One of the things I’ll never forget about my dad was his way of motivating me to be the best baseball player I could be. Among his most common phrases was, “If you wanna be the best, you gotta beat the best!” To me, there was no doubt he was referring to Marcus Stroman when he said “the best.” His name was the one in almost every conversation regarding the best players around when I was playing. He was ahead of the competition when he was as tall as everyone, and still was ahead of it even when his height put him at a considerable disadvantage. The 5’8″ native of Medford won the Carl Yastrzemski Award in 2008, which is awarded to the top baseball player in Suffolk County and followed that up by winning the Paul Gibson Award the following year which is awarded to the best pitcher in the county. His statistics speak for themselves.
Since then, Stroman went on to have a remarkable career at Duke University in North Carolina, where he faced some of the best college players in the country and still compiled a 2.39 ERA in 98 innings with 136 strikeouts and a 5.23:1 K/BB ratio in his junior year. For his performance he was drafted in the 1st round of the 2012 MLB draft as a junior and was selected in the first round (22nd overall) to the Toronto Blue Jays. He pitched to a 3.26 ERA in his first year in pro ball, mainly as a reliever. He was then moved to the rotation where he responded by compiling a 9-5 record with a 3.30 ERA over 111.2 innings.
I had a chance to speak with him, and here is the dialogue.
Talk a bit about the life of a minor leaguer, such as the travel schedules and the thrill of constantly being in different cities:
The life of a minor leaguer is fun man! Definitely tests you to see if you love the game of baseball. Long bus rides are rough at times but it makes you work that much harder to make it to the show and fly chartered everywhere. It’s all part of it. Traveling from city to city is awesome meeting new fans and people who keep up with me in twitter. Nothing better than the love of fans everywhere. That’s what makes the game of baseball fun!
You were moved to the rotation this year. Do you feel you are better suited for that role?
I’m a starter now for good man! I do miss relieving but I think I’m more cut out to be a starter. I’ve further developed my repertoire and throw 4-5 different pitches on any given day. I’m confident in my abilities to get anyone out at any level with the stuff I have. I also think I can go deep into games and get stronger as the game goes on.
Who are some of the people that have helped you through out your career?
My father. Even though he didn’t play baseball, he taught me how to be an athlete. Paid for me to get lessons and travel all over the country when I was younger being exposed to great baseball everywhere. Without him, I’m not me. Same case for my mom. They are the reason I am who I am today.
Neal Heaton. Pitching coach from back home since I was 8 years old! He has helped me developed from a young age and always thought I would amount to something great when the odds were against me.
Sean McNally. My coach at Duke who had an infinite amount of knowledge of the game of baseball. Same personality type as me and didn’t settle for anything less than great. Taught me so much about the game of baseball and what to expect at the next level.
Pedro Martinez. Has the opportunity to talk with Pedro for about 25 minutes when I played in Portland, ME this past year. He saw me pitch and went over what to do to improve my game. He was an undersized pitcher too so he revealed the secrets to how he was able to dominate hitters on a daily basis. Coolest conversation I’ve ever had and one I will never forget. Wrote everything he told me down in my Notes and I read it before every time I pitch now. Enlightening.
What is your goal for 2014?
One goal for 2014: make it to the big leagues! That’s the only thing on my mind this off-season going into spring training. Want to better myself and make sure I’m ready to pitch at the big league level.
One of your friends, Mike Stud, is becoming a well-known rapper. Talk about your relationship with him.
Mike is honestly one of my best friends. Most humble down to earth guy. Brought me in to Duke and showed me the ropes of the college lifestyle. Mentored me as a freshman when he was a senior rehabbing from TJ. He was a freshman all American wit probably the best slider you’ve ever seen. His work ethic was ridiculous and he’s an unreal athlete. We kid around all the time saying we are living out each other’s dreams because I love the music lifestyle and obviously he wishes he has the opportunity to play professional baseball. We talk every couple of days. Love that dude! Always finds time for the ones he was close with before he blew up. He wants me to make it just as bad as I want to make it.
