Vance Lovelace, No Quitter - 434

Vance Lovelace had endured some setbacks, he admitted to The Palm Beach Post in 1985. But he was ready to overcome them.

"I'm not a quitter," Lovelace told The Post,  When I clear these obstacles, I'll do good for myself."

Lovelace wasn't a quitter. And he did make the majors. The hurler ultimately got into three major league seasons, getting into nine total games.

And, while he made it to the majors, he could hardly make it past comparisons to the careers of two of his teammates at Hillsborough High School in Tampa, fellow pitchers Floyd Youmans and Dwight Gooden.

Lovelace's playing career began in 1981, taken by the Cubs in the first round of the draft, taken directly out of high school.

He played that first year with the Cubs rookie Gulf Coast League team, then the next year at single-A Quad Cities.

Lovelace's stay in the Cubs system, though was limited to those two seasons. For 1983, Lovelace was sent to the Dodgers with another minor leaguer for Ron Cey.

"Our scouts report that Lovelace has all the tools to be a major league pitcher," Dodger VP Al Campanis told The Associated Press after the trade. "He has a great arm and he's a big, strong youngster."

With the Dodgers, Lovelace played 1983 at single-A Vero Beach. He went 8-10 in 20 starts. He made AA San Antonio in 1984, going 3-7 in 16 starts. His season was shortened by shoulder pain.

After one more season in the Dodgers organization, Lovelace moved to the Angels system, taken in the minor league draft.

Lovelace first made AAA in 1988 at Edmonton. In September, Lovelace got his call to the majors. He got into three games, 1.1 innings, giving up two runs.

Lovelace came back for one game with the Angels in 1989 then five final games with the Mariners in 1990. Overall, Lovelace got into nine games in his major league career, 4.2 innings. He gave up three earned runs.

Lovelace continued playing affiliated ball in the minors through 1994, going through the Tigers, Braves and Rangers systems. He's last recorded as playing in 1998, at independent New Jersey.

Lovelace has gone on to a career as a scout, rising to the level of special assistant to the general manager with the Dodgers in 2006.

"I'm not playing anymore, but I'm valued for my mind," Lovelace told MLB.com in February 2011. "I manage people. I was thinking that 40 or 50 years ago, that never would have happened to someone like me. My mother was a Brooklyn Dodgers fan. It's pretty neat being in her favorite organization, where Branch Rickey first embraced Jackie, the organization that took the first chance with a black player and has taken a chance with me."

• Williamson Daily News, Associated Press,  Jan. 20, 1983: Cubs acquire Cey in major deal with LA
  
• Palm Beach Post, Aug. 20, 1985: Lovelace Makes Up for Lost Time
• MLB.com, Feb. 17, 2011: Lovelace credits Robinson for his opportunities

1990 CMC Tally
Cards Featured: 750/880 - 85.2%
Players/Coaches Featured: 761
Made the Majors: 514 - 68%-X
Never Made the Majors:247-32%
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 226
10+ Seasons in the Minors: 145

Interview Tom Gilles, Part 1, Seventh Tryout

Tom Gilles at Avanti's Ristorante in Peoria, Ill, in April 2012. (G21D Photo)

Part 1: Seventh Tryout | Part 2: Real Job | Part 3: Big Difference

PEORIA, IL - Tom Gilles had been to tryouts six times and six times the teams had passed

The questions always seemed to come: How old is he? Has he been released? Gilles was 24 years old and he had been released - two seasons after being taken deep in the draft, in the 47th round.

"That was only six out of 26, I've got 20 to go," Gilles told The Greatest 21 Days recently about his thinking as he tried to catch on with a new team, and keep his short career going. "Somebody's going to sign me. That was my thought process. It was nobody's but mine, and probably my father's."

And somebody did. His seventh tryout, with the Royals, turned in to a spring training spot and then into a minor league spot.

Gilles' playing time with the Royals was brief, another injury kept it so. But Gilles kept going. And, just over three years after he went from tryout to tryout finally getting noticed in his seventh, Gilles found himself where he wanted to be - in the major leagues.

It was a short stay in the bigs - all of two appearances. But he got there.

SkyDome in Toronto in 2003. Tom Gilles pitched in the first of his two major league games at SkyDome in 1990. (G21D Photo)

Gilles spoke with The Greatest 21 Days recently in Peoria, Ill, near his hometown of Kickapoo. Over a late lunch at Avanti's Ristorante, Gilles touched on his youth, the son of a man who had a brief minor league career himself.

Gilles also touched on his series of comebacks, why he kept going and his call up to the majors. He also touched on the final end of his career, spent on a playing field in Saskatchewan and his time since, tending bar and then doing what he really enjoys, teaching kids baseball.

Gilles grew up in Kickapoo, eventually attending high school in Peoria. Growing up, Gilles recalled his father constantly working with him on his fundamentals and mechanics. His brother Mark Gilles also benefited, getting his own four-season career in the minors.

Gilles' father, also named Tom Gilles, played in the minors in the 1950s. The younger Gilles recalled it was his father's dream for himself to play professional baseball. And he passed that dream on to his kids, ensuring they had the opportunity to play.

"He always made it available for us, even though we didn't have a lot of money," Gilles said of his father, who passed away in September 2011 at the age of 80. "We always had a glove. We always had a bat. We always had a yard to play in."

