THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 29, 1994 TAG: 9407290709
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 56 lines
At times this season, Tides shortstop Aaron Ledesma could be seen after games with ice packs on his right shoulder, left knee and left ankle. Preventive medicine. He has a right thumb that has yelped regularly since it got in the way of a ground ball early in the season. Plays through it.
Add the routine bruises and fatigue that come with playing Triple-A baseball - Ledesma appeared in his team-high 100th game Thursday - and Ledesma has run himself through the physical mill.
Yet he has taken the field in all but six of the Tides games. After missing much of two seasons, out of four as a pro, with injuries, Ledesma sees his tenacity as a needed addition to his resume. It's important to prove to the Mets, he said, that he could endure the rigors of everyday play.
``I think they still believe in me, but I'd like to have that confidence,'' Ledesma said. ``Even if they do, I'm not fully confident that they do. I think if I put together a full season, a solid season, that will make me confident that I've changed their feelings.''
Ledesma, 23, played only 33 games in Columbia, S.C. in 1991. He began the season with a broken right hand, played a month and then broke a foot to miss the rest of the season. He returned to play 134 games and bat .263 the next season in St. Lucie, Fla. but broke down again last year in Double-A Binghamton, N.Y.
Bothered by pain in his right shoulder, Ledesma played his last game at shortstop May 4. He continued to play as a pinch- and designated-hitter, but finally underwent season-ending shoulder surgery July 19.
This season, he's been a workhorse toting strong statistics. He was batting stolen bases in 25 attempts.
He also has made 22 errors, one of the leading totals among International League shortstops. Some scouts wonder if Ledesma, at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, projects as a big league shortstop, but Ledesma said he has no doubt.
However, a consideration in his fate with the Mets could be the wealth of middle infield talent at Double-A, where Rey Ordonez has bumped Edgardo Alfonzo over to second base. Alfonzo was beaten out by Ledesma for the Tides' shortstop job in spring training.
``I don't look back,'' Ledesma said. ``I just try to do what I can to make the best of my future. If it's with the Mets, that would be great. I have some things to work on, but I think I could be a good shortstop.''
ON DECK: The first 5,000 fans into Harbor Park tonight will receive autographed baseballs by the Tides. The Tides will play the Richmond Braves in the first of three games, the last two of which will be played in Richmond.
Frank Seminara (4-3, 3.80) will pitch for the Tides tonight vs. Kevin Lomon (6-7, 3.79). by CNB