Wheaton College may be a relatively big fish in the small pond that's Division III baseball, but that still doesn't account for the success enjoyed by Louisville center fielder Chris Denorfia, the Reds' 19th-round pick in the 2002 draft and the only Lyon ever selected in the program's nine-year history.
Bats manager Rick Sweet feels Denorfia's background and two bucks will buy you a cup of coffee.
"Number one, it doesn't matter where he played college," Sweet said of the player who, through his first 49 games, was leading the International League with a .346 average.
"A key point is you take his tools one by one and he's not a first-round draft pick. But we've found in this game it's not always the tools that are going to get you there. It's the heart, desire and willingness to use the tools that you've been given and maximize them.
"A guy with tremendous heart and intelligence will be a better player at the higher levels because he knows what the other guy is trying to do."
Denorfia has that stuff of great ballplayers. He jumped three levels last season and hit .263 in 18 September games with Cincinnati. He even played in three April games this year with the Reds before he was optioned to Louisville. Instead of taking advantage of the 72 hours players have to report, Denorfia couldn't get to Louisville fast enough.
"He made sure they got word to me that he wanted to play tomorrow," recalled Sweet. "He was here the next day and in the lineup. That's the way he is."
Denorfia's ability to crack Cincinnati's lineup will be challenged because the organization is loaded with outfielders, including the aging, yet Cincy-centric center fielder Ken Griffey Jr. The Reds have new owners, and a focus on the future, though. Denorfia's penchant for focusing on the present may help him find his way into the organization’s eye on the team of tomorrow.
"To be honest with you, I'm trying not to get involved with thinking about where I am and where I could be," he said. "I know that, right now, I'm with Louisville. I have to come out hard here every day to get where I want to be.
"But I definitely think I've got a hunger (to succeed). If you lose that, then maybe you won't play up to your ability and you might as wall hang it up."
Denorfia's "hunger" borders on being voracious at times which, in Sweet's opinion, can amount to too much of a good thing.
"He's such a tremendous worker," said Sweet. "If anything, we have to back him off occasionally because he works too hard and too much. That's rare in this game. He understands what his game is and how to play it. A lot of times guys change when they come back, and it's not for the good. This kid is the same guy."
Denorfia has changed in one respect and it doesn't have anything to do with his approach on the field.
"The last couple of years I've tried to make adjustments in my everyday life and also learn how to keep my body up," Denorfia said of how he's changed his diet. Bye, bye fast foods. He is also getting more sleep.
"I think part of the minor league process is not only figuring out the game and how it should be played but also what you need to do every day to be successful."
- Mike SCANDURA