Gilles also recalled his father building a mound in the yard. He also helped his game in other ways, Gilles recalled. Even in a 4-for-4 game, or a game where he struck out 12, Gilles recalled his father not wanting him to sit back, but wanting him to improve, finding that bad swing or wild pitch.

It was constructive criticism, Gilles recalled, though not necessarily what he wanted to hear at the time. But Gilles believes it made him tougher and better.

"I think a lot of my ability came from God, and my dad's genes - he had a lot of fast-twitch muscle fiber," Gilles said, "and just the attitude that he had that 'you don't quit until they make you quit.'"

In high school at Peoria Bergan, Gilles played both shortstop and he pitched. At the plate, Gilles hit well, hitting near .400 on the high school diamond. But, if he had a fault, Gilles said he was too coachable. On advice from scouts, Gilles and his coaches tried to make the right-hander into a switch-hitter.

The former Vonachen Stadium in Peoria, Ill., in November 2011. Vonachen Stadium was once home to the Peoria Chiefs. A Peoria-native, Tom Gilles played at Vonachen Stadium in 1988 as a member of the visiting Kenosha Twins. (G21D Photo)

It went well-enough, but it hurt his average. He also wasn't drafted out of high school. He also played basketball in high school, something he enjoyed and did well at.

Going to college at Indiana State, he hoped to play both. A scheduling problem forced him to give up basketball. Having to quit basketball, Gilles said, was something he regretted.

On the diamond, Gilles play both shortstop and third base. He also pitched. Going into 1984, his senior year, Gilles' career to that time got him onto a pre-season All-American list put out by the publication "Collegiate Baseball."

Gilles still has a copy of the article. The article is highlighted by 15 photos of the All-American team. There was Brigham Young's Cory Snyder. There was also Michigan's Barry Larkin. Also on the list was B.J. Surhoff, Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro and Pete Incaviglia - and Tom Gilles.

Gilles made the list as a third baseman. His senior year, though, didn't go as planned. A bone spur limited his throwing and his performance. It limited it so much so that the interest from the pros had all but evaporated.

At the draft, the rounds kept going by and other members of that pre-season All-American list were being drafted. But Gilles wasn't. It took until the 47th round for someone to take him. And that someone was the Yankees.

"I was behind the 8 ball right away," Gilles recalled of his position. "I shouldn't have been, but I was, so I had to make the most of it."

The player who would eventually make the majors as a relief pitcher, started is pro career as a third baseman.

Go to Part 2: Tom Gilles, Real Job

Don Wakamatsu, Difficult Task - 649

Don Wakamatsu had a difficult task in his first major league game. The task for the catcher Wakamatsu undertook in his debut: Catch knuckleballer Charlie Hough.

"It's bad enough catching your first major league game, but to catch a knuckleball is added pressure," Wakamatsu told The Associated Press. "The hardest thing about catching a knuckleball is to stay relaxed."

Wakamatsu did well enough that day. But he couldn't do well enough to stay in the majors. He got into 18 games for the White Sox, marking the extent of his major league playing career.

Years later, Wakamatsu had another difficult task, taking the helm of a 100-loss Mariners team and making them into a winner. The team improved under Wakamatsu, but it was an improvement he couldn't sustain and he was out before his second season was complete.

Wakamatsu's professional baseball career began in 1985, taken by the Reds in the 11th round out of Arizona State.

At Arizona State, Wakamatsu hit a home run in a 1983 College World Series game. Wakamatsu then helped the Sun Devils out of the first round of the the next year's College World Series, hitting a late two-run home run.

With the Reds, Wakamatsu started at rookie Billings, hitting .250 in 58 games. He moved to single-A Tampa in 1986, hitting .277 in 112 games. That July, Wakamatsu had four hits in a game, with three RBI.

Wakamatsu made AA Chattanooga in 1988, getting into 79 games, hitting .238. It was his last season with the Reds, Wakamatsu developing a rotator cuff problem, according to The AP.

For 1989, Wakamatsu signed on with the White Sox, playing the year at AA Birmingham. He then moved to AAA Vancouver for 1990, returning there in 1991. He then debuted with the White Sox in Chicago May 22, 1991.

In his 18 games with Chicago, Wakamatsu got seven hits in 31 at bats, for a .226 average. His last four games were as a September call-up. His final game of the year, Oct. 5, also turned out to be the final game of Wakamatsu's major league career.

For 1992, Wakamatsu signed with the Dodgers, playing at AAA Albuquerque. His playing time was also deminishing. He got into 60 games in 1992 and 54 back at Albuquerque for 1993.

Wakamatsu continued playing in the minors into 1996, his final year Wakamatsu serving as both a player and a coach at AA Port City.

By 1997, Wakamatsu made the manager's office for the first time, in the rookie Arizona League. BY 1999, he was managing at AA El Paso. By 2003, Wakamatsu was back in the majors as bench coach for the Rangers.

In November 2008, Wakamatsu made the major league manager's office with Seattle. He also became the first Asian-American manager in major league history.

After being named Mariners skipper, Wakamatsu tried to describe his managerial style.

"Communication and leadership," Wakamatsu told reporters. "Those two things go hand in hand for me. It's important that people know what's going on, where they stand in a certain system, and that's going to be my motto."

Wakamatsu took that 100-loss team to a 85-77 record his first year, finishing in third place. In his second, he went 42-70, getting fired in August.

"The organization makes the decision to move on, and I respect that. I respect that they gave me the opportunity," Wakamatsu told The AP afterward. "My whole thing is that I will have a measure of disappointment in not being able to [win]."

