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Lawhorn still living his dream
By KEVIN TRAVIS, Sports Editor
Trevor Lawhorn wasn’t exactly lighting it up with the Hagerstown (Md.) Suns. While playing sparingly, he hit .244 with two homers and nine RBIs in 28 games for the Low Class A minor league team.
When the former East Carolina standout was called up to the Potomac Nationals, a High Class A team that plays in the Carolina League, to say he was stunned is an understatement.
“I didn’t see it coming at all,” Lawhorn said. “I wasn’t playing much down in Low A. They’ve got a lot of young guys who got paid a lot of money that they have to play.
“When they told me I was going to Potomac, I said, ‘it’s about time; thank you.’”
Lawhorn has been making the most of his promotion. In 17 games with the Nationals, an affiliate of the Washington Nationals, Lawhorn is hitting .317 with two homers and four RBIs.
“It’s going really well,” Lawhorn said. “I’m back in High A, and I’m glad to be back in High A. Being 25 and in Low A, I’m pretty much wasting my life away.”
He said the adjustment from Low A to High A has been a smooth transition.
“It’s all really the same at every level,” Lawhorn said. “The pitchers can spot up a little better (in higher leagues) and that’s really all the difference. In Double A, they have three pitches they can throw for a strike at any time. Here, it’s like two pitches.”
Lawhorn, who was a ninth-round draft selection (258th overall) by the Cincinnati Reds in the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft, had his biggest game with the Nationals in Monday’s 17-3 win over the Kinston Indians at Grainger Stadium. Lawhorn went 3-for-5 with a home run and a double.
He ripped a double to lead off the second inning and eventually scored. Lawhorn clubbed his second home run with the Nationals one inning later, belting a solo home run over the East Carolina sign in left-center field.
“It was cool,” Lawhorn said. “I wasn’t even sure how far it went. All my friends said it went over pretty good. I hit it really well. With family and friends here, I wanted to do really well hitting-wise. I got a home run and a double so that was pretty cool.”
Lawhorn also singled and scored in the third inning.
A fan favorite at ECU, where he hit .301 with 21 homers and 66 RBIs, Lawhorn said getting to play close to his old stomping grounds was enjoyable.
“It’s a lot of fun, especially being in this league,” said Lawhorn, who was a star at New Hanover High School in Wilmington. “Being able to play in Kinston and being able to play in Myrtle Beach, which is only an hour away from my house (in Wilmington), and playing in Winston-Salem is good. My parents and family can come watch me play.”
Some fans who watched Lawhorn swing a hot stick with the Pirates made the trip to Kinston’s Grainger Stadium to watch him play.
“It’s fun, especially when friends and family are out there,” Lawhorn said. “I just want to go out there and perform and try to give them a show.”
Lawhorn spends the bulk of his time playing at second base or third base, the same positions he played at East Carolina. However, the versatile player also saw time at first base and designated hitter when the Nationals played at Kinston for a recent three-game series.
He has also played some in the outfield, on the mound and in the bullpen as a catcher.
“I’m just trying to get my value up with (the Nationals),” Lawhorn said. “(The manager) can put me anywhere and he’ll know that I’ll do a good job wherever I’m at.”
Lawhorn said his stint at first base in Monday’s game, the third time in his pro career that he’s played that position, wasn’t exactly a thing of beauty.
“I was a debacle over there,” he said with a laugh. “I couldn’t field a ground ball to save my life. I made all the plays; it just didn’t look good.”
While Lawhorn has just a few relief appearances on the mound, he feels comfortable every time he toes the rubber.
“I have the mentality of, ‘here, I’m going to throw it; you hit it,’” he said. “I just try to throw it down the middle and, if I get ahead, I’ll throw that little change-up that I’ve got and, hopefully, get him out.”
Lawhorn has made a few stops since being drafted, including stops in Montana, Florida, South Dakota and Wisconsin. He has 34 homers, 184 RBIs and is hitting .252 in his minor league career.
After being a star in high school and riding that success into college with the Pirates, Lawhorn has had to make the adjustment to not playing every day in the pros.
“You just have to be mentally tough,” Lawhorn said. “It’s one of those things where you get into an organization and you don’t have a whole lot of value on you, no money in you, you just have to know that it’s going to be one of those things.
“It’s really not that hard for me to do because I am mentally tough.”
He said not being in the lineup every day can make it tough on hitters.
“When you don’t get every day at-bats and stuff like that, it’s kind of hard to get into a groove,” Lawhorn said. “But you have to take it as it is. You just have to perform. It was tougher in Hagerstown because I wasn’t playing at all.
