Miami Marlins Signed David Leiderman
Miami Marlins Signed David Leiderman
Newsday says the Miami Marlins signed David Leiderman, who is from the same town (Merrick), high school (Bellmore JFK), and college (Hofstra) as me. At age 23 he hasn't played in the minors yet. I'm not confident he'll reach MLB but I can hope.
Re: Miami Marlins Signed David Leiderman
Wish him all the best.
Not taking anything away from his accomplishments, but I know the father and he was very involved in high level amateur BB. He ran teams and made many contacts. My guess is that he has helped his son get this opportunity - and good for him. if that is what the son wants, he should have an experience getting paid to play - he will never forget it!
Back to reality - I had similar experience while playing into my twenties. Finished college and had lots of looks, special tryouts, etc. but no offers. Went to grad school and while still playing in high level summer leagues, was in a national tournament and had some great games. The scouts at the tournament came up to me after my games and asked where I had been hiding and when I was going to graduate college. I told them I was 23 and just finished my Masters degree. They we shocked and told me the scouts in the metro area really "blew it" in evaluating my ceiling and that I should have been drafted out of college (of course thats debatable). I any case, I did get an offer to play summer Rookie Ball and the compensation package (ie bonus) was an extra large bag of ballpark peanuts and a case of bud! The real reason was that this particular team did not sign all the players they had drafted and essentially needed bodies. Bottom line is that at 23 with no money invested in you, pro organizations are simply giving you a chance to get a taste. Even if you outperform younger players, if the younger player got a decent $$ bonus, you will be cut before them. Remember, its a business. Good luck to him though - enjoy the ride.
Not taking anything away from his accomplishments, but I know the father and he was very involved in high level amateur BB. He ran teams and made many contacts. My guess is that he has helped his son get this opportunity - and good for him. if that is what the son wants, he should have an experience getting paid to play - he will never forget it!
Back to reality - I had similar experience while playing into my twenties. Finished college and had lots of looks, special tryouts, etc. but no offers. Went to grad school and while still playing in high level summer leagues, was in a national tournament and had some great games. The scouts at the tournament came up to me after my games and asked where I had been hiding and when I was going to graduate college. I told them I was 23 and just finished my Masters degree. They we shocked and told me the scouts in the metro area really "blew it" in evaluating my ceiling and that I should have been drafted out of college (of course thats debatable). I any case, I did get an offer to play summer Rookie Ball and the compensation package (ie bonus) was an extra large bag of ballpark peanuts and a case of bud! The real reason was that this particular team did not sign all the players they had drafted and essentially needed bodies. Bottom line is that at 23 with no money invested in you, pro organizations are simply giving you a chance to get a taste. Even if you outperform younger players, if the younger player got a decent $$ bonus, you will be cut before them. Remember, its a business. Good luck to him though - enjoy the ride.