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Porcello Gets First Taste
By Deran | February 18, 2008
Credit: Roger DeWitt
If you don’t know him yet, Rick Porcello was the Tigers much-applauded 1st round draft pick last summer. He is already being called the best high school pitcher to be drafted since Josh Beckett, and has been given a lot of comparisons to the Tigers’ Justin Verlander. He’s straight out of high school and just turned 19, so it is unsure if the organization will start him in West Michigan or challenge him at Lakeland.
At any rate, The Detroit Free Press wrote a blurb about him this weekend.
Notes: Porcello gets first taste
LAKELAND, Fla. — Rick Porcello’s first Major League drill didn’t cut him any slack. As he stood on the practice fields Friday morning readying for pitchers’ fielding practice, he realized he wasn’t simply on the same field with fielding madman Kenny Rogers, he was following right behind him, taking ground balls around first base.
Lots of luck, kid.
“He’s a fantastic fielder,” Porcello marveled afterwards. “He may be 43, but he moves like he’s in his 20s. [He’s] extremely quick off the mound. Every ball, he fields like it’s no problem. He makes it look easy.”
Actually, Porcello held his own against the Gold Glove winner, who is 24 years his elder. He didn’t make the diving stops or goaltender-like saves that have made Rogers’ fielding work a Spring Training spectator sport for teammates over the past few years, but he showed the instincts. Rogers helped out by providing some pointers.
Like Rogers, Porcello was a high school shortstop. But Porcello only played short on days when he didn’t pitch; Rogers, who didn’t pitch in school, played short regularly.
With that, Porcello’s first Spring Training had begun. At one point while he was stretching, manager Jim Leyland walked up to him and reminded him that he was playing high school ball a year ago at this time.
It just feels longer than that.
“It seems like a lifetime ago,” Porcello said with a smile. “I don’t forget anything from my high school days, but it’s like remembering back, it seems like so long ago. And it was only last year.”
Topics: Flying Tigers, Spring Training |
March 5th, 2008 at 1:25 pm
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