Wakamatsu has since returned to the bench, serving as bench coach for the Blue Jays in 2011 and continuing into 2012.

• Dubuque Telegraph-Herald, Associated Press, May 23, 1991: Wakamatsu handles Hough in White Sox win
• Seattle Times, Associated Press, Nov. 19, 2008: Wakamatsu hired to manage Mariners
• MLB.com, Nov. 19, 2008: Wakamatsu named Mariners manager
• ESPN.com, Associated Press, Aug. 10, 2010: Don Wakamatsu not bitter toward M's

1990 CMC Tally
Cards Featured: 749/880 - 85.1%
Players/Coaches Featured: 760
Made the Majors: 513 - 68%-X
Never Made the Majors:247-32%
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 226
10+ Seasons in the Minors: 145

Mystery Solved: 1990 Colorado Springs Sky Sox

Players showing up in the background of card photos is nothing new. Players have shown up for years, and it can be fun to try an identify them.

In the CMC set, though, with posed shots taken on the team's photo day, the conditions were controlled and other players typically stayed out of the shot.

Except for the Colorado Springs Sky Sox. Their photo day in May 1990 seemed a little more lax. Players got their photos taken, some more than once. That's because in a couple of the Colorado Springs Sky Sox cards, players accidentally showed up in the background.

On Colby Ward's card, for instance, (featured in February 2012) there appears to be as many as five players way in the background. They're too far away, though, to identify any of them.

There's another player in the background of Jeff Wetherby's card (featured in January 2012), again too far away for identification. Same with Luis Medina and Efrain Valdez.

Tom Lampkin's card, featured in December 2011, though, was different. He had a player in the background of his. But that player was close. That player also had a uniform number, No. 42. That meant that player could be identified.

The question was, who was that player? And did that player have his own card in the CMC set? If not, then that player would get his own feature here. There are a couple instances in the set where photos and players didn't match. That's meant that both players got featured here.

On some of the CMC cards, uniform numbers can be seen. Joe Skalski was No. 27. He appears to be wearing his home jersey. Most, though, are wearing what appears to be their road jersey, numbers on the back, with no numbers on the front.

What I needed was a roster from 1990, one with uniform numbers. An obvious place to check was with the Sky Sox team themselves. The Sky Sox in 1990 were the AAA affiliate of the Indians. They are now, though, the longtime affiliate of the Rockies and have been so since 1993.

A check with the team, though, turned up empty. They just didn't have much from their Indians era.

The next place to look was Ebay. People often sell older minor league stuff there. Maybe a scan would even have the answers I sought. Nothing there, at least not in December when I was looking.

But I didn't give up. I kept checking Ebay. And nothing kept coming up.

Then I found this listing for this ball, autographed by the 1990 Sky Sox.

Awesome.

Maybe the players included their numbers in their signatures?

So I bought it. If nothing else, it would be a cool autographed baseball from the very players I've been featuring here.

It arrived and, what was inside with the ball?

The Colorado Springs roster. Complete with uniform numbers.

It wasn't a perfect match, though. The ball appears to have been signed late in the season.

By that time, the Sky Sox had a new manager. Bobby Molinaro, whom they'd started the year with and the manager in the CMC set was gone. By this time, managing the team was some guy named Charlie Manuel.

But a lot of the players are there. Medina's still there. He's on the ball. Wetherby's there. He's also on the ball. Same with Skalski, still No. 27.

So, in late August 1990, who was No. 42?

Carl Willis. He was No. 42.

Willis was also there in May for photo day. He was there because he has his own card in the set.

He was actually featured here in February 2011. And, while his uniform number itself isn't visible. He is turned in his photo. The very end of the 4 can be seen.

Mystery solved. No extra feature needed.

Awesome.

As for the ball, according to the roster, there are 17 players on the ball who were in the CMC set. Three of them actually represent promotions from AA Canton-Akron, those players appearing with Canton-Akron in the set.

One of them, Reese Lambert, is in the set with a completely different organization, the Athletics at Tacoma.

The full list, with links to their features: Beau Allred, Alan Cockrell, Mark Lewis, Ever Magallanes, Tom Magrann, Luis Medina, Troy Neel, Turner Ward, Jeff Wetherby, Jeff Edwards, Mike Curtis, Reese Lambert, Greg McMichael, Rudy Seanez, Joe Skalski, Carl Willis and coach Rick Adair.

Joe Lynch, Relief Win - 513

The Wichita Pilots clinched the 1987 Texas League championship and Joe Lynch helped get them there.

He did so by coming into the deciding game and shutting down opposing Jackson for an inning in extras, picking up the win.

Lynch was in his third season as a pro, his first full season at AA. He would go from that championship win in 1987 to AAA Las Vegas in 1988.

Lynch, though, would never get the opportunity to pick up a win in the majors, his career ending after six seasons.

Lynch's career began in 1985, taken by the Padres in the 21st round of the draft out of William Paterson University of New Jersey.

At short-season Spokane that year, Lynch went 4-2 in 32 appearances in relief. He also picked up 12 saves. He also had a 1.28 ERA. In July, Lynch went three innings in relief, without giving up a run.

For 1986, Lynch moved to single-A Reno, getting into 33 games, going 5-3 with 12 saves. His ERA was 2.41. Lynch also got 21 outings that year at AA Beaumont, picking up one save, with an ERA of 4.66.

