Now pitching for the Toronto Blue Jays ... Spike Lundberg.
Be honest, the name sounds a little bit like one created for a character in the latest Major League movie, but instead of "Wild Thing" blaring from the stadium speakers as Ricky Vaughn trots in from the bullpen, it's the haunting notes of "That Old Black Magic" (by Spike Jones, natch) filling the stadium as the crowd roars its approval.
Could that scene be coming to a SkyDome near you as early as Summer 2005? Well, David "Spike" Lundberg, a lanky 6'1" right-hander recently signed by the Blue Jays, certainly hopes so.
Lundberg is still a favorite in Texas Ranger circles, in part because of his frequent personal contributions to the Newberg Report, one of the earliest (and still most innovative) uses of the online world to report on Minor Leage Baseball. And now as Lundberg comes to the Toronto organization, it's time to welcome him to Batter's Box.
Spike has kindly agreed to an introductory interview with Da Box, and as we have done in the past, we'll open up this thread to take your questions for Spike. It is entirely possible that he will answer some of them himself here – but we will also gather representative questions and have an e-mail interview with him leading to a "Stepping into Da Box" feature sometime shortly.
"I'm glad to hear there's a Web site similar to the NMLR focusing on the Blue Jays," wrote Lundberg in a recent e-mail. "It's great for my family to follow ... I'm very excited about the upcoming season." If you want to catch up with some of Lundberg's history yourself, he kept a fairly detailed Spring Training and Arizona Fall League Online Diary for the NMLR during the 2000 season(s).
In those diaries, Lundberg reveals that he was primarily an infielder (though he also pitched) at at Mira Mesa High School in San Diego. Then, when he went undrafted out of high school, he opted for San Diego State University, where he was the Opening Day third baseman his freshman year before moving to shortstop on a regular basis. "During the fall of 1996, I started coming into games in the ninth to pitch," recalled Lundberg. "That's where Texas scout Jim Lentine first saw me. I worked out for Lentine three more times leading up to the June draft in 1997." He was moved to the mound permanently after the Rangers took him in the 26th round of that 1997 draft.
Since then, "I've had just about every role a pitcher could have," said Lundberg. "I like to think I've been somewhat successful in almost any kind of situation, whether it's back to back games as a reliever, or giving my team a quality start every time out."
In fact, Lundberg has flashed great success from both the rotation and the bullpen in his minor league career. He exploded onto the scene in '97 with 23.1 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run to start his career, and ended up leading the (GCL) Gulf Coast Rangers with five saves. The next season with Savannah, his ERA ballooned to 5.54, though he still led the team in both appearances, with 50, and saves, with 14.
He shifted to a starting role the next season and in 1999 finished second in the Florida State League in victories by compiling a 14-7 mark for Charlotte, then repeated his success a rung up the ladder in 2000, again second in the league in wins, and again 14-7 overall, this time for AA Tulsa.
Bvy 2003, Spike was back in the bullpen – but don't think of it as a demotion. In fact, it earned him All-Star honors as he picked up a save in the Texas Leage (AA) All-Star Game, and added 31 more in the regular season for the Frisco Roughriders. He also was 1-0 with a save in four playoff appearances for Frisco.
Way back in 1999, in the inaugural edition of the NMLR Ask the Prospect feature, Lundberg described himself this way:
"Basically I throw four pitches – fastball, curve, slider, and change. My best pitch by far is my changeup. But I have just as much confidence in my sinker, which I use different grips. The key to getting outs for me is keeping the hitters off balance with my change and getting groundballs with my sinkers. My velocity on my four-seam fastball is usually 88-91, and my sinker which I throw most of the time is 86-89."
So, Spike Lundberg – starting pitcher or bullpen guy?
"The way I look at it is, most guys get to the bigs as a reliever first," said Lundberg. "With my arm's ability to bounce back quick compared to most pitchers, I know the value I [can] provide to a big league staff." At the time, Lundberg compared his potential value to a team to that of Ramiro Mendoza when he was having success with the Yankees.
Still, he said, "I believe the key to my success as a starter is simply because I have starter's stuff compared to a short reliever. I throw five pitches, and have command of four that I can throw on any count. When I'd come in to relieve, sometimes I'd only use two pitches, and it wasn't hard to guess what I was throwing."
Though he grew up – and still resides – in San Diego, Lundberg's favorite team as a kid was the Cincinnati Reds. "And my favorite player was Barry Larkin," he recalled. Of course, Larkin is one of those guys Da Box has started to make a "pitch" for the Blue Jays to sign for 2005, so Lundberg could conceiveably find himself firing a sinker to an opposing hitter who beats the ball into the ground at his boyhood hero.
Finally, since you're no doubt wondering ... "I got the nickname 'Spike' when I was a baby -- from my grandmother because my hair always stuck up," admitted Lundberg.
Now, what else do you Boxers want to know? (Oh, and welcome to the Blue Jays organization, Spike ... and welcome to Da Box.)
