The UK baseball team kicks off its home season Friday at 4 p.m. at Cliff Hagan Stadium for a three-game set with Bowling Green. To prepare you for the opener, check out Adam Revelette’s column on Chase Greene.
If you saw Chase Greene play two seasons ago, you were probably impressed. A shortstop as West Jessamine High School, he earned All-District, All-Region and All-State accolades in both his junior and senior seasons, and he received several scholarship offers to play in college.If you saw Chase Greene play last year, you should have been astounded.The current sophomore made the transition from shortstop to the mound last season, logging innings out of the bullpen at the University of Kentucky. As you might imagine, pitching in the Southeastern Conference can be a challenge. It’s harder when you’re only one year removed from high school play. If you rarely even pitched in high school, it can be overwhelming. “It was a huge transition from high school to the SEC,” said Greene, who pitched “a little” towards the end of his senior season at the bidding of scouts. “I’ve learned a lot more about it since coming to UK.”
Greene had no intention of going to college as a pitcher, but after his fastball was clocked at 94 miles per hour, assistant coach Brad Bohannon decided to take a chance on him and sign him at UK.It started to click for the 6-foot-11 right-hander this past summer. Playing for the Amsterdam Mohawks in the New York Collegiate League, Greene went 3-0 in over 25 innings, yielding only 11 hits and two earned runs. His 0.71 ERA was good for third in the league. And no, he didn’t sport the Mohawk look — only a couple of his teammates did. “Our coach was thankful for hats in baseball,” said Greene, who did make mention of “Mohawk night” in Amsterdam, where fans (who were willing) received a free “haircut.” The team considered the look after earning a playoff bid but ultimately decided against it. Goofy haircuts or not, Greene and UK teammates Sean Bouthilette, Cory Farris and Braden Kapteyn helped Amsterdam sweep its way through the NYCBL playoffs en route to a league title. Speaking of titles, Greene is excited about UK’s chances this season. “We’ve been working out butts off, trying to make our way to the top of the SEC,” Greene said.The sophomore also noted the team’s potential and depth. Over this past weekend, though, only one of was those on display. UK started the year 3-0 by defeating Virginia Tech, West Virginia and No. 12 Coastal Carolina at the Caravelle Resort Invitational in South Carolina. Potential: check. Of the busload of Cats that made the trip, however, only 16 made their way into games. Depth: hmm …?Greene was not one of them.”Of course you want to be on the field,” said Greene, who warmed in the bullpen against Coastal Carolina but was not called upon, “but you can still contribute a lot and stay involved by having a positive attitude.”And what will he be thinking when his number is called? “It’s about time,” he said.It will be about time for Greene and several other Wildcats very soon. Kentucky plays host to Bowling Green this weekend before a midweek trip to Morehead State and a West Coast swing featuring matchups with San Diego and San Diego State. “Strength of schedule matters a lot, just like in college football and basketball,” Greene said. “Coastal Carolina and the San Diego trip will definitely help get us prepared for the SEC.”Greene attributes much of his success in baseball to his work ethic. After his junior and senior seasons, he played with the Kentucky Baseball Club, a traveling summer team based in Nicholasville. “It was one of the best baseball decisions I’ve made,”Green said. “I got to play with and against some really talented guys. There were over 150 scouts at some places. … KBC really opened a lot of doors for me.”Greene was also a gym-rat of sorts, and could be found at Champions Sports during much of his downtime. Located in his hometown of Nicholasville, Champions, a 40,000-square-foot indoor sports facility, was a haven for Greene and many others during the winter. He participated in the Ohio Valley Showcase, Prospects 101, and other events, logging countless hours on his own under the roof of “the big red barn” in the meantime. “I lived there more than I lived at home,” Greene said. “It really helped my game… with things like Prospects 101, you could tell the real ballplayers from the ones that didn’t care. You could really tell in the spring.”So when you see Chase Green play this season, prepare to be impressed. Again. And remember: He’s just getting started.
Revelette is a 2006 graduate of UK and was a senior on the 2006 SEC championship team. He writes for the Lexington Sports Examiner and also contributes to BigBlueCats.com. His baseball column will appear weekly on Cat Scratches
