On Saturday, Mitch Harris became the first Naval Academy graduate since 1921 to play in a Major League Baseball game, according to the Baseball Hall of Fame and the academy itself. Many of the stories noting Harris’ achievement, or his initial call-up to the St. Louis Cardinals from the minors, gave a passing mention to his lone USNA predecessor: Nemo Gaines, who pitched in four games for the Washington Senators. Like Harris, Gaines pitched in relief. Unlike Harris, his time in the majors didn’t come after his time in active service: Gaines secured what amounted to extended leave to pitch in the…
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Three quick academy sports hits to start your week: 1. Back on the bench. Doug Wojcik, who set a variety of Navy assists records while playing alongside all-everything center David Robinson and later served as an assistant coach with the Mids, was hired by the College of Charleston over the weekend to take over for retiring head coach Bobby Cremins. Wojcik was fired last month after seven seasons at Tulsa, compiling a 140-92 record but never reaching the NCAA tournament. Speaking of all-everything college players, Wojcik will be replaced at Tulsa by Kansas assistant Danny Manning. 2. Four-game sweep. There…
Almost four years after getting drafted, former Naval Academy pitcher Mitch Harris is getting onto the field with the pros. Lt. j.g. Harris, who served as training officer aboard the guided-missile frigate Carr last year, is taking advantage of time between deployments to join the St. Louis Cardinals’ minor-leaguers at spring training. Harris, drafted in the 13th round in 2008, is hoping the Navy will give the OK to pitch in the minors this year. He has one year left on his service commitment. You can read more on Harris’ story here (for recent developments) and here (how things shook…
U.S. Military Academy second baseman Zach Price was recently named one of 30 candidates for the Lowe’s Collegiate Senior CLASS Award, according to the Pensacola (Fla.) News Journal. Price, a senior at Army, is a native of Cantonment, Fla., and one of the Black Knights’ captains. He entered March hitting .303 after his first six games of the 2012 season. A major in systems engineering, Price started the season with a .318 career batting average. The award is presented each year to the outstanding senior NCAA Division I Student-Athlete of the Year across 10 different sports, according to the award’s…
While Bob Feller’s greatness on the mound won’t go unnoticed upon passing — he died Wednesday — we also should remember his service to our country. Feller, who turned 92 last month, enlisted in the Navy on Dec. 8, 1941, one day after Pearl Harbor. He missed parts of four seasons serving in the Navy, most notably aboard the battleship Alabama for three years. He rose to the rank of chief petty officer and was in charge of a 40mm gun mount. He saw action in the Pacific theater during World War II. On to the obligatory rundown of his…
There’s a new sheriff in town for the New York Mets, and it’s a guy who has been in sticky situations before — Sandy Alderson, the former A’s, Padres and Major League Baseball executive. Alderson served four years as a Corps officer, including a tour of Vietnam. The Associated Press reported Thursday that Alderson would be introduced the Mets’ general manager as soon as Friday. Speculation has centered on Alderson for the past few days. Alderson was GM in Oakland from 1983-97. His team won three American League pennants and captured the World Series in 1989. He faces a challenge…
Nick Hill may never make the major leagues, but he’s already getting a fair amount of media exposure. A 2007 West Point graduate pitching in the Seattle Mariners farm system, he has been interviewed frequently during the last two years, as his future with the baseball and military became clear. Hill, of course, is one of several officer-athletes who were caught in the middle when the Army decided in July 2008 to drop its Alternative Service Options program, a plan launched in 2005 to allow West Point and ROTC graduates with professional sports contracts to play immediately after graduation. The policy said…