He stayed at AA for 1987, at Wichita. In that championship year, Lynch relieved in 62 games, going 6-7 with 12 saves. His ERA was 3.50.

Lynch then moved to AAA Las Vegas, getting into 58 games in 1988. He picked up eight saves, with an ERA of 3.27.

Lynch continued with Las Vegas in 1989 and 1990, his ERA both years topping five. He picked up four saves in 1989 and just two in 1990. Lynch's career ended that year, without getting a call up to San Diego.

• Lawrence Journal-World, Associated Press, Sept. 11, 1987: Wichita tops Jackson to Texas League title

1990 CMC Tally
Cards Featured: 748/880 - 85.0%
Players/Coaches Featured: 759
Made the Majors: 512 - 68%
Never Made the Majors:247-32%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 226
10+ Seasons in the Minors: 145

J.D. Noland, Fast Enough - 700

Looking ahead to Central Florida Community College's 1988 season, coach Marty Martinsen told The Ocala Star-Banner his projected outfield would be a quick one.

Included in that outfield was J.D. Noland.

"We won't have a lot of power next year," Martinsen told The Star-Banner. "We will have to hit and run and bunt and steal."

Noland finished that next season having run fast enough to be in position for to be taken by the Padres in the 13th round of the draft. But, while he would run fast as a pro, including an 81-steal season in 1991, Noland never got to run in the majors.

At Central Florida in 1988, Noland showed some power. He hit a home run in a March win, then went 3 for 4 in one May game, hitting another home run. He also showed his speed. In an April game, he stole four bases, scoring four runs.

With the Padres, Noland is not recorded as playing until 1989, at single-A Waterloo. There, Noland hit .239, stealing 31 bases, hitting no home runs.

He returned to Waterloo for 1990, hitting .246, swiping 48 bases. In 1991, though, Noland practically stole the California League. Playing at high-A High Desert, Noland swiped his 81 bases, hitting .277 with four home runs. He also made the league All-Star team.

Noland moved up to AA Wichita for 1992, hitting .270 on the year, with 40 stolen bases. He also hit five home runs.

Noland, though, is not recorded as playing in 1993. He returned in 1994 with the Rockies system, playing between AA New Haven and AAA Colorado Springs. He hit .319 between them, stealing 35.

The Colorado Springs playing time was his first time at AAA. At New Haven that April, Noland went 3 for 4 in a game. 

Noland's final season came in 1995, with the Mariners system at AAA Tacoma. He hit .275 in 76 games, while stealing just 14.

By 1999, Noland was working on a new Florida winter league, serving as chief executive for the 1999 version of the Florida Winter Baseball League.

• Ocala Star-Banner, May 15, 1987: Martinsen After Pitching, Catching For Patriot Nine

1990 CMC Tally
Cards Featured: 747/880 - 84.9%
Players/Coaches Featured: 758
Made the Majors: 512 - 68%
Never Made the Majors:246-32%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 226
10+ Seasons in the Minors: 145

Shawn Hare, Big Year - 391

A veteran of parts of two seasons in the majors, Shawn Hare spoke to The Toledo Blade in May 1994 about the importance of that year for him.

He needed to have a good one, to show the Tigers or another team that he could play, and make it back to the bigs.

"I guess the hard part is, year in and year out, it's tough to put up numbers every year," Hare told The Blade. "Sooner or later you're going to have a down year. That's a little bit of pressure because this is a big year, I have to have a big year."

Hare had a big enough first month or so to be taken by the Mets days later off waivers. He also had the most major league playing time that year of his career. But that most time took the form of just 22 games.

Hare continued playing professionally through 1998, but he got back to the majors in just one more season.

Hare's career began in 1989, signed by the Tigers as an amateur free agent, out of Central Michigan University.

He played his first season at single-A Lakeland, hitting .324 in 93 games. He did well enough to jump to AAA Toledo for 1990. He hit .254 there in 127 games.

Hare returned to Toledo for much of 1991, getting some time at AA London. With Toledo in August, Hare hit two home runs in one game, picking up seven RBIs.

Hare also made Detroit that year, debuting Sept. 6. He got into nine games with the Tigers, getting just one hit in 19 at bats.

Hare started 1992 at Toledo, beginning hot at the plate and he was back in Detroit by May. He got into 15 games through early August, getting three hits in 26 at bats.

In one six-week stretch with Detroit, Hare got just 14 at bats, The Associated Press wrote in August. He got one hit.

"I knew I was day-to-day," Hare told The AP then. "So, I went up to the plate each time knowing, 'I gotta have a hit here.' You can't do that. But I'm not giving up. I'm just not ready for a 9-to-5 job, yet."

Hare played 1993 completely at Toledo, hitting .264. After moving to the Mets, Hare hit .225 in 22 games in New York. He played the remainder of the year at AAA Norfolk.

Hare's final major league games came in 1995, 18 games with the Rangers. Hare got six hits in 24 at bats.

He continued playing through 1998. He had a brief look with the Cardinals at AAA Louisville in 1996, then played in the Tigers and Yankees systems in 1997. Hare is last recorded as playing in 1998, playing in Korea.

