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Mike is a Michigan Baseball Alum and has had a long career in the minor leagues. This Grantland article really touches on some interesting aspects of a minor league career that began 15 seasons ago. He went to Michigan and it is a good story about professionalism and hope...
Love Miggy, but used him to get this Michigan guy some love...
http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/9428218/mike-cervenak-not-prospect/
Go Blue!
"It is what it is," said Phil Nevin. "He has a job, and he's doing a helluva job doing it. You never know what will happen in this game if he keeps putting on a Triple-A uniform and playing his ass off every night."
First and foremost, this article was a pretty good read, and in its own way, a touching one. It can't be easy on one when thry've played 15 years in the minors and are simply called "organizational depth", but I like that Cervenak remains ever hopeful that he'll find his way to the majors for more than a mere moment. Just looking at his stats from the minors (HERE), they are pretty solid - he's a career .295 hitter with nearly 200 home runs and a reasonable shot at 2,000 hits if he plays a few more seasons, sso it definitely is not for lack of trying, and I hope he doesn't stop trying after reading this personally. It would be pretty cool one day to see his baseball career come full circle by getting a callup from his childhood team, and as I recall, he said as much in the Blade piece that appearance when he signed at the beginning of the month.
Soooo when Brandon Inge was stinking it up at third base, we had this guy the whole time? Not cool Detroit, not cool.
...if by "when Brandon Inge was stinking it up" you mean "since June 3, 2013", then yes.
Yes we did.
Otherwise, he was in Korea and stuff.
He was a couple of years younger than me. I was friends with some baseball players and we ended up playing flag football on the same team. Decent guy.
He actually got his first chance in the majors a few years ago. Only had a few at bats and his days were numbered from the start but pretty cool for him regardless. Awesome that he continues to do what he loves.
Cool article. But way too long
Most of me absolutely loves this story. Yet I can't help feeling a little bit for the younger guys behind Cervenak who actually are prospects, who are fighting to have a career that lasts longer than a cup of coffee, who are sitting behind a guy that has nearly spent as many years in the minors as he has MLB at-bats, yet won't give up.
Most minor leaguers don't last 15 years for the sheer fact the money is shit, the travel sucks, and after a while, it sinks in that the end result isn't going to be a long MLB career. Cervenak has a Michigan degree. He has a stated ambition to do something with it, and a clear career path outside of baseball once he leaves the game. At some point, when you're a 36-year-old minor leaguer, you have to know when to leave the party. And it was probably after he got that WS ring.
...um, really? that's your takeaway? 'how dare he take up space from someone younger?'
If these "younger guys" can't beat out Cervenak, then they won't be "fighting to have a career" for long anyway. that's why he's still there and they're watching at home.
