Metz will transfer to Crystal River

By KEITH NIEBUHR

© St. Petersburg Times,
published July 5, 2001

CITRUS HILLS -- Jimmy Metz knows people will talk, which is why he wants to set the record straight before the rumors start to swirl.

Metz said Monday that he will move next week from Citrus Hills, which is zoned for Lecanto, to Crystal River, where he will attend high school beginning in the fall. But the Times All-Citrus/Hernando first-team pitcher insists the move is being made to nurture his academic, not baseball, career.

"No matter what I say, people will think I'm leaving (Lecanto) for baseball," Metz said. "They can think what they want, but that's not the truth."

In January, Metz's parents, Robert Metz and Julie Ferrara, divorced. Ferrara moved to Tampa, and Jimmy Metz said he continued to live with his father in Citrus Hills but became increasingly upset because his parents continued to disagree long after the divorce. "There was just so much arguing, a lot of times I just got in my car and left the house," Metz said.

Things got so bad that Metz, a rising senior who carries a 3.6 GPA, talked with his father about the possibility of living elsewhere. A family friend suggested they contact Frank Bower Jr., a pastor with Jesus Is Ministries II, because the ministry owns the Hayes Motel in Crystal River and allows some of its members to live there.

After meeting with Metz and his father, Bower agreed to let Jimmy live in one of the rooms. There is no charge to ministry residents, Bower said, because the ministry receives sponsorships and offerings from "numerous churches and other people" in the area, which takes care of the costs.

"I had done some (fitness) training with (Jimmy) in the past and done counseling with him and his family," Bower said. "His family went through a situation, and he needed spiritual guidance. I wouldn't even have helped him if this was a baseball thing. My position is one of spiritual guidance."

Alcohol, cigarettes and drugs are prohibited. Metz will have a curfew and will be required to do chores and attend church services. Bower said there are 20 ministry residents living at the motel. Some of them are children whose parents have checked into live-in treatment programs.

"I'm supportive (of Jimmy)," Robert Metz said. "This is important for his future. I was real hesitant (to let him move). He's going to leave me soon enough because of college and it was hard for me to do this, but it's for his best interest. He's got a bright future."

Previously, Bower and his wife, Tina, used a five-bedroom home in a Citrus Hills neighborhood to house residents. In April, the county denied the Bowers' request for a permit that would have made their house an official group home. The ministry bought the Crystal River motel that month.

"I know there's going to be a lot of trouble and people will go crazy because they'll think this is a baseball thing, but I'm just trying to get away from the divorce," Jimmy Metz said. (Bower) is going to take me in so he can keep my mind straight and so I can do good in school."

Crystal River coach Brent Hall said he did not want to comment on the matter until the transfer was "complete and official." Lecanto athletic director Dick Slack could not be reached for comment. Bill Emerson, Metz's coach during his three seasons at Lecanto, resigned in May and Lecanto has not named his successor.

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