• Seattle Times, Associated Press, Aug. 2, 1992: Big-League Dreams, Minor-League Fields
• Toledo Blade, May 9, 1994: Big numbers begin at home for Hens' Hare

 1990 CMC Tally
Cards Featured: 746/880 - 84.8%
Players/Coaches Featured: 757
Made the Majors: 512 - 68%-X
Never Made the Majors:245-32%
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 226
10+ Seasons in the Minors: 145

Interview: Mike Birkbeck saw Japan then coached in college

Kent State associate head coach Mike Birkbeck with his son, Kent State pitcher John Birkbeck. (G21D Photo)

By the time 1995 came around, Mike Birkbeck had played in five major league seasons. But, since 1989, his major league time had been limited to just one appearance.

With the Mets in 1995, though, Birkbeck made the team. He also made strides. He started four games, without getting a win. But his ERA in those 27.2 innings of work was a paltry 1.63.

"It was one of those, if I had to do it all over right now, I don't know if I would have done it," Birkbeck recalled recently to The Greatest 21 Days, "because I was pitching so very good.

"But, being in the twilight of your career, you just don't know what management is going to do, especially when you're loaded one level below you."

The decision Birkbeck was referring to was his decision to go to Japan. The Mets, he recalled, left the decision up to him. After some soul searching, considering his career and his family, Birkbeck accepted.

The decision meant Birkbeck had pitched his final game in the majors. It also meant his post-playing career as a coach in college was nearing.

Birkbeck spoke to The Greatest 21 Days before a recent game at Kent State's Schoonover Field in Kent, Ohio, before Birkbeck's Kent State Golden Flashes played the University of Buffalo. Birkbeck has been a coach at Kent State since 1997, associate head coach since 2004.

He's also been with Kent State almost since his career ended in Japan.

Signing with the Yokohama BayStars, Birkbeck started well. He recalled shutting out Hiroshima. Soon after, though, in a game against the Tokyo Giants, Birkbeck took a line drive from Shane Mack off his right leg, breaking it.

Kent State associate head coach Mike Birkbeck, right, in the dugout before an April 2012 game at Kent State. (G21D Photo)

Just like that, he was out the rest of the year. He made it back for a second season, but that was it.

"At that advanced age, it was really hard to come back from that type of injury," Birkbeck said.
"I loved my time over there. I loved the Japanese people, the culture and the baseball. I just wish that line drive would have missed me."


By the time the end to his pitching career did come, Birkbeck said it wasn't that hard of a decision. His desire to prepare to pitch had left him, he recalled.

He still wanted to pitch. But he just didn't want to get ready to pitch.

There were also his family considerations. His wife Suzanne and son John had accompanied him to Japan. But his other stops had been more difficult.

Part 1: Always a Dream | Part 2: Any Other Thing | Part 3: Their Ability

Then, in January of 1997, he got the offer to coach at Kent State, in his home state of Ohio. And he accepted.

"I don't regret not playing anymore," Birkbeck said. "I missed playing. I missed the clubhouse. I missed being around it. But, for 15 years, I've been doing the exact same thing at a pretty special place, Kent State."

His son John Birkbeck now pitches for his father at Kent State. The recruiting of John to Kent State, though, came through head coach Scott Stricklin, John recalled.

Growing up, John Birkbeck recalled thinking it was cool that his father was a baseball coach. He also got pointers over the years on pitching from his father. He's now getting many of those pointers again.

"Some of it's redundant stuff I've heard all my life," John Birkbeck told The Greatest 21 Days before the Buffalo game. "But when it was at home, he was my dad. When it's here, now he's my coach."

The Kent State dugout at Schoonover Field in Kent, Ohio (G21D Photo)

That game against Buffalo took place the day after another Kent State pitcher, senior David Starn, broke the Kent State career strikeout record.


Starn called coach Birkbeck the best. "All the guys love him and respect him," Starn said at the Kent State bullpen. "And he knows exactly what to do in all situations. He knows when to put in guys. He knows what to do with them when something's wrong."

"He knows what we're all going through," Starn said a short time later, "that helps. He's there for guidance. He's the best around."

Of his own coaching style, Birkbeck said it's really the result of all the great coaches that coached him. Birkbeck named a long list, including Leo Mazzone, Bob Apodaca and Chuck Hartenstein.

"I'm one whole of a lot of different people," Birkbeck said. "Really, what I want the guys here to do is to believe in themselves and trust their ability and good things will happen."

Regarding his career in baseball as a whole, Birkbeck said he just feels blessed.

"The good lord has smiled on me and given me a lot of opportunities," Birkbeck said. "He's put me in a lot of good situations and surround me with a lot of good mentors and a lot of good young men.

"It's been 30 years of nothing but good, awesome memories."

Part 1: Always a Dream | Part 2: Any Other Thing | Part 3: Their Ability 

Charles Penigar, Early Trade - 636

It was near the end of one career and near the beginning of another. But, in 1982, Charles Penigar went one way. Hall of Famer Joe Morgan went the other way.

In all, it was a five-player deal, Penigar one of three players sent to the Giants, Morgan one of two sent back to the Phillies.

Of the five total players in the deal, Morgan was obviously the only one to make the Hall. Penigar was the only one never to make the majors.

Penigar's career, though, did last a decade, starting in 1981, taken by the Phillies in the second round of the draft. The Phillies selected Penigar as a 17-year-old high schooler out of Ontario High School in California.

Penigar started his time with the Phillies at rookie Helena. There, the outfielder hit .212 in 46 games. He stole 12 bases.

In 1982, Penigar moved to single-A Spartanburg. In 133 games, he hit .259. He also turned on the speed, swiping 65 bases on the season. In June, Penigar knocked six-straight hits at one point.

