The 33 Year Old Rookie

Well, I just finished off another book in about a week, this time the read was The 33 Year Old Rookie, the autobiography of Phillies' catcher Chris Coste. It's somewhat interesting that the last book I read was by Mike Schmidt, whose baseball experience would basically have to be considered the polar opposite of Coste's.

In my review of Schmidt's book, I mentioned how interesting I found it that even a Hall of Fame talent like Schmidt had to have a break here and there for his career to unfold the way it did. Coste would be an example of what happens to a guy who never really has things break the right way for him. That's not to compare Coste to Schmidt in anyway in terms of talent, Coste isn't a Hall of Famer, but there's little doubt in my mind that he could have been a productive major league catcher years ago. Instead, rather than following a path like Schmidt's, which included being a high draft pick and a major league regular at age 22, Coste took a much longer and winding road to the big leagues. To sum up: Born and raised in Fargo, ND. Undrafted and without a college scholarship offer out of college. 1 miserable year at a local junior college, 3 All-American years at D-III Concordia, again undrafted, 1 year in a Canadian independent league, 4 years staring for independent league team in Fargo, 6 years bouncing around various major league organizations at the AA and AAA level, an absolutely blistering spring training with the Phillies in 2006, during which he had won a roster spot, only to lose it the day before the season due to a trade, and then his eventual call up and successful 2006 major league season, at the age of 33. To add to the story,despite having a wildly successful rookie season, the Phillies weren't sold on him as their backup catcher and brought in a veteran to take his place, and he started the year back at AAA. Eventually though, he made his return and re-established himself, leading to the release of the veteran. Coste actually caught the final pitch from Brett Myers that clinched the 2007 NL East title for the Phillies. And, finally, he had convinced the Phillies he belonged in the major leagues for good, so they did not acquire another catcher in the offseason and was able to start the 2008 season with the team.

Now, I knew going into reading this book that I was clearly biased in favor of the story. The Phillies are my favorite team, and Coste has been among my favorite players since he finally arrived in Philly in May of '06. I root for the guy, and if you're familiar with him and his story, it's hard not to. All of that being said, I loved this book on a number of levels. First of all, you've got a guy going all out to pursue his dream, even as that dream became more and more improbable. I think the most unsung hero in all of this was Coste's wife Marcia, who clearly endured a lot in allowing him to go for it, and not only didn't complain, but also actively encouraged him to keep on going at a couple points where he was ready to hang it up. Even though I knew the "ending", when he got the call to come to the big leagues, it was still exciting and compelling for me to read. And then, you couple that with the revelation that, upon receiving the news, his 6 year old daughter informed her mommy that she had wished for Daddy to make the big leagues when she blew out her candles at her birthday the previous week, well, I'm a sucker for that sort of thing, I'll admit it. Of course, we later learn that part of her attachment to Daddy making the big leagues was that in the past, when she wanted a toy and they weren't going to get it for her, they'd often say "Maybe if Daddy makes it to the big leagues." That almost makes it better, in my mind.

And secondly, I was really fascinated by the whole process Coste went through in getting to the major leagues, and how even though we like to think that sports are the ultimate merit based event, the reality is that there are often labels and stigmas that are difficult to overcome, regardless of performance. By the time Coste even finally made a minor league roster, he was already 27, which is well above the age for a player to be considered a prospect. And, he had spent all those years in the independent league, so no matter how well he played, he always had organizations having questions and saying "There's got to be some reason no one wanted him before now." Additionally, despite deciding early in his independent league career that he wanted to focus on catching, and by all accounts becoming pretty darn good behind the plate, he was never able to find a gig as a full-time catcher, and was constantly being used at 1B and 3B, even some 2B. This created another perception problem, because when you look at a guy and he's being shuffled all over the diamond, it can present the perception that he's not great at any one spot. In this case, it seemed his versatility was often a negative. It seems though, that the bottom line was that he could just never get anyone to take an extended look at him, and he was never the kind of guy who was just going to wow you at first glance, especially given his age.

Anyhow, a very easy and enjoyable read, especially for a Phillies homer like myself. I'm actually coming to the end of my non-fiction pile, with the only thing currently remaining in my possession being Juicing the Game, by Howard Bryant, supposedly one of the better books on steroids in baseball. I'm unsure if I'm ready to get back into that issue in book form just yet, and I did just get a very nice coupon from Barnes and Noble, so I may wind up going in another direction.