Minor makes USA baseball squad

Vanderbilt junior Mike Minor will play for the prestigious USA National Baseball team for the second straight summer after the 20-man roster was released today.

The Americans will compete next month in the Harlem Baseball Week in the Netherlands and at the FISU World Championships in the Czech Republic. Minor was 5-3 with a 2.08 ERA for the Americans in 2007, and joins David Price and Pedro Alvarez as other Commodores who have played two years for the National team. Ryan Flaherty and Casey Weathers each played once.

"Without a doubt, this is an outstanding collection of talent both on the mound and in the lineup," said head coach Rob Walton (Oral Roberts). "We have plus arms, solid defenders and a group of quality hitters with great makeup. We look forward to representing the United States in international competition with this team."

The National team begins competition Wednesday, opening a six-game series against the Chinese Taipei National Team in Greenville, S.C. (6:05 p.m. CT).

Q&A with Mike Minor

It seems like just yesterday Mike Minor was a freshman, pitching in relative anonymity behind David Price. Now, he's already a junior.

The left-hander went 7-3 with a 4.28 ERA and 101 strikeouts in 103 innings as a sophomore after going 9-1 with a 3.09 ERA and 88 strikeouts in 90.1 innings as a freshman. Despite the statistical dip, Minor said there is no question he is a better pitcher.

He is playing for Team USA for the second straight summer and took some time to answer some questions from The Sports VU after the Americans' 8-3 victory over Newport about a number of topics, including the reason for his struggles, the development of his third pitch, the dedication of pitching coach Derek Johnson and expectations for next season.

Sports VU: Describe the feeling of wearing that Team USA jersey.
Mike Minor: It’s always a lot of fun to put the USA jersey and representing wherever go, but especially in Newport, such a big town, on the coast. The ballpark in itself is just different – you never see fences this high all the way around, nowhere past 360, restaurant in right field. It’s a pretty cool place.

SV: What it’s like not having Pedro (Alvarez) and Flash (Ryan Flaherty) around this summer?
MM: I had to go with the guys and get to know everybody else instead of just lingering towards Pedro and Flash and having them create friends for me. I had to do it all on my own this year except for Goldy, and he’s with the coaches most of the time.

SV: It seems like you were a freshman. And now you’re about to be a junior. Can you believe it?
MM: I was actually thinking about that the other day. Next year – that’s the big year. It seemed like just the other day I was with Pedro and Flash and they were the big dogs and now I’m at the top, ready to go hopefully in the draft next year.

SV: How excited are you for next year?
MM: I think I’ll be better, be more experienced and I feel like I won’t make as many mistakes and I’ll be more of a leader for the younger guys.

SV: Have you had a chance to evaluate what you did well this season and what you can improve?
MM: I tried to be a leader out there and set the tone on Friday nights, but a lot of times I would get mad at myself if I made a bad pitch here or there. I was too hard on myself and that’s what I need to learn from and next year, just let it go by.

SV: Statistically, you may not have had as good a season as a sophomore, but I’d imagine that you are much better pitcher now than you were there then.
MM: Definitely. Last year I was right behind Price and they were like “let’s just focus on Price, Price, Price,” and then I would get out there and they were like “who’s this guy?” They really didn’t know who I was and now this year, everybody knew I had a changeup so everybody sat on my changeup and hit my changeup. I feel like I’m a better pitcher and developing my third pitch and throwing it more so people can sit on my changeup.

SV: What’s the third pitch?
MM: Slider, but I’m actually working on a curve over the next couple of weeks too so there might be four.

SV: Talk about what it’s like to play for DJ (pitching coach Derek Johnson)?
MM: He’s so dedicated. We lost our last game in the Regional and everybody’s just looking ahead to summer ball and he’s already next year and what we need to work on. We had a meeting for two hours that night just talking about next year and the year just got over. That just shows you how dedicated he is.

SV: Looking ahead to next year, the pitching staff has a chance to be pretty good.
MM: I’m pretty excited about that because I’m a pitcher and don’t really care what the hitters do. You’ve got Sonny Gray and Navery Moore coming in and a lot of guys. Those are just the guys I know from close by. I’m pretty pumped to see what they’ve got and show them tips and have them lean on my shoulder.

SV: Is it tough to watch LSU and Georgia competing in Omaha, knowing it could be you guys?
MM: I feel like we can compete with them, but I guess this year we just couldn’t come together like we did the year before and there were just so many obstacles we would’ve had to overcome to get to Omaha.