“Here, I’m getting more at-bats and starting to swing the bat a little bit, seeing the ball better. You just have to make the adjustment to not playing every day after playing every day when I got drafted.”
Lawhorn plans on taking it one game at a time.
“I just want to play hard whenever I am in there,” Lawhorn said. “I just want to do what I can.”
He would like to get called up to Double A soon, but isn’t setting any timetables.
“I’m just going to go play every day,” he said. “I’ll keep doing it until, hopefully, I make it to the big leagues. As long as I keep getting an opportunity, whether it’s with the Nationals or some other organization, I’m going to do it.”
Though it hasn’t been an easy road, Lawhorn has enjoyed every step. He enjoys the game of baseball more than ever.
“I love it,” Lawhorn said. “Every time I play, I go out there and play my heart out and do what I can.
“I just love going to the park every day.”
FORMER PIRATES IN PROS
Darryl Lawhorn, Trevor’s twin brother, is hitting .275 with eight homers and 39 RBIs with the Stockton Ports (Class A Advanced California League).
Jake Smith is hitting .296 with two homers and 14 RBIs with the Kane County Cougars (Class A Midwest League).
Adam Witter is hitting .211 with 10 homers and 39 RBIs with the Connecticut Defenders (Double A Eastern League).
Dale Mollenhauer is hitting .297 with one homer, 31 RBIs and 16 stolen bases with the Kannapolis Intimidators (Class A South Atlantic League).
Shane Mathews is 0-1 with one save and a 5.16 ERA with the Delmarva Shorebirds (Class A South Atlantic League).
Sam Narron is 5-3 with a 4.08 ERA with the Nashville Sounds (Triple A Pacific Coast League).
Jason Neitz is 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA with the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes (Class A Short-Season Northwest League).
Dustin Sasser is 0-2 with a 6.75 ERA with the Daytona Cubs (Class A Advanced Florida State League).
Ricky Brooks is 2-3 with a 4.15 ERA with the Winston-Salem Warthogs (Class A Carolina League).
T.J. Hose is 1-1 with a 4.76 ERA with the Yakima Bears (Class A Short-Season Northwest League).
Justin Bristow is 0-0 with a 9.00 ERA with the AZL Cubs (Rookie Arizona League).
Josh Ruhlman is 0-0 with one save and a 6.75 ERA with the AZL Royals (Rookie Arizona League).
Corey Kemp is hitting .220 with two homers and five RBIs with the Helena Brewers (Rookie Pioneer League).
When the former East Carolina standout was called up to the Potomac Nationals, a High Class A team that plays in the Carolina League, to say he was stunned is an understatement.
“I didn’t see it coming at all,” Lawhorn said. “I wasn’t playing much down in Low A. They’ve got a lot of young guys who got paid a lot of money that they have to play.
“When they told me I was going to Potomac, I said, ‘it’s about time; thank you.’”
Lawhorn has been making the most of his promotion. In 17 games with the Nationals, an affiliate of the Washington Nationals, Lawhorn is hitting .317 with two homers and four RBIs.
“It’s going really well,” Lawhorn said. “I’m back in High A, and I’m glad to be back in High A. Being 25 and in Low A, I’m pretty much wasting my life away.”
He said the adjustment from Low A to High A has been a smooth transition.
“It’s all really the same at every level,” Lawhorn said. “The pitchers can spot up a little better (in higher leagues) and that’s really all the difference. In Double A, they have three pitches they can throw for a strike at any time. Here, it’s like two pitches.”
Lawhorn, who was a ninth-round draft selection (258th overall) by the Cincinnati Reds in the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft, had his biggest game with the Nationals in Monday’s 17-3 win over the Kinston Indians at Grainger Stadium. Lawhorn went 3-for-5 with a home run and a double.
He ripped a double to lead off the second inning and eventually scored. Lawhorn clubbed his second home run with the Nationals one inning later, belting a solo home run over the East Carolina sign in left-center field.
“It was cool,” Lawhorn said. “I wasn’t even sure how far it went. All my friends said it went over pretty good. I hit it really well. With family and friends here, I wanted to do really well hitting-wise. I got a home run and a double so that was pretty cool.”
Lawhorn also singled and scored in the third inning.
A fan favorite at ECU, where he hit .301 with 21 homers and 66 RBIs, Lawhorn said getting to play close to his old stomping grounds was enjoyable.
“It’s a lot of fun, especially being in this league,” said Lawhorn, who was a star at New Hanover High School in Wilmington. “Being able to play in Kinston and being able to play in Myrtle Beach, which is only an hour away from my house (in Wilmington), and playing in Winston-Salem is good. My parents and family can come watch me play.”
