THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, August 12, 1995 TAG: 9508120172
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Long : 101 lines
Juan Acevedo spent only the first two years of his life in his native Mexico, but he has declined to acquire United States citizenship. Mexico is in his blood, the touted recent arrival to the Norfolk Tides' pitching staff says.
It's a permanent part of him, as are the talent in his right arm and the imposing, aggressive posture he brings to a pitcher's mound.
Without those physical gifts, there's no way Acevedo could walk away from baseball, not even pick up a ball, for three years after high school and then, within the next three years, reach the major leagues.
He says he loved it, but Acevedo, 25, can't tell you why he quit the game when he wasn't drafted out of high school in Carpentersville, Ill., a Chicago suburb. He knows, though, why he returned to it.
He woke up. Or maybe grew up. He realized after three years of bouncing from job to job, car washes to machine molding to whatever else, that there was more to life, he says, than ``hanging with my buddies.'' That he had more to offer, and that baseball might be his ticket.
The oldest of five children raised by a single mother, Guadalupe, who in 1972 joined her sister in Illinois to forge a better life for her family, Acevedo attended a multi-team tryout camp in 1991. There, he met a guy who played at Parkland College, a junior college in Champaign, Ill.
Rusty arm and all, Acevedo, 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds, was impressive enough that the Parkland player told his coach about Acevedo, who soon after found himself accepting a scholarship offer from the coach over the phone.
A year later, he was drafted in the 14th round and signed by the Colorado Rockies. With that, an unlikely pro career, one that apparently has an unusually high ceiling, began.
``I thank God each and every day that I got back into baseball,'' says Acevedo, scheduled to make his Tides' debut tonight in Richmond. ``I think about it and it gets me excited. I'm very proud of what I've accomplished.''
Lately, that's been plentiful. Modest success his first two seasons gave way to a stunning Double-A season in 1994, when Acevedo led the Eastern League with 17 victories and a 2.37 ERA for New Haven, all after a 1-3 start.
Not only was he named the league's pitcher of the year over a field that included the Mets' Bill Pulsipher, Acevedo was voted the top Double-A righthander in the Topps/National Association awards and was the Rockies' minor league player of the year.
Like that, Acevedo was catapulted into the Rockies' starting rotation this season, but he found disappointing results. Despite an elbow strain that became a mild case of tendinitis, which was diagnosed last week in New York, Acevedo never went on the disabled list and continued to hit the low 90s on radar guns.
On June 10, he had a no-hitter broken up in the sixth inning by the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, 45 minutes from his home, as his mother watched from the seats. The next inning, Shawon Dunston tagged a three-run home run and Acevedo lost, 3-0.
It was a bittersweet part of the 4-6 record and 6.44 ERA he compiled. The longer the season went, the more Acevedo reportedly fell back on his fastball at the expense of his curve and forkball.
He wound up in the bullpen and then was sent to Triple-A Colorado Springs two weeks before the Mets dealt Bret Saberhagen to the Rockies for Acevedo, Class A pitcher Arnold Gooch and a player to be named.
``After my first start I couldn't straighten my arm,'' says Acevedo, who says he threw too hard too soon in spring training and has yet to fully recover. The injury, treated mostly with anti-inflammatory drugs, and his lack of experience in the majors were behind his struggles, Acevedo says.
``I never said I didn't want to go out there,'' Acevedo says. ``I've learned I've gotta do what's best for myself. But I love to go out there every fifth day, I love to win, I hate to lose. I can get emotional, but that's me. I had confidence in my ability to be there if I was healthy.''
The Mets share that belief, minor league director Steve Phillips says. Acevedo will join the growing stable of young arms who will jockey for spots next season on the Mets, Phillips says, though not necessarily as a starter.
``He's pitched in relief and started some,'' Phillips says. ``I think his preference is to start, but I sense he's willing to do anything to help the organization. I think he's somebody who, once he gets his arm rested a little bit after this season, is certainly a legitimate candidate to make our staff next year.''
Acevedo wouldn't expect less.
``The Mets know what I can do or else they wouldn't have traded for me for Saberhagen,'' he says. ``That's a big compliment. Hopefully, I won't let them down.''
Though he was denied the chance to contribute further to the Rockies' pursuit of the West Division title this season, Acevedo says he welcomes the competition among Mets' prospects and envisions himself in the middle of great things with his new club.
``In a way, (the trade) was unfortunate because I really liked the organization and had lots of friends there,'' Acevedo says. ``I felt I would stay there my whole career. But I know what they're trying to do here, and I believe in a couple years we're going to give New York a lot to cheer about.'' ILLUSTRATION: BETH BERGMAN
Staff
Juan Acevedo, who makes his Tides debut tonight, signs autographs
for Norfolk baseball fans.
by CNB