It was that December that the Phillies sent Penigar to the Giants. With the Giants, Penigar played at single-A Fresno, stealing 41 bases and hitting .257.

Penigar got his first look at AA in 1984, at Shreveport. In 72 games at Shreveport, Penigar hit .277, stealing 24 bases.

Penigar returned to Shreveport for 1985. Then, in 1986, Penigar moved to the mound, at single-A Clinton. As a pitcher Penigar threw in 21 contests, starting 10 games. He went 4-5, with a 4.48 ERA. By 1987, Penigar was back in the field.

Moving to the Angels system for 1987, Penigar got into 51 games at single-A Palm Springs. He moved on to AA Midland for 1988.

Penigar stayed in AA for 1989, but moved to the White Sox system at Birmingham. He hit .246, but had his highest stolen base total since 1982 at Spartanburg. Penigar stole 64 bases in 1989. In early August, Penigar had three hits in one game, the game where he stole his 42nd base.

In 1990, Penigar got his first and only look at AAA, at Vancouver. In 90 games, he hit .211. He also stole just 13 bases, ending his career short of the majors.

• Spartanburg Herald-Journal, Dec. 15, 1982: Former Spartanburg Players Involved In Morgan Trade

1990 CMC Tally
Cards Featured: 745/880 - 84.7%
Players/Coaches Featured: 756
Made the Majors: 511 - 68%
Never Made the Majors:245-32%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 226
10+ Seasons in the Minors: 145-X 

Interview: Mike Birkbeck made ML debut, then got to work

Kent State associate head baseball coach Mike Birkbeck looks for one of his players in April 2012 at Schoonover Field. (G21D photo)

The bullpen doors opened at Comiskey Park and Mike Birkbeck started across the outfield.

It was Aug. 17, 1986 and Birkbeck was about to make his major league debut. If he ever got to the mound.

"It felt like 'Chariots of Fire,'" Birkbeck recalled recently to The Greatest 21 Days, referring to the iconic slow-motion track. "It felt like I was running really fast, but I wasn't getting any closer to the mound."

Once he did get there, Birkbeck recalled hearing the chants from the Chicago crowd for the first batter he faced: Harold Baines.

Baines welcomed Birkbeck to the majors with a laser down the left field line, just foul, Birkbeck recalled. "I was like 'oh, my God," Birkbeck recalled of his reaction.

"Like any other thing," Birkbeck added, "once you're out there and you get going, you lose sight of where you are and the magnitude of it."

Birkbeck responded to Baines' welcome by getting him to ground out to second.

Birkbeck spoke to The Greatest 21 Days before a recent game at Kent State's Schoonover Field in Kent, Ohio, before Birkbeck's Kent State Golden Flashes played the University of Buffalo. Birkbeck has been a coach at Kent State since 1997, associate head coach since 2004.

The Kent State bullpen at Schoonover Field during warmups in April 2012. (G21D Photo)

Birkbeck got through that debut, going 2.2 innings, while giving up one earned run. He finished the year with seven big league outings, four starts. His ERA was 4.50.

Then, Birkbeck recalled, injuries started. He frayed the labrum in his shoulder near the end of 1986. He got into 10 games the next April and May, but Birkbeck had surgery to correct his shoulder problem in June.

Shut down for the rest of the year, Birkbeck worked to get back. "I just worked hard to get my arm as healthy as possible, as soon as possible," Birkbeck recalled.

And it worked. Coming out of spring training 1988, Birkbeck was named the Brewers' fifth starter. But the schedule and weather conspired to limit Birkbeck's outings. By April 23, he'd only gotten into one game.

Part 1: Always a Dream | Part 2: Any Other Thing | Part 3: Their Ability

Birkbeck said he didn't blame the Brewers for not pitching him. He'd choose Teddy Higuera over himself any time, as well.

But he was also doing a lot of sitting.

"Being a touch and feel kind of guy, it was challenging," Birkbeck recalled. "I could have handled it better, there's no question. But once I got out there and they finally sent me down to AAA to get regular work, that really helped me. And I think that's part of the reason why once I got back to Milwaukee, I had such a good second half."

Kent State's Chuck Seacrist gets in some throws before a recent game. The years mark Kent State's conference championships. With Mike Birkbeck as a coach, they've won in 2000, 2003, 2006, 2008 and 2011. (G21D Photo)

Birkbeck's good second half included six-straight decisions where he picked up the win. He also beat the Yankees twice in a five-day period.

"I think I pitched more like I was capable of at that point in time than at other time in my career," Birkbeck said.
Birkbeck ended up starting 23 total games for the Brewers in 1988, going 10-8 overall. He returned for nine more starts in 1989, but he didn't get a win.

Birkbeck only started five more games in the majors. He started one with the Mets in 1992, then four final games with the Mets in 1995.

In the meantime, Birkbeck pitched in the minors, mostly at AAA.

"It's very frustrating," Birkbeck recalled of that time back in the minors after his success with the Brewers. "You do a lot of searching. You work on what you feel like you need to get better at. In some cases you do get better, and in some cases, you don't.

"Then you start to put pressure on yourself and lose sight of who you really are."

But, he said, it was all a learning process.

"A lot of stuff I learned in rough stretches didn't show up until later, when I was older, wiser and figured some things out."

By 1995, Birkbeck started to pitch better, and get back to the majors. But he also had a decision to make. Whether to go to Japan.

Go to the final part: Mike Birkbeck, Their Ability

Gary Green, With It - 163

Garry Templeton was making a million dollars. It was that simple, Gary Green told The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 1987.

