Mission to Succeed

From today's Miami Herald:


Orioles pitcher Guthrie on a mission to succeed
BY SARAH ROTHSCHILD

While roaming Spain on a Mormon mission, Jeremy Guthrie learned a valuable lesson that he continues to use to guide his career as a pitcher.

''You have to keep going, even when there is rejection and disappointment,'' said Guthrie, a member of the Orioles.

In Spain, where the majority of the population is Catholic, Guthrie said, ``If we tried to talk to 100 people a day, sometimes one person would listen to us, or maybe nobody.''

But that never deterred Guthrie, and the perseverance has served him well.

The Cleveland Indians selected him in the first round of the 2002 draft and gave him a $3 million signing bonus, the largest in their history. But Guthrie is still trying to establish himself as a reliable right-hander.

Guthrie is 40-36 with a 4.40 ERA in 101 minor-league games and winless in 16 relief appearances in the major leagues.

But his near-flawless spring with the Orioles is paying dividends. The coaching staff said Guthrie is making a strong case to be put on the Opening Day roster.

In four games, he has pitched eight scoreless innings in relief, yielding just two hits and one walk.

''He might be a guy we're seriously considering whether we can carry him on the ballclub and how we can fit him in there to give us a multiple-inning guy,'' Baltimore manager Sam Perlozzo said. ``He's got a nice arm, and it looks to me like he can pitch in the big leagues.''

The Orioles claimed Guthrie off waivers Jan. 29, but could face a predicament if Guthrie, 27, isn't on their 25-man roster because they would have to put him on waivers.

Guthrie has embraced a new beginning with the Orioles.

''You feel like there are new expectations, but you get to make those expectations with your performance. They created so much excitement and hype that they became disappointed that I didn't reach their goals,'' Guthrie said of the Indians' organization, fans and media.

Following his mission, Guthrie transferred from Brigham Young University to Stanford, where he flourished before joining the Indians' farm system. When Guthrie didn't cruise to the big leagues his first season, the criticism started. Guthrie remembers hearing and reading about how his two years away from baseball hurt his development.

''Without those two years, I wouldn't even be here, I probably wouldn't even be playing baseball because I wasn't very successful before the mission, and afterward I've really been blessed,'' Guthrie said.