What is the biggest difference between college and the pros?
The game moves a lot faster. We do some things at practices, but if you want to get better then you have to do a lot of things on your own. In college, you have school to go to. When you have practices, that is the only time you have to practice. In pro ball, you don't have school, so you are working on things in your down time that you need to do to get better.
How are the day-to-day activities different in the pros compared to in college?
It is your job now. During the season, you wake up and go to baseball right away. At least, that was how my season was. You go eat breakfast when you wake up, and then you go right to baseball. After that is when you usually have some time to yourself. That is when you and the team go to dinner. You go to Chili's or something like that. You just have a lot more free time than you do in college. In college you are always doing something. You're either going to baseball or school. When you aren't at baseball or school, you are doing something to do with school, like homework. So I actually have a lot more time than I thought I was going to have. It is also good time to recover, because you play every single day unlike college.
What is the best part about being a pro baseball player?
In a baseball aspect, it is that you get to play every day. If you have a good day, it carries over to the next day. If you do have a bad day, say you go 0-4, you have the next day to bring that up. You can always change the next day. That is what I think is the best thing about pro ball is that you play every day. If you do badly, you always have the next day. You don't have to sit around for three days until the next game, and worry about what you did in the last game. You have to live and forget.
What are the worst things?
The only thing that I could say would be bad about it is injuries. It's not even that bad, it is just a part of the game. If you get injured and you are out for two weeks, in college ball you miss like six or seven games. In pro ball that is 14 games, because you play every day. Injuries are probably the biggest killer to professional baseball players. If you are out for two weeks, and someone comes in for you for two weeks they can take your job. That is probably the worst thing. You have to battle through it, and you have to battle through injuries.
How was your transition from USF to the minors? Did you struggle with anything?
I honestly didn't have a hard time with much. People said the wood bat would be a lot different. I actually had more power with the wood bat this year. I hit for average as well. I had a lot of success in pro ball this year. I got injured twice. They were both kind of bad luck injuries. I had never really been injured, not even in college. I played every day in college, every game. This year I had to sit out about three weeks all together with those injuries. In the Yankees organization they bring you back real slow even if it is a minor injury. They want to prevent further injury. I sprained my MCL about 15 games into the season. Two weeks before the season was over, I sprained my hip flexor and had to sit out again. The hip flexor wasn't that big of a deal, but there are certain ways that we have to rehab. It took me about two weeks to get that done. Then I played a game before the playoffs, and I played all of the playoffs.
You posted some great numbers in your first season with Staten Island, how do you plan on building upon that as you make your way through the minors?
This offseason is my first offseason, so I think this is probably the most important time for me. It is time for me to get rest right now. Then I need to work on things that I need to work on. I got here, and they gave me objectives of what to do. That is what I am going to work on this offseason. They didn't really give me much. I am going to be down there working hard in Tampa and Legends' Field/ Himes area. They have people down there all the time. That is what I'll be doing; trying to get better. I have to keep doing what I've been doing. I've had a lot of good people around me like Tino [Martinez] and my agent, Reggie Jefferson, who has been in the pros. I got to go to AAA at the end of the year. I had a lot of people to talk to.
What are your plans and goals for next season?
I just need to stay conditioned like I always have been. That is actually the part that I am least worried about. It is mostly just staying injury free. That is a hard thing to do. You can't really play to avoid injury; you have to play how you normally play. Injuries just happen. One of the biggest things for me in this offseason is to develop some sort of program that will prevent injury, like stretching and flexibility that helps prevent injury. I had great success and instruction when I was up in AAA hitting batting practice with them. I like to compare myself to people like that. They are up there for a reason. I want to be there. I need to just keep doing what I am doing, and try to stay injury free.
What were your first thought when you got drafted?
The day I got drafted I was with Daniel Thomas, who played for us. Tino called me earlier that day and told me the Yankees were going to try and get me pretty early in the day. The Yankees guy called me, one of the scouts, and told me they were going to try and get me between the 8th-12th rounds. They didn't draft me then and I was wondering what was going on. So finally in the 17th round they picked me up. They told me that they just couldn't hold out anymore. I was excited when they did it. I couldn't imagine playing for any other team. Especially after playing for them these last couple months, I couldn't imagine playing for any other team. The Yankees organization is based on pride. That is the biggest part. A lot of people don't understand the way they work. I'm sure it is like that with the Red Sox too. The Red Sox and the Yankees are the two biggest names in baseball. A majority of all fans are either Red Sox or Yankees fans. It is because of the pride that they take. I know first hand that the Yankees do, we do with pride. Everyone has to be clean shaven. There are just certain things that you have to do to be a Yankee. It is the little things they make you do, and if you don't do them then you get fired. That is why the Yankees have had success over the years, because they do the little things right. Buying into the system is the biggest key. Even Coach Prado, Coach Ward and Lazer would say that you have to buy into the system. I always bought into their system. I bought into the Yankees system real quickly. I don't think the young players understand how important it is to do what the coaches want you to do, no matter what.