The implication: As long as Templeton stayed with the big club in San Diego, Green was staying at AAA Las Vegas.

"That's what it all comes down to," Green told The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "There's nothing I can do about it. You just got to come down here and do the best you can and something will work out eventually. You just got to stay positive and stay with it."

Green ultimately stayed with it for 11 total seasons as a pro. In five of those seasons, Green saw time in the majors. But he never really caught on in the majors as he'd hoped. In four of those seasons, didn't play in more than 15 games.

That was all after a college career at Oklahoma State where Green played well enough to make the 1984 U.S. Olympic baseball team as a shortstop.

After a professional career that lasted 11 years total, Green has since gone on to a career as a coach and manager in the minors.

The Padres selected Green in the first round of the 1984 draft, 27th overall. Green told reporters he was happy with the pick and happy to go to the National League. Green was also the son of former National Leaguer Fred Green, who pitched for the Pirates in the 1960 World Series.

Green didn't start with the Padres, though, until 1985. He also started at AA Beaumont, hitting .257. In 1986, Green jumped up to AAA Las Vegas, hitting .250.

In September 1986, he made his major league debut. He got into 13 games, getting seven hits in 33 at bats, for .212 average. With those batting average numbers, it was Green's hitting that the Padres believed he needed to work on.

"There's no question Green can be good enough to do the job defensively," Padres manager Steve Boros told The Los Angeles Times. "But the way we scored runs this year, we've got to have a little offense from our shortstop position, too."

After that stint in San Diego, it was back to Las Vegas for Green, for 1987 and for 1988. He got 15 more games with the Padres in 1989.

Green arrived in the Rangers system for 1990, taken in the minor league draft. It was that year that Green saw his most playing time. He got into 62 games for Texas, hitting .216.

He then got into eight games with the Rangers in 1991 and eight more with the Reds in 1992, ending his major league career. Green continued playing though into 1995, last playing at AAA Omaha for the Royals.

By 1996, Green was hitting coach at AAA Toledo. By 1999, he was a manager in his own right, with the Gulf Coast League Tigers. He last managed in 2010 at single-A West Virginia. For 2012, Green is putting his defensive skills to work, serving as the Pirates' minor league defensive coordinator.

• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 4, 1984: Grandma's applause inspiring Gary Green to career in majors
  
• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 5, 1984: Mechanicsburg outfielder No. 1 in baseball draft; Bucs get hurler 
• Los Angeles Times, Sept. 30, 1986: The Rookies
  
• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 2, 1987: Padres shortstop of the future waits for a call or a trade

1990 CMC Tally
Cards Featured: 744/880 - 84.6%
Players/Coaches Featured: 755
Made the Majors: 511 - 68%-X
Never Made the Majors:244-32%
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 226-X
10+ Seasons in the Minors: 144 

Interview: Mike Birkbeck got noticed, then made bigs in awe

Mike Birkbeck at Schoonover Field in Kent, Ohio. Birkbeck has been a coach at Kent State University since 1997, associate head coach since 2004. (G21D Photo)

KENT, OH - Mike Birkbeck looked up. This wasn't like anything he'd seen before. But then again, the majors wasn't any place he had been before.

What he was looking at was his team's hotel in Chicago. It was August 1986 and he'd just been called up for the first time. His Brewers were playing the White Sox.

"It probably could have held my whole hometown," Birkbeck recalled recently to The Greatest 21 Days of his first impression of the hotel. "It was the biggest thing I'd ever seen in my life. And I was there."

A native of tiny Orrville, Ohio, Birkbeck made the majors, for the first time that August in 1986, in just his fourth season as a pro. He went on to a career that touched on six big league seasons and two in Japan.

Birkbeck spoke to The Greatest 21 Days before a recent game at Kent State's Schoonover Field in Kent, Ohio, before Birkbeck's Kent State Golden Flashes played the University of Buffalo.

Birkbeck touched on his early time in the game, his run in the majors, working through time away from the bigs and his decision to go to Japan. He also talked about his years at Kent State, sending such players to the pros as Andy Sonnanstine.

Birkbeck joined the Brewers system in 1983, taken by Milwaukee in the fourth round out of the University of Akron.

Kent State starter Ryan Bores prepares his delivery as a Buffalo Bull leads off first April 7, 2012 at Kent State's Schoonover Field.

It was at Akron that Birkbeck started gaining notice of scouts, he recalled. In high school, at Orrville, Birkbeck recalled not being big enough to get real professional looks. In college, though, his velocity increased and the scouts started coming around, watching him pitch.

Birkbeck recalled never knowing who was there. "I just tried to go out and have a lot of good days," Birkbeck said.

Part 1: Always a Dream | Part 2: Any Other Thing | Part 3: Their Ability

By 1982, the Cubs came calling, taking Birkbeck in the 11th round. He ended up staying at Akron and, in 1983, the Brewers selected him in the fourth. He was signed by scout Gerry Craft. Craft had seen Birkbeck pitch and liked what he saw, Birkbeck recalled.

"I think it was always a dream, just like it's a dream for all these guys,".Birkbeck said in the Kent State bullpen, as his team warmed up in the outfield.

"I was just fortunate," Birkbeck added a short time later, "that somebody believed in me and the Brewers took me."

Kent State's Ryan Bores pitches at Schoonover Field in Kent, Ohio. Bores' associate head coach at Kent State is Mike Birkbeck.

