to the ball sports, living and loving the small-town, boots-and-jeans life.

“Yeah, he could have been a cowboy,” Rays outfielder Jake Mangum said. “He grew up on a horse, grew up on a farm. He’s one of the toughest dudes I know.”

“He seems pretty cowboy to me,” added reliever Mason Montgomery. “He’s got the vibe.”

“He is a cowboy,” hitting coach Chad Mottola concluded.

Toby Keith’s classic, “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” is a fitting soundtrack, but as Misner steps to the plate it’s clear: he definitely is a baseball player, one playing an increasingly important role for the Rays.

Seizing the Opportunity

A series of late spring/early season injuries to Richie Palacios, Josh Lowe and Jonny DeLuca created an opportunity for Misner (MIYZ-ner). After committing to an extensive overhaul of his swing in the offseason, the 27-year-old has made the most of it, taking over for now as the Rays primary centerfielder.

“I give him a ton of credit, because he worked really, really hard,” manager Kevin Cash said. “And I’m thrilled for him that he’s kind of reaping the benefits of it right now here in the early going.”

Most offseasons, Misner hangs out around his home in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, population 16,132. It is known as the hometown of several actors, including Scott Innes, who voiced cartoon icon Scooby-Doo.

Batting-practice swings came mostly when Misner’s dad, Terry, who can’t throw overhand, would flip balls to him.

But after an abbreviated and unsuccessful big-league debut last August — going 0-for-14 with 10 strikeouts until singling in his last at-bat — Misner realized he needed to do more.

A Transformational Journey

At the suggestion of agent Kris Glazier, Misner headed to the Maven Baseball Lab in Atlanta in late October and went all-in, renting an Airbnb. Aside from a trip home for the holidays, he stayed until it was time to head to spring training in February.

“I kind of figured I’d do a little less hunting and hanging out and get a little better at baseball,” Misner said.

The basic goal was to find a way to keep his bat in the strike zone longer to create better chances to make good contact.

Working daily with Maven hitting guru Tyler Krieger — who Misner said took the various analytical, video and biomechanical data points and “dumbed them down” to understandable, show-me-don’t-tell-me form — led to a significant change.

In short, Misner adjusted the angle in which he held his bat and eliminated some wasted movement — what Rays hitting coach Chad Mottola called “an extra waggle and bat tip out towards home plate” — to get a more direct, simple and efficient path to the ball.

Mottola had received updates during the winter but didn’t see the complete makeover until spring training. He was so thrilled, he immediately gave Misner a hug.

Word circulated quickly among team staff about how much better Misner, an athletic 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, looked when swinging.

“We just saw him having at-bats where he just was touching the ball more often but was maintaining the impact that he’s long had,” baseball operations president Erik Neander said. “If you look back over his career, probably the strikeout and the contact rate has been the thing that has held him back a little bit.

“He doesn’t swing at balls. He’s got power. He’s a great athlete. He plays good defense. Just find a way to harness the contact a little bit — and these adjustments gave him a pathway to do that.”

Though Misner, acquired from the Marlins in November 2021 for Joey Wendle, had a good spring, he was optioned to Triple-A Durham for a third straight year. But when Palacios’ broken right ring finger was slow to heal, Misner was recalled and joined the opening day roster.

He announced his arrival with the biggest moment of the Rays’ season so far – leading off the ninth inning of the opener with a walkofff homer, the first of his career at any level. Through Friday, he was hitting .375 with a .417 on-base percentage.