Life in the Minors: Chapter 1 -- New Beginnings
For the 17th consecutive year, WFUV talks to the members of the Brooklyn Cyclones and the Staten Island Yankees in the New York Penn League. The long bus rides, the low pay, 76 games in 80 days and more. This is a look into Life in the Minors: How the Other Half Lives.
This week, Chris Calamari and Joey Dayon look at the first week of the 2017 season in Chapter 1: New Beginnings. Scroll down and listen to the audio feature below.
The Staten Island Yankees with Chris Calamari:
While baseball has been happening for a while in the major leagues, the season has only begun for young minor leaguers dreaming of making it to the majors. The first stop for some of these players is the Staten Island Yankees, the short season A affiliate of the New York Yankees in the New York-Penn League. While for some players this team is nothing new spending their second year with the club, for many this is their first year with Staten Island. That is the case for Yanks manager Julio Mosquera who is in his 12th year of coaching with the Yankee organization. He spent nine seasons as a catching coordinator in the Yanks system including a 2 year run with Staten Island in 2006-07. After managing the past two years with Gulf Coast League Yankees, Julio, like many players, is beginning a new part of his career with his first year as the Staten Island manager.
For many minor leaguers, New York is a new environment to play in with new experiences, but for Yanks pitcher Greg Weissert, a former Fordham pitcher, he feels right being a native New Yorker. Weissert, a 2016 draft pick, is excited to be a part of the Yankee organization he grew watching play at Yankee Stadium. While he loved the Pulaski fans down in Virginia during his first season in the minors, he is glad to be back in his home state of New York.
For some even the lifestyle is an adjustment, 2017 draft pick and Island infielder Chris Hess has seen a major change in how he goes about his day. In college, he was up early for class then striaght to games and practices and ending the day staying up late to finish schoolwork. In the first week of his minor league career he found that he has more time to rest and just focus on playing the game he loves every day.
The season has just kicked off in the New York-Penn League and these players are ready to face the challenges of the minor league lifestyle and embark on their journey towards being a member of the New York Yankees.
The Brooklyn Cyclones with Joey Dayon:
There is nothing quite like baseball in the summer, and one of the best places to watch a game is in Brooklyn. Out on Coney Island, the Brooklyn Cyclones are just starting their 76 game schedule, a season native Brooklyn baseball fans couldn’t wait for. The start of New York-Penn League baseball is not only just the start of good baseball games but also the careers of many who will aspire to make it to the major leagues as a New York Met.
As a young player just starting out in the minor leagues, there is no place like Brooklyn selling almost 6000 tickets each game with Coney Island and the ocean in the background. The atmosphere is like no other and these players will enjoy every minute of it. Being a part of a New York organization for many players is very important and special. Keaton Aldridge, a mini Mets relief pitcher, is not only excited about being in the Mets organization but also about being able to continue his dream as a professional athlete. Players like Chris Vial for the Cyclones feel that the organization can become a form a family over the next few months.
The ballpark in Brooklyn is one of the many aspects of playing for the Cyclones that can be very different for new players. Pitcher Kurtis Horne could not believe how many fans were at each game and how excited all the fans were for the Cyclones when they played. It was an experience he has not yet had in his baseball career.
Being a minor leaguer can make it tough for many to keep calm before each game as the excitement of playing as a professional baseball player can be overwhelming. Chris Vial feels that it is natural to get a little nervous before each game because he knows that it’s this nervousness that’s going to fuel him to do better. Keaton Aldridge, one of the older players on the team, gets more pumped up for games than he does nervous and attributes how he feels before a game to his solid pregame preparation.
Before each game the manager always has the final say, and for Brooklyn this year that is the former Met, Edgardo Alfonso. He tells his players that it is important to remember to keep loose and have fun because after all that is why you play the game.
Even though these players may be nervous for this year as a Brooklyn Cyclone, it is all part of the incredible journey to fulfill their dream of becoming a major leaguer.
