Those of you, who are avid readers of my blog, (and apparently there's over 300 of you out there), have read that my godson, Jarek Cunn
ingham, was slated to play baseball at Arizona State University in the fall now that he has graduated from Mt. Spokane High School. That was before he was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the MLB draft last week. This came as a bit of a surprise as Jarek had injured his knee playing basketball and had missed his entire senior year of playing baseball as a result of that injury. I got the call from my brother while I was in Vegas and my first thought was that he better not give up going to college just to play baseball. At the time, it was all up in the air as they still had to sit down with the Pirates to find out what the deal was.
ingham, was slated to play baseball at Arizona State University in the fall now that he has graduated from Mt. Spokane High School. That was before he was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the MLB draft last week. This came as a bit of a surprise as Jarek had injured his knee playing basketball and had missed his entire senior year of playing baseball as a result of that injury. I got the call from my brother while I was in Vegas and my first thought was that he better not give up going to college just to play baseball. At the time, it was all up in the air as they still had to sit down with the Pirates to find out what the deal was. Well, t
hat meeting took place this past weekend and, apparently, the offer was good and he signed with the Pirates. I can't be angry with Jarek because this is his dream, something he's wanted his entire life. Some kids want to go to college to have that college experience but Jarek just wants to play baseball and have that experience. I believe in striking while the iron is hot and what if he didn't sign now and never got this opportunity again.
hat meeting took place this past weekend and, apparently, the offer was good and he signed with the Pirates. I can't be angry with Jarek because this is his dream, something he's wanted his entire life. Some kids want to go to college to have that college experience but Jarek just wants to play baseball and have that experience. I believe in striking while the iron is hot and what if he didn't sign now and never got this opportunity again. I'm sure his brother Brendan, who is already a student at ASU, is disappointed that he w
on't get to see his brother play for the Sun Devils but I'm sure he realizes that Jarek has to follow his dream just as Brendan has to follow his. Different strokes for different folks as they say. Needless to say, the fact that he's been drafted by an east coast team works well for me and the fact that it is a team in Pennsylvania almost seems like fate to me. Of course he would want to play for a team where his Aunt Nancy could travel to see him play.......every game.
on't get to see his brother play for the Sun Devils but I'm sure he realizes that Jarek has to follow his dream just as Brendan has to follow his. Different strokes for different folks as they say. Needless to say, the fact that he's been drafted by an east coast team works well for me and the fact that it is a team in Pennsylvania almost seems like fate to me. Of course he would want to play for a team where his Aunt Nancy could travel to see him play.......every game. But, of cour
se, it will be quite awhile before he gets to Pittsburgh. The first stop is Bradenton, Florida where he will play Rookie level ball for the Pirate's team there. I guess there's a ladder you climb before you make it and the better you are, the faster you climb. I know one of the stops is at State College which would really be nostalgic for me since my own son Michael just graduated from Penn State. In looking over some of the Pirate's information online, I see there is also a team in Altoona, PA which is actually the campus where Michael started at Penn State before heading to the main campus in Happy Valley. So it seems to me that Jarek should start working very hard so he gets closer to me as I'm sure he'd like me at his games.
se, it will be quite awhile before he gets to Pittsburgh. The first stop is Bradenton, Florida where he will play Rookie level ball for the Pirate's team there. I guess there's a ladder you climb before you make it and the better you are, the faster you climb. I know one of the stops is at State College which would really be nostalgic for me since my own son Michael just graduated from Penn State. In looking over some of the Pirate's information online, I see there is also a team in Altoona, PA which is actually the campus where Michael started at Penn State before heading to the main campus in Happy Valley. So it seems to me that Jarek should start working very hard so he gets closer to me as I'm sure he'd like me at his games. When my brother Michael first told me that he had been drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates, the
first thing 
that came to mind (after being excited for Jarek, of course) was trading baseball cards way back when. Any of you readers from my generation might remember doing this as a child. I always had a lot of Pittsburgh Pirate cards that I was willing to trade in the typical "got 'em, got 'em, need 'em, got 'em" fashion. It's funny how your memory works but I remember the cards of Donn Clendenon, Bill Mazeroski, Hal Smith, Smoky Burgess, etc., all in their Pirates' uniforms and, might I add here, that I really didn't like the uniforms way back then. They're much improved now.
first thing 
that came to mind (after being excited for Jarek, of course) was trading baseball cards way back when. Any of you readers from my generation might remember doing this as a child. I always had a lot of Pittsburgh Pirate cards that I was willing to trade in the typical "got 'em, got 'em, need 'em, got 'em" fashion. It's funny how your memory works but I remember the cards of Donn Clendenon, Bill Mazeroski, Hal Smith, Smoky Burgess, etc., all in their Pirates' uniforms and, might I add here, that I really didn't like the uniforms way back then. They're much improved now. I was reading some funny stuff on a Minor League Baseball site and it said that there's "buried treasure in the Pirate's farm" and the organization used to be "tight with the doubloons" but have made some good trades lately. I can see that I'm going to have some fun with this in my blog. I guess as long as they don't pay him in pieces o' eight or make him walk the plank, he'll be fine. So ASU's loss become the Pirates' gain. In a way, I'm sad for ASU because I was really looking forward to him playing college ball. But, I see great things ahead for my godchild. As they say on that old pirate ship, "Full steam ahead".....Next stop Bradenton!!!
EDIT: I think I've mentioned here before just how funny my brother Bobby is. This morning I get an email from him and he's talking about Jarek and he says this in the email...... "If Jarek plays winter ball in the Dominican Republic or Puerto Rico, he'll be a Pirate of the Caribbean."
lolololololol......and I'm still laughing!!!
1 comment:
Pretty cool happening! Congrats to your nephew.
It's funny how some sports only want players after college and other sports do not care.
I saw in our local paper that a young man who went to a boys' HS in Wilmington then went on to Haverford College (he must be really smart) where he just finished his sophomore year.....was drafted over the weekend by the Indians.
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