Notable Quotables: Juneau the way to the big leagues?
By jseiner24
By Jake Seiner
Interviewing for game stories can be a fun process. The thousands of players and coaches spread across the Minor Leagues supply a never-ending chain of unique perspectives on the national pastime. The game story isn’t always the best place for block quotes and expanded thoughts, so once a week, I’m hoping to come here with a look back at some of the more interesting conversations I stumble upon with Minor League players and coaches. Here’s a look back at some quotes from the past week that I hope you’ll find of interest.
Lake County’s Dylan Baker on getting discovered coming from Juneau, Alaska (Baker pitches six one-hit innings):
“In Alaska, there weren’t a lot of scouts. I never talked to one or saw one my whole high school career. Then my parents, they helped me out by getting me to play summer ball in Seattle. They know I love baseball, so they wanted to help me. I played in Seattle, and that got me a couple of looks for college, like one or two colleges. I didn’t get recognized much. I went to Tacoma [Community College], and that wasn’t my favorite. It didn’t work out.
“I contacted my old summer ball coach [Don Moe], and he called up Western Nevada [College] and called me back and said I could go there. I went there and pitched there, and the head coach [D.J. Whittemore] took me in and worked with me every day. I started throwing harder and everything. That really helped me with everything — then scouts started coming. I had never seen a scout at a game before, and I just focused and played hard and did everything I could to get better.
“In high school, I probably threw maybe 83–86 [mph]. My freshman year of college, I think I topped out at 87. Then I went to Western Nevada and, with the workout program, I put on 15–20 pounds and worked with our pitching coach ever day to get my mechanics better and throw better. After winter break, I started throwing 95 and realized I could throw hard.
“I mean, I had wanted to get drafted after my freshman year of college, but, I mean, I was tall, skinny and lanky and nothing really clicked for me, I guess. Then I went to Western Nevada, and I gained some pounds and started long tossing. That was a big thing, I think. My arm was getting stronger, getting more whip on it, throwing harder and scouts started coming and people were talking.”
Palm Beach’s Stephen Piscotty on snapping out of his recent slump (Piscotty breaks out, homers twice):
“I went into B.P. and just started taking pitches, not swinging. I felt my timing was off, and I wasn’t getting ready soon enough. In B.P., I was really focusing on getting my foot down and getting in a good position to hit and not focusing so much on my mechanics. Once I got that base under me, I was able to get that swing path back and go from there. I was able to take that approach from B.P. into the game. I’m taking a few more pitches. Sometimes I can be way too aggressive and swing at too many pitches in a game. That patience paid off.”
Piscotty on learning to battle through slumps:
“I’ve done it my whole career. It’s not too different in pro ball versus college or summer ball. It’s baseball. The game stays the same. In pro ball, I got off to a bit of a slow start [last year], hitting below .300 in Low-A for a while, and I battled my way out of that. I’ve been through stuff and been frustrated before. I learn something new every time to help minimize the slumps. You want to minimize and get out of them as soon as you can. That’s one of the more important things in being a consistent ball player.”
Colorado Springs Sky Sox Matt McBride on transitioning back to catcher (McBride homers twice for Sky Sox):
“I’m training a lot. The Rockies have great catching coaches that have been able to help me and a lot of great catchers. I’m learning what I can from those guys. Each day, when I’m back there, I’m trying to get a little better each day. I’m trying to get to know the pitchers as well as I can. That’s all I can do. Leave it on the field and try to have fun, but at the same time, try to pick up something new that might help.
“We have a bunch of great players in our organization in the outfield and first base, so getting near the end of Spring Training, I was just sort of thinking hopefully I might be catching more just because there are so many good players on the roster, it’s hard to find a spot. When they told me at the end of Spring Training to focus on catching, they asked and I was really excited about it. It’s something I haven’t done full-time in a while, but I was excited about it. I think it’s a good opportunity.”
