Joel Zumaya--2004
Aaaaaahhhhh... Spring training.
What a wonderful time.
Lazy afternoons in intimate
stadiums watching the Cardboard
Gods prepare for the coming
season. Mid-game jogging by the
pitchers in the outfield against a
background of palm trees. It is a
special time.
Most of my memories both as a kid
and as a scout revolve around the
game setting, as the action of the
field has proven inconsequential.
At age 12, I remember seeing the
Royals in Ft. Myers while our family
visited my grandparents. Kansas
City played the White Sox and I was
able to gather a program cover full
of autographs--- thirty-one to be
exact. In old Terry Stadium, the
players had to walk though the
public under the stadium in order to
reach the team bus. From Big John
Mayberry to Mike Hedlund of KC
and many of the Sox, including
utility infielder Luis Alvarado I
gathered the signatures.
Graduating to the ranks of a pro
scout, I enjoy sitting in the stands
before the gates open with many of
the scouts who were the Cardboard
Gods of my youth and also talking
with the many coaches who once
adorned my cards during their
playing days.
However, there was one spring
training game that I do remember
as special. It was 2007 and the
Tigers were in Tampa taking on the
Yankees. It was early in the spring
and most pitchers were just
beginning to stretch their arms
out... all, except for Joel Zumaya.
That afternoon, Zumaya took the
mound for his first outing of the
spring and proceeded to hit 100
mph on my radar gun with the first
pitch he threw. 100 mph!
The scout section was a buzz.
Seeing a 100 on your radar gun is
rare, but on the first pitch of spring
training, seemed like a miracle.
Thus, Zumaya's pitch has become
single game memory that I
remember from my many springs.
(3/5/10)
What a wonderful time.
Lazy afternoons in intimate
stadiums watching the Cardboard
Gods prepare for the coming
season. Mid-game jogging by the
pitchers in the outfield against a
background of palm trees. It is a
special time.
Most of my memories both as a kid
and as a scout revolve around the
game setting, as the action of the
field has proven inconsequential.
At age 12, I remember seeing the
Royals in Ft. Myers while our family
visited my grandparents. Kansas
City played the White Sox and I was
able to gather a program cover full
of autographs--- thirty-one to be
exact. In old Terry Stadium, the
players had to walk though the
public under the stadium in order to
reach the team bus. From Big John
Mayberry to Mike Hedlund of KC
and many of the Sox, including
utility infielder Luis Alvarado I
gathered the signatures.
Graduating to the ranks of a pro
scout, I enjoy sitting in the stands
before the gates open with many of
the scouts who were the Cardboard
Gods of my youth and also talking
with the many coaches who once
adorned my cards during their
playing days.
However, there was one spring
training game that I do remember
as special. It was 2007 and the
Tigers were in Tampa taking on the
Yankees. It was early in the spring
and most pitchers were just
beginning to stretch their arms
out... all, except for Joel Zumaya.
That afternoon, Zumaya took the
mound for his first outing of the
spring and proceeded to hit 100
mph on my radar gun with the first
pitch he threw. 100 mph!
The scout section was a buzz.
Seeing a 100 on your radar gun is
rare, but on the first pitch of spring
training, seemed like a miracle.
Thus, Zumaya's pitch has become
single game memory that I
remember from my many springs.
(3/5/10)
