Rookie

RookieI was sitting on the bench in the dugout, watching the last few innings of our last spring-training game at Al Lang Field in St. Petersburg. We were playing the Tigers. Right after the game, the Mets would break camp and fly to Cincinnati to open their 1984 season the next day, against the Reds. I wasn't on the roster. I was still a minor-leaguer in the Mets' organization. I had been throwing the ball well during spring training, striking out a few batters, and the press had been giving me...