The Free Press, Kinston, N.C., David Hall column: It's a small baseball world after all.

Byline: David Hall

Apr. 27--It was 11 a.m. in Kannapolis, N.C., last summer when Max Ramirez got the call.

The 21-year-old Atlanta Braves catching prospect was in town with the Rome Braves to face his South Atlantic League counterparts from the Chicago White Sox when then Braves farm director J.J. Piccolo called Ramirez out of the blue.

There'd been a deal. Ramirez, who was hitting .285 in his fourth year of pro ball, had been traded, straight up, for major league closer Bob Wickman.

The next call Ramirez got was from John Farrell, then Cleveland's farm director. "Welcome to the Indians organization," Farrell said.

Those phone calls set off a flurry of activity, including a flight to West Virginia the next day to join the Lake County Captains and the task of getting Rodriguez' belongings from Rome, Ga., to the Captains' home in Eastlake, Ohio.

Nine months later, the deal set up a scenario proving that even in the super-global game of baseball, it's a small world after all.

The situation arose during the opener of Kinston's series against Myrtle Beach last weekend. With the Pelicans up 3-2 with two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning, Kinston put runners on second and third against Myrtle Beach left-hander Jake Stevens.

In the on-deck circle was the right-handed Ramirez, who had caught Stevens with Rome last season. Pelicans manager Rocket Wheeler elected to walk Ramirez to bring up the lefty-swinging Stephen Head. Wheeler, who knows Ramirez well from his days in the Braves system, said the catcher's past factored into the decision.

It definitely wasn't the kind of thing that could be culled from a box score.

"I wasn't going to let Maxie beat us because Maxie played in our organization last year," Wheeler said. "How bad would he want to get that hit? Plus, with first base open, it was a no-brainer."

(The move, by the way, backfired. Head happened to hit a three-run double, but that's not the point.)

Ramirez, a native of Venezuela, found himself in the surprisingly common position of facing his former teammates. He said it helps when the guy on the mound is a guy he's caught, especially when it comes to predicting tendencies in a given count.

But don't think players take it easy on their old buddies. Sure, there's plenty of reminiscing after batting practice, but it all disappears at game time.

"It's a game, and I want to be my best whether it's against my friends or not," Ramirez said. "I'm going to give my best effort."

On the other end of the matchup, Stevens, a fifth-year pro, said he's become accustomed to seeing former teammates who have caught on with other organizations.

"You almost don't want to look at them because you start smiling, and then you lose your concentration instead of just going after them," Stevens said. "It's cool the day after you pitch or the day before you pitch, but the day that you pitch, you've kind of just got to, hopefully, not notice that he's up there. He's just another batter."

Lynchburg third baseman Tripper Johnson has looked, to borrow from Ben Folds, like a quote out of context this season. The six-year veteran spent parts of three seasons with the Frederick Keys before the parent Baltimore Orioles released him.

Johnson was signed as a free agent by Lynchburg's parent Pittsburgh Pirates in October. He's already been back to Frederick this season, where he broke down a couple of familiar opposing pitchers for his new teammates.

"It's good to see the guys you've hung out with and know pretty well, but it's a little different because you're used to wearing that jersey," Johnson said.

"I was kind of nervous my first couple of at-bats, but once I had those at-bats I felt fine."

As the at-bats and the innings stack up for Ramirez and Johnson and countless others whose careers change directions, they'll start to feel more comfortable with their new teams. Ramirez, who is still learning English, didn't have far to go when he was removed from the Braves by a phone call.

"The Indians organization, they have a nice staff and nice people," Ramirez said. "I felt very, very, very good when they traded me."

And when his old friends decided to put him on base, that felt pretty good, too.

David Hall's column appears in The Free Press on Fridays. He can be reached at (252) 527-3191.

Copyright (c) 2007, The Free Press, Kinston, N.C.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business

News.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

The Free Press, Kinston, N.C., David Hall column: It's a small baseball world after all.

Byline: David Hall

Apr. 27--It was 11 a.m. in Kannapolis, N.C., last summer when Max Ramirez got the call.

The 21-year-old Atlanta Braves catching prospect was in town with the Rome Braves to face his South Atlantic League counterparts from the Chicago White Sox when then Braves farm director J.J. Piccolo called Ramirez out of the blue.

There'd been a deal. Ramirez, who was hitting .285 in his fourth year of pro ball, had been traded, straight up, for major league closer Bob Wickman.

The next call Ramirez got was from John Farrell, then Cleveland's farm director. "Welcome to the Indians organization," Farrell said.

Those phone calls set off a flurry of activity, including a flight to West Virginia the next day to join the Lake County Captains and the task of getting Rodriguez' belongings from Rome, Ga., to the Captains' home in Eastlake, Ohio.

Nine months later, the deal set up a scenario proving that even in the super-global game of baseball, it's a small world after all.

The situation arose during the opener of Kinston's series against Myrtle Beach last weekend. With the Pelicans up 3-2 with two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning, Kinston put runners on second and third against Myrtle Beach left-hander Jake Stevens.

In the on-deck circle was the right-handed Ramirez, who had caught Stevens with Rome last season. Pelicans manager Rocket Wheeler elected to walk Ramirez to bring up the lefty-swinging Stephen Head. Wheeler, who knows Ramirez well from his days in the Braves system, said the catcher's past factored into the decision.

It definitely wasn't the kind of thing that could be culled from a box score.

"I wasn't going to let Maxie beat us because Maxie played in our organization last year," Wheeler said. "How bad would he want to get that hit? Plus, with first base open, it was a no-brainer."

(The move, by the way, backfired. Head happened to hit a three-run double, but that's not the point.)

Ramirez, a native of Venezuela, found himself in the surprisingly common position of facing his former teammates. He said it helps when the guy on the mound is a guy he's caught, especially when it comes to predicting tendencies in a given count.

But don't think players take it easy on their old buddies. Sure, there's plenty of reminiscing after batting practice, but it all disappears at game time.

"It's a game, and I want to be my best whether it's against my friends or not," Ramirez said. "I'm going to give my best effort."

On the other end of the matchup, Stevens, a fifth-year pro, said he's become accustomed to seeing former teammates who have caught on with other organizations.

"You almost don't want to look at them because you start smiling, and then you lose your concentration instead of just going after them," Stevens said. "It's cool the day after you pitch or the day before you pitch, but the day that you pitch, you've kind of just got to, hopefully, not notice that he's up there. He's just another batter."

Lynchburg third baseman Tripper Johnson has looked, to borrow from Ben Folds, like a quote out of context this season. The six-year veteran spent parts of three seasons with the Frederick Keys before the parent Baltimore Orioles released him.

Johnson was signed as a free agent by Lynchburg's parent Pittsburgh Pirates in October. He's already been back to Frederick this season, where he broke down a couple of familiar opposing pitchers for his new teammates.

"It's good to see the guys you've hung out with and know pretty well, but it's a little different because you're used to wearing that jersey," Johnson said.

"I was kind of nervous my first couple of at-bats, but once I had those at-bats I felt fine."

As the at-bats and the innings stack up for Ramirez and Johnson and countless others whose careers change directions, they'll start to feel more comfortable with their new teams. Ramirez, who is still learning English, didn't have far to go when he was removed from the Braves by a phone call.

"The Indians organization, they have a nice staff and nice people," Ramirez said. "I felt very, very, very good when they traded me."

And when his old friends decided to put him on base, that felt pretty good, too.

David Hall's column appears in The Free Press on Fridays. He can be reached at (252) 527-3191.

Copyright (c) 2007, The Free Press, Kinston, N.C.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business

News.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.