 Brett won the starting third base job in 1974, but struggled at the plate until he asked for help from Charley Lau, the Royals' batting coach.Spending the All-Star break working together, Lau taught Brett how to protect the entire plate and cover up some holes in his swing that experienced big-league pitchers were exploiting.Armed with this knowledge, Brett developed rapidly as a hitter, and finished the year with a .282 batting average in 113 games.