4,400 MILES: THE SAME GAME
Monday, July 26, 2010
By: David Riggs
Blue Crabs Hill & Newby Find Out Baseball Makes The World A Little Smaller
When outfielder Jamar Hill was acquired from the York Revolution in a trade on June 4, it marked a reunion of sorts for him and reliever Joe Newby. Hill and Newby competed against one another in Alaska American Legion Baseball during high school and played together in state tournaments. In 2000, they also went to the same pre-draft workout for the New York Mets in Alaska.
Alaska's Legion Baseball is comprised of just 10 teams, primarily in and around Anchorage. Newby played for Post 20 in Kenai near his hometown of Soldotna, approximately three hours south of Anchorage, while Hill played for Bartlett Post 29 within the city.
“I specifically remembered Jamar because he was extremely fast, and would always come by and talk to you even as the opponent,” Newby said. “He was always nice and respectful to everybody.”
“Soldotna always had a lot of really good players and strong guys, including Joe,” Hill added. “I was a shortstop back then, and Joe was their cleanup hitter.”
Hill and Newby went on to play in college before joining affiliated ball. Hill was drafted by the Mets in 2001 and climbed as high as Double-A Binghamton in 2008, while Newby was signed by the Oakland Athletics in 2004 and made it to Triple-A Tacoma in the Seattle Mariners organization last season.
This is Hill's second year in the Atlantic League after finishing 2009 with York, and Newby's first season in the league.
When Newby signed with the Blue Crabs back on March 16, he anticipated playing with and against former teammates from the A's and Mariners affiliates, but not someone from high school. He was pleasantly surprised to see Hill in the Atlantic League.
“I looked up other teams in the league to see who else played in Mariners and Athletics organizations, and then I saw Jamar's name on York's roster,” Newby said.
It was even more of a strange coincidence to Newby when Hill joined the Blue Crabs.
“At the time I thought there is no way this has ever happened before,” Newby said. “I was very surprised and excited about it.”
To the best knowledge of Today's Catch, the Blue Crabs are the only professional baseball team in the country to feature two Alaska natives on their roster.
While Newby and Hill did not know each other personally during high school and it had been 10 years since they last saw each other, they have forged a strong friendship this season based in large part on their shared experiences in Alaska.
“It's cool having Jamar here, because people can try and relate to playing in Alaska, but nobody else really understands unless you are from there,” Newby said. “Our lockers are right next to each other in the clubhouse, and we just go back-and-forth with little inside jokes.”
“I don't think we had ever formally met until we got here, but I remembered him from the pre-draft workout,” Hill said. “We have similar personalities and we joke around a lot, often completely outside of a baseball perspective.”
Hill also emphasized their growth as players in contrast to the often inhospitable environment Alaska offers for baseball. While most professionals grow up playing almost year round in California, Texas, Florida and other warm climates, Hill and Newby had just two months each summer for baseball.
“There are several players who were born in Alaska, but moved somewhere else to develop into a player,” Hill said. “It's reassuring that after being so far removed from baseball back home, we are now both at this level with the Blue Crabs. It is also a reminder every day to us to have fun.”
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