THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 1, 1994 TAG: 9407010501
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 93 lines
It takes a moment to make a friend. That's it. One smile, one autograph and ``maybe they'll like you,'' Norfolk Tides third baseman Butch Huskey says. ``Maybe they'll watch you the rest of your career to see how you're doing, because you signed for them one day.''
In his season of learning, of meeting regular athletic failure for the first time, Huskey has needed no lessons in public relations. That's obvious after every game at Harbor Park when, win or lose, 0-for-4 or worse, Huskey hangs back to sign autographs after his teammates have filed into the clubhouse.
Before games, it's a courtesy offered by most players, and Huskey's right there among the other Tides. But taking time after is uncommon, which puts Huskey in a different class.
``After games, I know most of those players want to get in the locker room, get a shower and get out. I can't blame them,'' says Tides president Ken Young. ``Butch does a great job (signing). He's the best I've seen in the two years that I've been here.''
Maybe it's because Huskey never got an autograph as a kid back in Anadarko, Okla., growing up with 13 relatives in his grandmother's house. Fact is, the first major league baseball game he attended was the one he played in last Sept. 8 when, as an emergency call-up from Double-A, Huskey and the Mets were no-hit victims to Darryl Kile of the Houston Astros.
He signed before that game, too.
``I was out there early,'' Huskey says. ``You never know. You might never get there again.''
He will if the baseball gods reward good deeds. Already,
with his willingness to write his name and appear in the community, he has reaped kind words from fans and a reputation as one of the most accommodating Tides ever.
Just last week, a woman left a message on the voice-mail system in the Tides' office praising - dubiously, perhaps - Huskey as the club's ``greatest promotion, aside from Rip Tide.
``Take a look at him. He's the friendliest, caring. ... always there and ready. He's a great, great person.''
Somebody played the call back for Huskey, and a smile creased his face in spite of himself.
``That's not what I'm looking for. I sign because I like doing it,'' Huskey says. ``To put a smile on a kid's face is just unbelievable. I love it. It makes you feel good, and it only takes five or 10 minutes. You can sign maybe 40 autographs in five or 10 minutes.''
And a brief encounter with Huskey now might be worth more in memories later should the 22-year-old match the offensive potential the Mets saw in 1989, when they made Huskey their seventh draft pick.
The Mets' offer tore Huskey, 6-foot-3 and 240 pounds, from the University of Oklahoma, where he was bound to play tight end. In five minor league seasons before this one, he hit 89 home runs, including 26 in 1991 to lead the Class-A South Atlantic League.
He piled up more power numbers last season at Double-A Binghamton, N.Y. with 25 home runs and 98 RBIs. That he is crawling along with three home runs, 28 RBIs and a .218 average, 46 points below his career average, is part of the reason this season has been such a trial. His battle for weight control and to recover from a shoulder injury are two others.
``He hasn't performed to half of his potential yet,'' says shortstop Aaron Ledesma, in his fourth season playing beside Huskey. ``When Butch is on top of his game, you'll see him knocking the fences down in the outfield. When he's on top of his game, you'll know.''
What we know so far is that Huskey has been inconsistent defensively, he has altered his swing to try to adjust to Triple-A pitching and that he's had to work harder than ever to stay afloat.
`I've never been like I am now,'' Huskey says. ``It's the first time I've ever had to buckle down and say, `OK, you've got to make some adjustments.' This is a different ballgame. This league is totally different from Double-A.
``You don't get the bloopers, you don't get the infield hits like you used to because guys are smarter, they know how to play you. And they know what pitch you can hit and what you can't, and they're going to keep throwing it until you hit it.''
Huskey says his left shoulder, which he originally hurt playing in Arizona last November, is still not fully healthy, and that's held him back. He says his weight, though, is manageable and he hopes to stop talking about it.
``That stuff's behind me and I just have to move on and try not to let it happen again,'' Huskey says.
Regardless, a forgiving fan is probably no more than an autograph away.
``Fans can add more pressure, if you let them,'' Huskey says. ``But they can kind of help you through the dog days. You need some fan support now.''
Huskey, by the postgame crowds, has it. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
PAUL AIKEN/Staff
Tides third baseman Butch Huckey is never too busy to sign an
autograph for a fan.
by CNB