Reply to "Milb Spring Training begins"

Thanks for asking floridafan, Jerseyson is having a good Spring Training camp so far. Rabe62, my guy is a RH starting pitcher and he was in Low-A ball last year. He’s not sure where he will be this year and I assume he won’t know until the last week of ST. As mentioned in an earlier post they usually have the players working out with a team a level up from where they are going to play, if this holds true I would suspect he will be in Hi-A but who knows?

JS pitched in the AA game yesterday and called last night to tell me that he had a good day. He must have really felt good about things because he never calls… (texting rules as his preferred mode of communication). As happy as I am that he is pitching well, I was even happier to hear that his body feels good and he seems ready to start the season (fingers crossed). JS missed a significant part of last season due to a nagging injury so it was good to hear that he was feeling good. I have come to believe that the biggest hurdle the milb guys face in their quest to make it to the show is not so much the lack of talent to be successful; it’s their ability to stay healthy.

Professional ball has really opened my eyes to the reality that baseball is a business first… game second. I have been a lifelong baseball fan however before having someone in the “biz” I pretty much thought of Spring Training as a place that the MLB guys went to get game ready, a few prospects got a chance to prove they were ready to move up to the big club and most of all, it signified that the baseball season was just around the corner.

Now I can see that for many players, Spring Training is a 2 month long tryout, showcase and job interview all wrapped into one. As intense as that may sound, it goes on pretty much 24/7. The bottom line is that these guys are all fighting for a roster spot…period. No matter where you are in the food chain, you are still trying to get to the next level and that usually means jumping over some of your buddies to get there. These guys literally eat, sleep and live together, not to mention they work together so it is an interesting dynamic to see some of my son’s best friends competing for the same roster spots. While I am sure there is some jealousy, I have yet to hear Jerseyson mention someone getting a promotion without him being genuinely happy for them (my daughter calls them friendemies).

Professional baseball seems to be a strange, yet wonderful career to pursue. As hard and uncertain that their jobs may be, I bet very few ever regret taking a chance to grab the brass ring.

Here’s to a safe, healthy and productive season for all our boys.