This off-season, which already is nearly over, started like every other: scrambling for a job to bring in some money; savoring every minute with my wife, Emily, and family, and not letting up on my training. I’m still throwing my knuckleball every chance I get, even against my best friend, that brick wall. I’m not haunted by the uncertainty I’ve felt in some previous off-seasons, wondering where...
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I know, I know: Everyone thinks they can throw a knuckleball. In baseball when you’re joking around with the guys you hear that all the time. Almost every single player has come up to me and said, “Check out my knuckleball.” I always say, “OK, now throw it 100 times in a row with a batter 60 feet, 6 inches away, knowing what pitch is coming.” It’s a fun pitch to mess around with. That’s what got...
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Opening Day 2010. For most baseball fans, the season began April 1. For me, a senior draft pick out of college, Opening Day came in June, only a few days after the Tampa Bay Rays had selected me in the 44th round. My dream of playing professional ball had come true. It didn’t seem real, however, for a few more days. That’s when I found myself on the mound starting for the Princeton, W.Va., Rays...
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It’s January as I write this, but when I think about baseball, it’s always May or June, the early part of the season when hopes are high, prospects bright, and anything is possible. I grew up in Northern Nevada, where early spring can come in cold and crisp. “Spring training,” no matter what level you’re playing at, no matter what age you are, never comes soon...
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