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Letter to the editor

Where players practice, work on their character

By DEMORRIS A. LEE, Times Staff Writer
Published February 9, 2008

Miguel Cairo, who plays for the Seattle Mariners, tosses balls to Mike Costanzo of the Orioles at the Winning Inning.
	[Jim Damaske | Times]

ADVERTISEMENT [Jim Damaske | Times] Gavin Floyd, a White Sox pitcher, and Mike DiFelice of the Rays prepare to leave after the a workout on Thursday. [Jim Damaske | Times] Mike DiFelice of the Rays chats with Roy Silver of the Winning Inning Baseball Academy after spending the morning working out with fellow major leaguers Thursday.

CLEARWATER

It's February and that means baseball season is just around the corner. But for a few Major League players, spring training has already started. Drive by the facility that once housed Jack Russell Stadium in North Greenwood and you'll see a handful of professional athletes honing their skills. But there's more going on than throwing baseballs and swinging at pitches. It's a place where local players swap stories and prepare mentally for the long season ahead. Called the Winning Inning, the facility is a community where everyone is family, no matter if they are in middle school or a player for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Last year, the city of Clearwater dismantled the concrete seating and stadium that was once Jack Russell Stadium, the former spring training site of the Philadelphia Phillies. But the professional baseball field with its immaculate green grass remains. Countless number of professional baseball players have used the batting cages and practice fields. Most of them live in the area.

You won't see the names of those players on the office walls at Winning Inning. Founders Roy Silver, a longtime professional player and manager, and Randy C. Holland, a former Major League athletic trainer, started the venture in October 1999, and won't have it any other way.

"We promote coming here to be become a better person," Silver said after tossing baseballs to the players Tuesday. "There is such a small percentage of us that will play professional baseball, but the question becomes after you leave the field: What kind of husband are you? What kind of father?"

Silver often speaks in parables to the players. And if he gets a chance, he'll tell a Bible story, too.

"The best self-help book is the book of Proverbs in the Bible," Silver said. "I don't care what you believe in, you will get incredible information from reading it."

Miguel Cairo, 33, an 11-year veteran who lives in Safety Harbor and plays for the Seattle Mariners.

"It's awesome. We run in the field, hit some balls, but not everything is baseball. We talk about different stuff. It all kind of helps get you ready for spring training."

Gavin Floyd, 25, a second-year pitcher for the Chicago White Sox and a Palm Harbor resident.

"When you are on the field, it's a completely different thing. You don't care who's standing at that plate. It's always good to have relationships with players outside the game because you do see each other againand it's good to see familiar faces."

Mike Costanzo, 24, of Clearwater, just got called to the big leagues. Next week, the third baseman is heading to Fort Lauderdale for spring training with the Baltimore Orioles.

"Just being around these guys, they are talking about different experiences from league," Costanzo said. "They don't think I'm listening when they are talking about the different situations they've been through and how they handled them, but I'm am."

Mike Eylward, 28, of Clearwater played seven years with the Anaheim Angels in the minor leagues. He's a free agent this year and just started working out at the Winning Inning. He's working to sign with a team.

"Roy knows a lot about baseball and he has all these stories of what other players have done to get better and what he says works," Eylward said. "But being around guys like Mike (DiFelice) and Miguel (Cairo) has been a great experience. They are where I like to be and I learned a lot from them. They've been very helpful."

[Last modified February 8, 2008, 21:01:34]