A Prospect on the Rise

This summer I am in a position to watch some of the top talent coming up to the major leagues, as I am the media relations intern for the Binghamton Mets, a AA minor league team in the Eastern League.

I’ve seen the Yankees number six prospect, according to Baseball America, in RHP Zach McAllister. I’ve seen the Mets own righthanders  Brad Holt, their number four prospect and  Henrry Mejia their number seven prospect a number of times. None were as impressive as the young man I saw pitch on Wednesday, July 22.

Madison Bumgarner, a 19-year old lefty, the number one prospect in the San Francisco Giants organization and the sixth-best prospect in all of the minor leagues coming into the 2009 season according to MLB.com, is who I am talking about.

Is He Worth It?

In a few hours, his name will be called.  “With the first pick in the 2009 Major League Baseball draft, the Washington Nationals select Stephen Strasburg, San Diego State University.”  And so will begin another chapter in the life of the “greatest baseball prospect ever.”

I was first turned on to Strasburg in early May.  A friend of mine showed me his stats and they were pretty impressive.  A 6-4, 220 pound right hander that could throw over 100 mph, Strasburg had a 1.32 ERA in 15 starts.  But what really stood out were his 195 strikeouts and 19 walks in 109 innings pitched.

New York State of Mind

For years I have had numerous debates on whether someone is allowed to root for both the Yankees and the Mets.  A true fan would only root for one team, but there are some arguments that can be considered.  For example, “I’m a New York fan and I want to see both teams do well” or “You are allowed to have an AL team and an NL team.”

Let me just say that I don’t hate the Yankees.  It’s their fans that bother me.  Not all of their fans, just most of them.  I don’t have a problem with the ones who know something about baseball.  Or the ones who have been watching them play since they were a little kid because some family member would always have the game on TV or take them to the ballpark every so often.

There are a few types of fans that bother me.  The first are the ones that think the Yankees are the greatest team in baseball, but couldn’t name a single player on the roster other than Derek Jeter or Alex Rodriguez.  The next are the fans that started rooting for the Yankees right after they won their second World Series in 3 years (Also known as Front Runners).  The third are the ones that only root for the team because (insert player name) is hot.  It’s not just Yankee fans that do this, but it seems that most female Yankee fans I meet know nothing about baseball and are rooting more for Derek Jeter’s other features than his baseball talent.

America’s Pastime

I practically grew up on a baseball diamond.  My dad played when he was a kid so it was only natural for my brothers and I to play as well.  I played my first little league game when I was four, and continued playing all the way through my senior year of high school.  I loved every minute of it.

I no longer play baseball, but I have found something just as good: Rec League softball (I have no idea why they call it softball, the ball is not soft at all.  Just ask this girl).  I used to watch my dad play down in Mamaroneck when I was young, and part of me knew I’d be playing when I got older.  My dad stopped playing softball for a few years, but he started playing again when I was 13.  A friend of his had a softball team here in White Plains, and he talked my dad into playing.  Once again, I started going to the games and watching him play.

After a few years of watching the team and keeping the book (I’m told I keep one of the best score books around) I finally got the chance to play with the team.  I filled in here and there when the team needed an extra guy, and then finally I “earned” a regular spot on the team.  The games are on weeknights, and, like a typical softball team, we go out after, win or lose.

Anything is Possible

Score by Innings                    R  H  E
-------------------------------------------
Clarkson University. 000 002 481 - 15 18  5
Cortland State...... 003 502 200 - 12 14  4
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That is the linescore from game one of the NCAA Division III Baseball Regionals in Farmingdale, NY.  My friend Josh talked me into going to this game, and we were treated to quite the show.  Cortland State was the top seed in the regional, and Clarkson University was the six seed.

Allow me to first explain why I was there.  Josh and I have been good friends for a few years now.  We played baseball together back in high school.  He was a little better than me, seeing as he’s still playing in college and I, well, don’t.  He just finished his freshman year at Oneonta State, where he led the team in ERA.  The night before the game, we went to our usual hangout, the Candlelight Inn.  I wasn’t expecting him to be back from school so soon, since his team started out the season doing pretty well, and I thought they would be playing postseason ball.  Turns out, they didn’t do so well in their conference, and were knocked out by Cortland State.  Oneonta lost to Cortland 8-7, in game where Josh came in and pitched two perfect innings.  After we got back from Candlelight, Josh asked me if I wanted to go to Long Island with him to watch the regional game.  I had nothing to do, so I agreed.