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Pride of the Dirtbags stands out
By The Associated Press
LONG BEACH — Jered Weaver
springs from Long Beach State's dugout, bounds over the foul line, takes the
mound and launches into his elaborate warmup ritual.
He stretches ceremoniously,
seemingly all arms and legs. Then the shaggy-haired, 6-foot-7 pitcher bends
down, scratches the initials of his late grandparents into the dirt, and is
ready to face a batter.
One of the best amateurs in
the country and expected to be one of the top picks in the June 7 baseball
draft, the animated Weaver can be both overpowering and entertaining.
"He's very emotional, not your
typical starter," said Kevin Towers, general manager of the San Diego
Padres, who own the first pick in the draft.
"He has a little Mark Fidrych
in him, a little Turk Wendell, stuff he does before he takes the mound.
After an inning he's not afraid to stare into the other dugout and pump his
fist," Towers said of Weaver, who carries just 205 pounds on his lanky
frame.
The brother of Los Angeles
Dodgers pitcher Jeff Weaver, the 21-year-old Jered is 14-1 with a 1.68 ERA
for the Dirtbags — the unofficial name of Long Beach State's baseball team
since the 1989 players had to practice on an all-dirt field, were always
grimy, but still earned the school's first berth in the College World
Series.
Weaver's fastball in the mid
90s and a wicked slider have helped him log 193 strikeouts in 128⅓
innings this year. He has walked only 18.
"He's a very advanced college
pitcher," Towers said recently. "The numbers don't lie."
The Long Beach State junior's
lone loss this season was at Miami
last week, when he was uncharacteristically tagged for eight hits and seven
runs in 6 1-3 innings of an 8-5 loss.
Twice this year, against USC
and against Wichita State, Weaver struck out the first 10 batters he faced.
He struck out a school record 17 in a two-hit victory over Pacific.
The right-hander insists he's
not interested in his statistics, only in helping Long Beach State win.
"All the numbers don't really
matter. I hopefully just go out and give my team a win," said Weaver, who
next will pitch in the NCAA regionals beginning Friday at Stanford.
Jeff Weaver watched his
younger brother beat Northridge State earlier this year and said, "He looked
like a man against boys."
"It's kind of cool to see us
crossing some of the same paths. He's getting his foot in some of the same
footprints I was in five years ago," added the Dodgers' pitcher, who set
Fresno State's career record with 477 strikeouts before being selected 14th
overall by the Detroit Tigers in the 1998 draft.
Long Beach State coach Mike
Weathers is as impressed by Jered Weaver's attitude as he is by his arm.
"He goes about his business,
is focused on every pitch," Weathers said. "The mental part of the game,
he's mastered as well as anybody we've had here. He's real competitive and I
think that carries over to the emotion."
Weaver was overwhelming last
year in the Pan-Am Games.
"He's pretty much dominated
good competition, and in the summertime he's faced some of the best
international competition and actually fared well there," the Padres' GM
said.
Weaver set U.S. team records
last year when he started off with 45⅔
scoreless innings and finished with a 0.38 ERA for the silver medal-winning
Americans. He finally gave up a run in the sixth inning of the championship
game against Cuba, then allowed another run in the seventh before leaving
after the eighth inning of a 3-1 loss. He finished the Pan-Am Games with a
4-1 record.
"All signs say this guy should
have a lot of success in professional baseball," Towers said. "He's not
going to spend a lot of time in the minors. He's pretty polished and has
tremendous command of three pitches. He's a fierce competitor, and should
pay good dividends quickly."
Weaver, who keeps hitters
off-balance with a relatively good change-up and throws an occasional curve,
wouldn't mind at all if the Padres select him.
"I'd love to stay local, and
it would be me and my brother right down the road from each other," said
Weaver, who grew up in the Los Angeles suburb of Northridge.
Jeff would like his brother to
play on the West Coast.
"If San Diego takes him, it
will be fun to be on the same coast, in the same league, competing against
each other," the Dodgers' pitcher said.
Jered, expected to garner a
string of awards after the season, is one five finalists for the Golden
Spikes Award presented annually to America's top amateur player.
Copyright 2004
The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be
published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
02/23/2007 10:37:05 AM
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