SV: How impressive has Kentrail Davis (Tennessee) been so far?
MM: Him and the other SEC guys, Hunter Morris (Auburn). They just light up in BP and in the games. It makes me feel pretty good because during the season they didn’t do much against me.

SV: Learn anything from the other pitchers out in the bullpen?
MM: I learned a couple new grips and new pitches. Drew Pomeranz (Ole Miss) throws a crazy 12-6 knuckle-curve that I’ll never try because it looks too hard.

Q&A with Curt Casali

Vandy baseball is finally hitting the stride everyone has expected. Wednesday's 11-4 win over Western Carolina was the Dores' fourth straight, and the lineup seems to be gelling well in the continued absence of Pedro Alvarez. Though Ryan Flaherty and Dom de la Osa are struggling a bit by their standards, guys like Andrew Giobbi, David Macias and Alex Feinberg are really stepping up, as is freshman catcher/DH Curt Casali.

After hitting his first career homer Wednesday, Casali sat down for a few questions with The Sports VU.

SPORTS VU: What happened on that home run pitch?

Curt Casali: The pitch was a hit and run, so I was gonna swing at it either way. It happened to be a fastball, inner half, and I was able to get a good swing on it.

SV: Did you get the ball?

CC: I think I did. That’ll be in my locker, going back to my parents soon.

SV: Pedro (Alvarez) has been out; how have you guys been able to pick it up?

CC: That’s the opportunity we have. When one player falls, the other guy’s gonna step up big. We’ve had a lot of guys step up in the middle of that lineup, like (Andrew) Giobbi and Shea (Robin), coming through in clutch situations. Pedro’s a big loss, but we’re able to handle it because we’re such a deep team, full of seniors and other guys that can really play.

SV: This being your first year, what’s been the biggest adjustment facing college pitching for the first time?

CC: The first game, it was getting past the nerves. I think I’m past that right now; I’m becoming a better defensive catcher. Coming from Connecticut, the pitching is not that stellar. I’m now learning to catch guys who can throw it mid-90s. The opposing pitching is also very good. I’ve just got to learn to be patient, learn to take strikes and take good pitches, get the pitch that I want to hit.

SV: Who’s your favorite pitcher to catch?

CC: I’d have to go with Nick Christiani. I think he’s the one guy that most people don’t like to catch, but me and him, we’ve got a good bond going on. Hopefully, on Saturdays I can catch him, we’ll see.

SV: Who’s got the nastiest stuff?

CC: Nastiest? Probably Nick. Nick’s got the ball that moves the most. Taylor Hill’s ball moves a lot, Jake (Brett Jacobson) has a really good slider, Mikie Minor too.

SV: What have you learned being behind Shea?

CC: Shea’s been such a huge help to me; he’s been with me every step of the way, literally. Every time I come in the dugout from an inning, he’s always there to say, “good job.” If I did something that I shouldn’t have, he’ll give me advice or something. Blake Allen, he’s been a great catching coach to me. He’s a little hard, but all the instruction they’ve given me has really taken me a long way.

SV: What defensive adjustments are you looking to make?

CC: I’m really looking to get my feet wider behind the plate, just so I can move laterally better. Blocking is always a big issue, you can never be too good at that. I’ve been working at that too, but there’s only so much you can do.

SV: What MLB catcher do you take after the most?

CC: Coach Allen, he has some film from a bunch of major leaguers; I wouldn’t say I compare myself to any of them because I’m just a college catcher. If I had to be somebody in the major leagues, I’d probably want to be like Joe Mauer. He’s one of my favorite players to watch play; hitting-wise, defensively, he’s got everything.

SV: Do you have any superstitions?

CC: Sadly, I don’t. I’m not a big believer in superstitions. When the bench is doing the “two-twos,” the middle finger across the hat, I’ll participate in that, but I don’t really have any superstitions. We’ve got a bunch of routines on the team; I’ll usually get to the field about an hour before we have to be here, get dressed, take a couple swings, get my legs stretched out.

SV: What kind of music pumps you up when you get to the plate?

CC: Oh man, I’ve got Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” playing up there, but everybody says that’s a little cliché and isn’t original enough, so I might have to change it. I was gonna go with Tom Petty and “Mary Jane’s Last Dance.” It’s a variety for me; I’m not a big rap guy, any classic rock with good guitars will get me going.

Casali and the rest of the Hawkins Nine will open conference play at home this Friday against No. 6 South Carolina. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. as sophomore sensation Mikie Minor (2-1, 1.66) takes the mound for the Commodores. Check out The Sports VU for full recaps and player quotes after each game this weekend, and don't forget to sit in the new right-field bleachers!