Player Profile of the Week
Position: Starting Pitcher
Number: 3
Age: 23, 10/1/1965
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 180
College: Florida
Contract Info: Minor League Deal
Acquired: via 1989 Amateur Draft
Q. Were you surprised or disappointed by your draft spot?
A. More surprised than anything. My agent and I were really looking at being selected around 20'th, especially when offense was popular early in the draft. But once that run happened on starting pitchers, I was shocked. The call came much earlier in the draft than I expected but I'm happy to be with the Surf.
Q. If not the Surf, what team or teams were you hoping to be selected by?
A. Honestly I was kind of hoping to stay on the East coast, be it with a Richmond, Memphis, or Jacksonville. I've lived in Florida my whole life and now I'll be playing for a California franchise. The nice thing though is they have a lot of minor league ties in the Southeast with clubs in Greensboro, North Carolina and Birmingham, Alabama.
Q. What are your goals going to be in your first professional season?
A. I want to get acquainted with the life, I know its going to be a lot more grueling than college ball. I mean, I had classes, practice, and games but now baseball becomes my job and life. I'm not looking forward to the bus trips and the flea bag hotels but its all part of working your way up.
Q. You decided to declare for the USBA draft rather than the MLB draft, how come?
A. The USBA has done a tremendous marketing job and built an amazingly strong league. Following the MLB strike in the early '80's, I was turned off by the sport but then along came the USBA. They've put teams in markets that otherwise were untapped and they've done a tremendous job bringing in some of the best talent, this is the place to be.
Q. So what is going to be your first big purchase when you get that signing bonus?
A. I'm throwing a massive party with all my college teammates to celebrate. Since the NCAA doesn't pay us and limits the types of jobs we can have, its hard for us to have a real balls to the wall party, so I'm gonna throw them one and everyone is invited!