With the Brewers, Birkbeck played his first season between rookie Paintsville and single-A Beloit. At rookie Paintsville, Birkbeck went 3-1 in five starts. He posted a 1.88 ERA.

Aside from the good start, Paintsville provided Birkbeck with one of his early professional memories. Or, at least, the park did. Paintsville's field was oriented in such a way as to require a sun delay, with the sun coming right at batters as it set.

"You just made the best of it," Birkbeck said of the sun delays. "You tried to get your release point coming right out of the sun for as long as you could."

Aside from the field, there was also the adjustment to professional life. And the doubts about whether he could actually make it as a pro.

Birkbeck listed off all the talent his mid-1980s Brewers system rosters, including guys like Dan Plesac and Joey Meyer.

"It was just unbelievable how good these guys were and, coming from a tad smaller school, I always had questions, especially those first couple years, was I going to cut this?" Birkbeck said. "But then once the games started and we started playing, it really wasn't any different."

Birkbeck stayed at single-A Beloit for 1984. There, he went 14-3, with a 2.18 ERA. He made AA El Paso in 1985, then AAA Vancouver in 1986.

Then, in August 1986, Birkbeck got his call to the majors. The call came early in the morning from his manager at Vancouver, Terry Bevington. Vancouver was playing at Phoenix, Birkbeck recalled. He was flying out for Chicago later that day.

"I was shocked, excited, thrilled," Birkbeck said of the call, "a little nervous."

Birkbeck arrived in Chicago, checked into his major league hotel and made his way to Comiskey Park.


Go to Part 2: Mike Birkbeck, Any Other Thing

Part 1: Always a Dream | Part 2: Any Other Thing | Part 3: Their Ability

Orlando Mercado, Grand Slam - 372

Read the June 2014 interview: Orlando Mercado, Hardly Slowed

Orlando Mercado got off to a slow start at AAA Spokane in 1981. After hitting 11 home runs the year before, by mid-June, he hadn't hit any, The Spokane Spokesman-Review wrote.

After a talk from a new batting coach, though, Mercado went out and hit home runs on consecutive nights, The Spokesman-Review wrote.

"He talked to me and said I hit the ball well, but I was hitting it to people," Mercado told The Spokane Spokesman-Review. "So he told me to pull my shoulder a little bit when I swing."

Mercado went on to hit just two other home runs that year. The next year, though, he hit 17 - 16 at AAA and one in the majors.

That one home run in the majors, coming Sept. 19, turned out to be Mercado's first major league hit. It was also a grand slam. It was the first time in modern major league history that a player's first big league hit came on a grand slam.

Mercado went on to a career that saw eight seasons in the majors, 253 games. By the time it was over, Mercado's major league home run total stood at seven. Mercado has since gone on to a long coaching career that continues into 2012.

Mercado's career began in 1978, signed by the Mariners as an amateur free agent out of Puerto Rico. He played that first year at short-season Bellingham. He made AA Lynn in 1980, then AAA Spokane in 1981.

He returned to AAA for 1982, at Salt Lake City. Then, in September, Mercado made the majors in Seattle. Mercado got into nine games, with 17 at bats. He got two hits, one of them that grand slam.

The catcher Mercado got into 66 more games with the Mariners in 1983. He got one more home run, but hit just .197.

After going through the Rangers and the Tigers' systems, by late 1987, Mercado was with the Dodgers, playing at AAA Albuquerque.

In September, Mercado returned to the majors, even though his Albuquerque team was in the playoffs. Mercado told The Los Angeles Times he was just hoping for a ring.

"I've been in baseball 10 years and I've never got a ring. I wanted to play on a championship team," Mercado told The Times. "But I'm here, and I've waited for the chance. Maybe I'll play a little and they'll find out what I can do."

In seven games for the Dodgers, Mercado got five at bats, three hits. By 1988, Mercado was with the Athletics. He got into 16 games, part of that time spent as a fill-in for Terry Steinbach. In a May game, Mercado dropped a relay to the plate, allowing a run to score. Later, though, he hit another big league home run.

Mercado got into 19 games with the Twins in 1989, then 50 final major league games in 1990 with the Mets and the Expos. In June 1990, then 28, Mercado knew his role, as the younger Todd Hundley got moved up to the majors over him.

"I'm playing everyday and that's all I wanted to do," Mercado told The Newport News Daily Press. "The last couple of days I've been swinging the bat better. I'm happy here."

Mercado continued playing in the minors into 1994. He has since gone on to his long post-playing career, serving as a hitting coach in the minors and, by 2004, bullpen coach for the Angels. For 2012, Mercado is continuing in the Angels system, as minor league catching coordinator.

Read the June 2014 interview: Orlando Mercado, Hardly Slowed

• Spokane Spokesman-Review, June 28, 1981: Tom's timely tips telling Tribe's tale
• Los Angeles Times, Sept. 9, 1987: Stubbs Breathes New Life Into Dead Wood in Dodgers' 5-3 Win
• Anchorage Daily News, McClatchy News Service, May 9, 1988: A's stretch streak to 13 straight, Part 2
• Newport News Daily Press, June 3, 1990: Tidewater Tides Report

1990 CMC Tally
Cards Featured: 743/880 - 84.4%
Players/Coaches Featured: 754
Made the Majors: 510 - 68%-X
Never Made the Majors:244-32%
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 225-X
10+ Seasons in the Minors: 144