You got called up to AAA for a short time this year? What did that mean to you and what did you learn?
Here is the story about how that happened. I was home for six hours in Tampa. They called me and said, “Hey, we need you up here in Scranton.” I was like, ?What?!” I was amazed. I was so happy when they did that. I fell asleep, and the next day I woke up real?real early. I got on a plane and flew up to Durham. I was up there with the AAA team for four days. Then we went to Oklahoma City, because we won the championship, for another five days. It was an awesome experience. I was so excited about it. I didn't think I was going to play, and I didn't actually play. I just wanted to go up there, and figure out why those players are up there, and what I need to do to get up there. All I pretty much did up there was practice and ask questions. I hung out with Shelley Duncan for about five hours, for two nights in a row, until 4 a.m. We were in Oklahoma City just talking about baseball. It was an awesome experience to be around guys who have been in the major leagues. I talked to guys who get called up like Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes. I got to be around those guys and to figure out how they got there, and to figure out what I need to do to get there. I honestly thought it was a prank call at first. I thought it was one of my friends, but instead, it was Eric Schmidt, one of the head guys of the Yankees.
What are you doing position-wise?
About a week before we had playoffs, the scouting director of the Yankees came up there. This is when I was injured, and I was just playing catch with my catcher's glove. He came up to me and told me that I wouldn't need that anymore. He told me that I wasn't moving anywhere; that I was staying at shortstop. As of right now, I am just going to stay at shortstop. During instruct they had me play third base just to get at bats. He told me that I was going to be a shortstop, and they were just putting me there to get at bats, and not to worry about it. I am going to still learn other positions.
What are your thoughts at possibly being an eventual replacement for Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez or Jorge Posada?
I never really thought about that, about being their replacements. I have always imagined playing short stop up there; to play up there; to get an at bat up there, or at any other big league stadium. To play behind those guys, especially those three guys would be a great honor. They have been around for a while. They have also been around USF because of Tino. All three are great guys. I couldn't even imagine replacing them. If I did, then it would be awesome. I would probably live it up.
What major league player do you try to watch and learn from?
When I watch the game now or the playoffs now, I watch everybody. Even when Yankee guys interview me, they ask me who my favorite players are. I have a few. A-Rod is one of the best hitters. I'd have to say that one of my favorite players is Kevin Youkilis, because of how hard that guy works. He is talented, and he is putting up numbers like A-Rod. When you look at him hit compared to A-Rod, you're like, “What is this guy doing?” He looks totally different. He is a grinder. He plays hard every day, every out, every pitch. You can tell by the way he plays. If the camera was on him the whole game you would see a million different phases of him. Every pitch is different; every play is different. You would see how hard this guy really does work. I pay attention to that. He is one of my favorite players, because of that. That is who I look up to. That guy busts his butt down to first base every time, no matter what. You see other people that just jog or they don't even touch first base if they hit a ground ball. I don't like that. Youkilis is the epitome of all of that. He hustles all the time. He plays the game as hard as he can.
What are your expectations of USF baseball this year?
I have been to a couple practices. They look really good. The infield looks strong. The outfield looks strong. I have seen a couple of their pitchers throwing bullpens. I have seen pitchers from last year throw. They have been getting better. That is all you can do in college is to get better every year. Every day somehow get better. I really noticed it, not seeing them for a summer. Coming back and seeing how they are playing now, it amazes me to see how much better they have gotten. I have high hopes. USF is in the middle of Florida. I think that once we have an outstanding year, hopefully in the Top 25, or playing in Omaha, I think doors are going to open up for us. Coach Prado is still looking for that team to do that. In my three years we didn't do that, but hopefully this year's team can do it. Once they do that, once they go to Omaha, I think we will get recruits easily. They are all going to want to come here. We are in the middle of the state. We are close to their home. For someone that lives in Miami and they are going to go to FSU, that is an eight hour drive. At USF, that would be a four hour drive. I think a lot of doors are going to open if we go to Omaha.