Be honest, the name sounds a little bit like one created for a character in the latest Major League movie, but instead of "Wild Thing" blaring from the stadium speakers as Ricky Vaughn trots in from the bullpen, it's the haunting notes of "That Old Black Magic" (by Spike Jones, natch) filling the stadium as the crowd roars its approval.
Could that scene be coming to a SkyDome near you as early as Summer 2005? Well, David "Spike" Lundberg, a lanky 6'1" right-hander recently signed by the Blue Jays, certainly hopes so.
Lundberg is still a favorite in Texas Ranger circles, in part because of his frequent personal contributions to the Newberg Report, one of the earliest (and still most innovative) uses of the online world to report on Minor Leage Baseball. And now as Lundberg comes to the Toronto organization, it's time to welcome him to Batter's Box.
Spike has kindly agreed to an introductory interview with Da Box, and as we have done in the past, we'll open up this thread to take your questions for Spike. It is entirely possible that he will answer some of them himself here – but we will also gather representative questions and have an e-mail interview with him leading to a "Stepping into Da Box" feature sometime shortly.
"I'm glad to hear there's a Web site similar to the NMLR focusing on the Blue Jays," wrote Lundberg in a recent e-mail. "It's great for my family to follow ... I'm very excited about the upcoming season." If you want to catch up with some of Lundberg's history yourself, he kept a fairly detailed Spring Training and Arizona Fall League Online Diary for the NMLR during the 2000 season(s).
In those diaries, Lundberg reveals that he was primarily an infielder (though he also pitched) at at Mira Mesa High School in San Diego. Then, when he went undrafted out of high school, he opted for San Diego State University, where he was the Opening Day third baseman his freshman year before moving to shortstop on a regular basis. "During the fall of 1996, I started coming into games in the ninth to pitch," recalled Lundberg. "That's where Texas scout Jim Lentine first saw me. I worked out for Lentine three more times leading up to the June draft in 1997." He was moved to the mound permanently after the Rangers took him in the 26th round of that 1997 draft.
Since then, "I've had just about every role a pitcher could have," said Lundberg. "I like to think I've been somewhat successful in almost any kind of situation, whether it's back to back games as a reliever, or giving my team a quality start every time out."
In fact, Lundberg has flashed great success from both the rotation and the bullpen in his minor league career. He exploded onto the scene in '97 with 23.1 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run to start his career, and ended up leading the (GCL) Gulf Coast Rangers with five saves. The next season with Savannah, his ERA ballooned to 5.54, though he still led the team in both appearances, with 50, and saves, with 14.
He shifted to a starting role the next season and in 1999 finished second in the Florida State League in victories by compiling a 14-7 mark for Charlotte, then repeated his success a rung up the ladder in 2000, again second in the league in wins, and again 14-7 overall, this time for AA Tulsa.
Bvy 2003, Spike was back in the bullpen – but don't think of it as a demotion. In fact, it earned him All-Star honors as he picked up a save in the Texas Leage (AA) All-Star Game, and added 31 more in the regular season for the Frisco Roughriders. He also was 1-0 with a save in four playoff appearances for Frisco.
Way back in 1999, in the inaugural edition of the NMLR Ask the Prospect feature, Lundberg described himself this way:
"Basically I throw four pitches – fastball, curve, slider, and change. My best pitch by far is my changeup. But I have just as much confidence in my sinker, which I use different grips. The key to getting outs for me is keeping the hitters off balance with my change and getting groundballs with my sinkers. My velocity on my four-seam fastball is usually 88-91, and my sinker which I throw most of the time is 86-89."
So, Spike Lundberg – starting pitcher or bullpen guy?
"The way I look at it is, most guys get to the bigs as a reliever first," said Lundberg. "With my arm's ability to bounce back quick compared to most pitchers, I know the value I [can] provide to a big league staff." At the time, Lundberg compared his potential value to a team to that of Ramiro Mendoza when he was having success with the Yankees.
Still, he said, "I believe the key to my success as a starter is simply because I have starter's stuff compared to a short reliever. I throw five pitches, and have command of four that I can throw on any count. When I'd come in to relieve, sometimes I'd only use two pitches, and it wasn't hard to guess what I was throwing."
Though he grew up – and still resides – in San Diego, Lundberg's favorite team as a kid was the Cincinnati Reds. "And my favorite player was Barry Larkin," he recalled. Of course, Larkin is one of those guys Da Box has started to make a "pitch" for the Blue Jays to sign for 2005, so Lundberg could conceiveably find himself firing a sinker to an opposing hitter who beats the ball into the ground at his boyhood hero.
Finally, since you're no doubt wondering ... "I got the nickname 'Spike' when I was a baby -- from my grandmother because my hair always stuck up," admitted Lundberg.
Now, what else do you Boxers want to know? (Oh, and welcome to the Blue Jays organization, Spike ... and welcome to Da Box.)
