TAMPA — Dante Bichette Jr. has spent a lifetime around the game of baseball, but his dad’s major league background is just one part of the equation that makes him such an intriguing Yankees prospect.
Bichette’s dad, Dante Sr., played 14 seasons in the majors, compiling a .299 average while slugging 274 home runs. It is the lessons from his mother, Mariana, as well as his dad, though that put Dante Jr. on the road to baseball success.
His father taught him his swing, but it was his mom who taught him yoga with the thought of getting the most out of his God-given ability.
“All the off-the-field stuff, I have to give 100 percent credit to my mom,’’ Bichette told The Post at the Yankees’ minor league complex. “From the time I was a little kid, she taught me, first off, to be respectful to adults. She has me do yoga to keep flexible. She also puts a lot of emphasis on prayer, you have got to remember who has given you the abilities to do things and give thanks for that.’’
When he started yoga his freshman year in high school, Bichette hated it.
“But now I love doing it,” he said, “because it keeps me healthy.”
He also has an “uncle’’ in the business, too, Yankees manager Joe Girardi, who was Dante Sr.’s teammate with the Rockies from 1993-95. Despite the big league pedigree, Bichette is as humble as an unknown prospect.
Bichette, 19, is a third baseman. He was drafted 51st overall last June and was sent to the Gulf Coast League. After a slow start, he was named the MVP of the league, batting .342 with three home runs and a .440 on base percentage. He will start this season at Single-A Charleston.
The Yankees have a core of talented young players in their system, including outfielders Mason Williams and Ravel Santana, catcher Gary Sanchez, shortstop Cito Culver and catcher/third baseman J.R. Murphy.
“They are bunched in that 18 to 20-year-old bracket and this is one of the best groups we’ve had since I’ve been here,’’ said senior vice president of baseball operations Mark Newman, who has spent 24 years with the Yankees. “They have fun, they’re all buddies.’’
Good teammates, good people, good prospects. Bichette has been on the path to the majors since he was about 10 years old.
“His mother and father really know the situation,’’ said Damon Oppenheimer, Yankees VP of amateur scouting. “He is advanced in terms of how to work, how to prepare yourself, how to handle yourself; just the whole work ethic. He can hit. He comes from a dad who could hit and had power. He’s a good athlete, too. The kid was a heck of a tennis player.’’
Bichette was twice named the Central Florida baseball player of the year at Orangewood Christian High. His dad left no stone unturned.
“My freshman year, he built a warehouse with batting cages and a bunch of machines,’’ Dante explained. “That’s where we get all our work in, that’s where we’ve been four hours every day for the last five years.
“We’re working on the mental side of hitting. We figure the physical part is there and you are either going to get it done or you are not. Now it’s just up in the head; it’s shoulders up from here on out. It’s great to have somebody like that to learn from and have that guidance. Confidence comes from just being prepared.’’
As for his father’s old teammate, Girardi, Bichette said: “I’ve known him as long as I can remember. He would take care of me when I was a little kid.’’
There is more Bichette talent on the way, too. “My little brother Bo, he’s 13, is twice the player I am,’’ Dante said. “He rakes. He’s a special player.
“One time in high school I had a bad game, he took me in the cages that night, made me hit off the tee, made me hit off the machine and fixed my swing. I hit two home runs the next day.’’
Baseball is a family affair in the Bichette household.