Some fans who watched Lawhorn swing a hot stick with the Pirates made the trip to Kinston’s Grainger Stadium to watch him play.
“It’s fun, especially when friends and family are out there,” Lawhorn said. “I just want to go out there and perform and try to give them a show.”
Lawhorn spends the bulk of his time playing at second base or third base, the same positions he played at East Carolina. However, the versatile player also saw time at first base and designated hitter when the Nationals played at Kinston for a recent three-game series.
He has also played some in the outfield, on the mound and in the bullpen as a catcher.
“I’m just trying to get my value up with (the Nationals),” Lawhorn said. “(The manager) can put me anywhere and he’ll know that I’ll do a good job wherever I’m at.”
Lawhorn said his stint at first base in Monday’s game, the third time in his pro career that he’s played that position, wasn’t exactly a thing of beauty.
“I was a debacle over there,” he said with a laugh. “I couldn’t field a ground ball to save my life. I made all the plays; it just didn’t look good.”
While Lawhorn has just a few relief appearances on the mound, he feels comfortable every time he toes the rubber.
“I have the mentality of, ‘here, I’m going to throw it; you hit it,’” he said. “I just try to throw it down the middle and, if I get ahead, I’ll throw that little change-up that I’ve got and, hopefully, get him out.”
Lawhorn has made a few stops since being drafted, including stops in Montana, Florida, South Dakota and Wisconsin. He has 34 homers, 184 RBIs and is hitting .252 in his minor league career.
After being a star in high school and riding that success into college with the Pirates, Lawhorn has had to make the adjustment to not playing every day in the pros.
“You just have to be mentally tough,” Lawhorn said. “It’s one of those things where you get into an organization and you don’t have a whole lot of value on you, no money in you, you just have to know that it’s going to be one of those things.
“It’s really not that hard for me to do because I am mentally tough.”
He said not being in the lineup every day can make it tough on hitters.
“When you don’t get every day at-bats and stuff like that, it’s kind of hard to get into a groove,” Lawhorn said. “But you have to take it as it is. You just have to perform. It was tougher in Hagerstown because I wasn’t playing at all.
“Here, I’m getting more at-bats and starting to swing the bat a little bit, seeing the ball better. You just have to make the adjustment to not playing every day after playing every day when I got drafted.”
Lawhorn plans on taking it one game at a time.
“I just want to play hard whenever I am in there,” Lawhorn said. “I just want to do what I can.”
He would like to get called up to Double A soon, but isn’t setting any timetables.
“I’m just going to go play every day,” he said. “I’ll keep doing it until, hopefully, I make it to the big leagues. As long as I keep getting an opportunity, whether it’s with the Nationals or some other organization, I’m going to do it.”
Though it hasn’t been an easy road, Lawhorn has enjoyed every step. He enjoys the game of baseball more than ever.
“I love it,” Lawhorn said. “Every time I play, I go out there and play my heart out and do what I can.
“I just love going to the park every day.”
FORMER PIRATES IN PROS
Darryl Lawhorn, Trevor’s twin brother, is hitting .275 with eight homers and 39 RBIs with the Stockton Ports (Class A Advanced California League).
Jake Smith is hitting .296 with two homers and 14 RBIs with the Kane County Cougars (Class A Midwest League).
Adam Witter is hitting .211 with 10 homers and 39 RBIs with the Connecticut Defenders (Double A Eastern League).
Dale Mollenhauer is hitting .297 with one homer, 31 RBIs and 16 stolen bases with the Kannapolis Intimidators (Class A South Atlantic League).
Shane Mathews is 0-1 with one save and a 5.16 ERA with the Delmarva Shorebirds (Class A South Atlantic League).
Sam Narron is 5-3 with a 4.08 ERA with the Nashville Sounds (Triple A Pacific Coast League).
Jason Neitz is 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA with the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes (Class A Short-Season Northwest League).
Dustin Sasser is 0-2 with a 6.75 ERA with the Daytona Cubs (Class A Advanced Florida State League).
Ricky Brooks is 2-3 with a 4.15 ERA with the Winston-Salem Warthogs (Class A Carolina League).
T.J. Hose is 1-1 with a 4.76 ERA with the Yakima Bears (Class A Short-Season Northwest League).
Justin Bristow is 0-0 with a 9.00 ERA with the AZL Cubs (Rookie Arizona League).
Josh Ruhlman is 0-0 with one save and a 6.75 ERA with the AZL Royals (Rookie Arizona League).
Corey Kemp is hitting .220 with two homers and five RBIs with the Helena Brewers (Rookie Pioneer League).
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