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USF freshman set lofty goals, but he had no problem attaining them.
By ANTONYA ENGLISH
© St. Petersburg Times, published May 25, 2001
TAMPA -- Myron Leslie's biggest worry when the South Florida baseball season began was proving he is good enough to play on the collegiate level.
In retrospect, that should have been his least concern.
As the Bulls begin post-season play today in the NCAA region baseball tournament, Leslie clearly has demonstrated he is a talented player, establishing himself as one of the top players in Conference USA.
For the 19-year-old who learned to love baseball before he was old enough to play, it has been a season of excellent achievement, tempered with moderate satisfaction.
"I think I've done pretty well this year, but it's still not up to my expectations," Leslie said. "A lot of times I set expectations so high that a lot of people would say they are not achievable. But my attitude is just because no one's done it before doesn't mean I can't do it. I just wanted the opportunity to prove myself. Just give me the chance and I can prove I can play here, that was my attitude coming in. I think I've had a pretty good season."
The freshman from Brandon leads the team in several categories, including hitting (.376), on-base percentage (.469), runs (54), hits (92) and at-bats (245). He is tied for the team lead in triples (three) and games started (61). Leslie, the fourth-leading hitter in C-USA, earned second-team honors and was selected to the All-Freshman team.
His all-around hitting, he said, is his strength, but it's his ability to hit well from both sides that has left an indelible impression on his coach. Leslie is hitting .390 against left-handed pitching and .369 against right-handers.
"He has been so good, he's such a special talent," coach Eddie Cardieri said. "But what I keep coming back to and what impresses me more than everything is how he's hitting about the same average from both sides of the plate. With switch hitters, I don't think you see that very often, they are usually stronger from one side or the other. In his case, his batting average is almost identical from each side of the plate. To me, that's remarkable."
Leslie began playing baseball when he was 4, but his desire to play came earlier. His father, Jack, an avid tennis player, once took Leslie and older brother Michael out to the tennis courts to introduce them to the game.
But before long, the Leslie brothers were using the rackets to play baseball. Jack Leslie offered to sign them up for Little League, but Myron was too young to play. When he reached playing age, there was no stopping him.
Success came easily, and often. It gave him a sense of confidence he carries with him today.
"I've always known winning," Leslie said. "Every year I played Little League my team finished in first place. So winning has always been my attitude and something instilled in me, especially from my dad."
Leslie's self-confidence and maturity have not gone unnoticed by his teammates.
"As a freshman it's pretty difficult because it's a different atmosphere from high school to college; the competition is a lot better and you have to adjust to different players and coaches," senior pitcher Shannon Royal said. "And there's school and that puts a lot on you mentally. But Myron has done a great job. He has performed well on the baseball field and he has been on top of things in school."
It hasn't been a perfect season for Leslie. After playing shortstop in high school, he was moved to third base this season and he has had to adjust, making 23 errors.
"The difference is mainly footwork," Leslie said.
Selected by Texas in the 14th round of the Major League Baseball draft last year, Leslie said he decided three or four years of college would benefit him more than heading straight to the professional ranks.
"A big thing for my parents has always been education," he said. "Ever since I can remember, they always pushed education saying there is life after baseball."
For now, there is only life with baseball. South Florida plays Winthrop in the NCAA Region tournament. The Bulls have had an up-and-down season, but Leslie said none of that matters. Having defeated 10 Top 20 teams during the season and coming off a stellar performance in the C-USA tournament, Leslie said expectations, like always for him, are high.
"This is very exciting," he said. "We got together and we were watching (the selection show) on TV and when we got in, it was such a relief. Then eventually that wore off and I was like, we're in, we know we can play with these teams, so why not just go out and win it all? That's going to be our attitude: just go out there and play hard. Anybody can beat anybody on any given day, so let's just go out there and play hard."