Last month I had hoped to meet OPP (Tom) when Zach's Pirates came to town to play the Minnesota Twins. OPP couldn't make the trip, but he spoke to Zach who left tickets for me and my husband. Zach also provided passes to the players' waiting area and arranged to meet us after a game that he was not pitching. So after the game my husband and I found ourselves downstairs in a hallway between the two teams' locker rooms, literally almost bumping into some of our favorite Twins players as they left. A few minutes later Zach walked out of the Pirates' locker room wearing a casual t-shirt, a warm smile, and a friendly twinkle in his eye.
To be honest, I felt a bit nervous about imposing on this nice young man - this MLB pitcher - even if he was the son of a friend. As we shook his hand, my husband and I told Zach we didn't want to keep him from relaxing with his team, but he graciously insisted he had nothing he needed to do and was happy to visit. So we headed across the street to Hubert's, a casual sports bar named for the HHH Metrodome.
For the next hour, my husband and I had the distinct pleasure and privilege of talking, mostly about baseball and family, with one of the nicest young men you could hope to meet. Zach is very poised and articulate, obviously very bright, but so down-to-earth and easygoing that at times I almost forgot that he was an MLB pitcher and not a college teammate of our son, or a next-door neighbor.
It was very cool to be able to ask Zach about some of his baseball experiences. Personally, one of the first conversations I remember on the HS Baseball Web was seeing other members congratulate OPP on his son being drafted out of high school back in 2001. Zach was expected to go high in the draft (rounds 3–6 if I recall right), but because of some (untrue) signability rumors right before the draft, he fell to the 20th round where the Pirates picked him up and offered him a higher-round signing bonus. Zach had a tough decision to make – college or pro ball. I recall OPP mentioning that they had family discussions about it, but finally Zach made the decision on his own, leaving his dad a note that he had decided to sign.
So Zach headed off to MiLB as an 18-yr-old in the summer of 2001. Many parents here know that MiLB is not a glamorous or easy life, especially at such a young age. As we talked with Zach, he had no complaints about the long days and even longer bus rides, but I can picture this self-reliant young man working hard month after month, willing to pay his dues and put in the sweat and toil it takes to keep moving up to the next level.
Though he led all MiLB pitchers with a 1.46 ERA in 2004, most baseball fans probably didn't hear much about Zach again until July of 2005, when he was called up by the Pirates. Zach made his MLB debut on July 2, 2005, striking out 9 in a no-decision. Then he proceeded to win his first 5 decisions and rack up an 8-2 record for the season, to the thunderous applause of his HS Baseball Web fan club ... and thousands of grateful Pirates fans.
As my husband and I visited with Zach we asked him questions about his career and about this season. But as members here would probably expect from OPP's son, Zach was not inclined to emphasize his own accomplishments or turn the conversation toward himself. He is a young man who loves baseball and still likes to watch the game as well as play it. We talked about some of our favorite MLB parks, and his favorites along with the parks he doesn't like so much.
We talked about making adjustments in baseball, whether adjusting to "the next level" or to a coaching change (Zach has had something like 4 or 5 pitching coaches in about as many seasons). We talked about playing travel ball as a youngster, and about family. Zach speaks warmly about his dad, mom, and sister, and of course his lovely wife who sounds as bright and hard-working as Zach. My husband (who is a big baseball fan but would not profess to be knowledgeable) gave Zach a scouting report on Justin Morneau who Zach would face a day and a half later. Zach joked to my husband that he would think of him when he faced Morneau, but if his report was wrong, he was gonna get him!
(Sorry Justin, but I hope the advice helped when Zach faced you with bases loaded and you grounded into a double play.) 
I have to confess that when Zach started against our Twins that week, it was the ONLY time in my life I have ever wanted the Twins to lose! What an enjoyable evening, meeting OPP's son and talking baseball. Today we learned very happily that Zach was added to the National League roster for the 2009 All-Star game. And I have to say very sincerely ... it couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
Congrats, Zach!
Julie
