Frazier following in brothers' footsteps
"Everyone who plays baseball always wants to be a professional baseball player and now the chance is here," Frazier said. "I got a couple of more steps to go to get up to the Major Leagues. It's a great feeling and I'm just trying to make my hometown proud."
A 2007 supplemental first-round pick, Frazier played his first full season last year at Class A Dayton and hit .321/.402/.598 with seven home runs and 20 RBIs in 30 games before being promoted to the Class A Advanced Florida State League. While at Sarasota, he hit .282/.357/.451 with 12 home runs and 54 RBI in 100 games.
Now, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound outfielder is tearing pitchers apart in the Double-A Southern League with the Carolina Mudcats. Frazier leads the league with 32 doubles and is among the top 10 in homers (11), RBIs (50) and batting average (.309).
Frazier receives great support and says he owes much of his success to his two older brothers, Jeff and Charlie.
"I followed in my older brother's footsteps, Charlie, and then Jeff as he got up there," Todd said. "They have been a great help to me, and playing baseball has been our whole life and we enjoy it."
Jeff currently plays outfield in the Detroit Tigers system with Triple-A Toledo. Charlie played in the Florida Marlins organization and reached Double-A before retiring.
Staying in touch via phone, email or text messages, their relationship remains strong.
"All three of us continue to talk every day and it's been beneficial," Jeff said. "I give him the same advice Charlie used to tell me. I'll say to make solid contact and go out playing hard because you're playing every day now. It's not like college where you play day on and day off like it is now."
Todd broke Jeff's home run records at both Toms River South High School and Rutgers, and Todd reminded Jeff of this when he served as the best man at his wedding.
"I had to bring it up," Todd joked. "I told him he always had goals to set for me, and breaking his records was one. Everybody got a good laugh at that."
With that in the past, Jeff has set a new goal for Todd.
"I told him to try and be better than me," Jeff said. "By saying something like that, he can run away with it, and that's something to look forward to."
Whether it was a contest of who could eat the most spaghetti at the dinner table or who collected more hits in a game, there was always fun competition among the brothers growing up.
"When we were young, me and Jeff would play whatever sport we could play, but we would never let Todd play because we'd say he's too little," Charlie said, laughing. "My dad would take the ball away from us and say, 'Hey, you're only getting the ball back if you let Todd play,' and I think that made Todd better because we'd always be beating up on each other."
A natural shortstop, Todd mixed in first base, third base and left field last season. This year, the Reds have used him in left field.
"I feel comfortable at all of them, to be honest," Todd said. "The adjustment to the outfield has been great and help from our coordinators and coaches has made it easy. I am really starting to enjoy the outfield, and I never thought I would say that. Other than that, the only downfall is the far run from left field to the dugout."
His brother, Jeff, also plays left field, so Todd always knows he can count on him for advice.
"I think that the advice I got from my brother has really paid off," Todd said. "It is really that simple, like Ken Griffey Sr. said, 'If there is a ball hit over your head or in the gap, your main objective there is to throw the ball to the cutoff man, then it's up to them. It's not your problem anymore.'"
Another great source of support is Todd's roommate from last year, fellow outfield prospect Drew Stubbs.
"I never thought someone could do some of the things Drew does," Todd said. "He's a great player and when you have that, you want to pick at their brain as much as possible."
Todd made this year's Southern League All-Star Game. The 23-year-old keeps a steady mind-set on and off the field and doesn't let the position change or discussion of his prospect status put any pressure on him.
"I just go in day in and day out," Todd said. "You have to be positive. My coaches have been telling me that if you have a positive mind-set and good self-talk, then everything is going to be good."
Besides making it to the Major League level, Todd and Jeff share another similar goal.
"It would be a dream come true for the both of us to play [against] each other," Todd said. "Not only just getting a chance to play each other, but with each other would be great. You never know what could happen."
And whom would mom and dad be cheering for?
"Mom would probably wear a Detroit hat on and a Reds shirt, but somebody would probably make them a shirt half and half," Jeff laughed.
The Major League level and Todd's goals are not too far out of his site.
"I just got to keep working," he said. "Everything comes easier when you have someone at your side. Luckily, I've always had two people by my side."
Matthew Stucko is a contributor to MLB.com.