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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (June 23, 1999)
The it Battalion PORTS Page 3 • Wednesday, June 23, 1999 s' owners 5 injury s. Andvei): or has to id. io laws; ilacing (i:i trucks Wi on. let a do£ up but its, < we n dogs si truck, tte , hips or Scheschuk ready for pro game BY DOUG SHILLING The Battalion tiontc Hlohn Scheschuk’s road to becoming a base- U proball player at Texas A&M started in a very stninge place — in front of a television. That rxaslns rolg | ias n0 w taken him from a standout career T exas as a first baseman at Texas A&M to a seventh- igptog' rolnd draft pick of the San Diego Padres, engines WThe summer after he turned three, he was sit- M clairfinj i n front of the television with his mother sonlyg 1 j u iy watching a Houston Astros game. As he 3(idnixr sa {; there, John pointed at the TV and told his ms ' mfther, “1 want to know how to do that.” nologysfHshe asked him to go and point at the televi- lelpspr: sion to show her what exactly it was he want- ' light,tf ed o know how to do. a voices ® when he pointed at the pitcher, Mrs. There, 1 Scheschuk did the only thing she knew to do — signal c ship went and got John’s glove and took him out has t inlhe front yard and started trying to teach him nost k how to throw and how to pitch. Throughout the centers ,t Dece has re; earns' lain arc Schumacher pursues big-league aspirations SALLIE TURNER/Thf. Battalion A&M senior first baseman John Scheschuk, who finished the 1999 season with a .336 batting average and 16 home runs to place second in both for the Aggies, was drafted by San Diego. process, there was only one thing that tripped up Mrs. Scheschuk and her son. ■ “I’m right-handed and John’s left-handed, so it was hilarious,” Mrs. Scheschuk said. “I was trying to figure out how to do it left-handed so 1 could show him. We had a lot of laughs over it, but that’s where he started.” "When John’s father passed away a few nths before, his mother became the influen- figure in his life. Throughout the years, she w^s always at the forefront in John’s life both athletically and personally. ■ “Me and my mother are very close,” 7C1! Scheschuk said. “I just grew up with her my 1 OU whole life. She’s always been there for me. She supported me in my athletics and especially : baseball all the time. She’s been a great influ- • l! ' en ence on my life.” v k moi dial 1 wa When John was in high school, he certainly gave his mother many things to support. Not only was he a standout as a pitcher and first baseman at Pasadena’s Dobie High School, where he was named All-Greater Houston Play er of the Year in 1995, he was also starting quar terback on the football team and a starter on the basketball team. Despite his success in other sports, John knew early on in high school that baseball would be his sport of the future. “I’d probably say 1 knew sometime during my freshman and sophomore years,” John said. “It was just the one that was coming most nat urally to me.” When the time came around for John to de cide on a college, it was a potentially rough de cision. Since his mother, father and brother at tended the University of Texas, there might have been pressure on him to follow in their foot steps. However, for John, it came down to just two schools — Rice and A&M. Once he made his trip to College Station though, his mind was made up. “It wasn’t a hard decision for me,” he said. “When I came on my recruiting trip, it wasn’t even close just because of the atmosphere and the great college town. It really made up my mind for me when I got there. Mrs. Scheschuk said that even though John did not follow in her footsteps to being a Longhorn, she knew that he made the right choice. “He got up there and just fell in love with it,” Mrs. Scheschuk said. “We both had a feeling when we left there that A&M was the right choice to make.” Once he got to A&M, John’s career really did not get a chance to take off. During his freshman and sophomore years, he played sparingly as he was behind senior first basemen on the depth chart both years. Al though he did not get to play as much, John said he does not regret his time on the bench. “I wouldn’t trade the way it happened,” he said, “because I did get in there and get some experience, and I think that helped me down the road.” When he finally did start during his junior year, he did not disappoint. John finished sec ond on the team with a .336 batting average and second in home runs with 16 including an A&M school record with home runs in five straight games. One of his home runs came in the Re gional Championship against Mississippi State University, a game the Aggies lost. see Scheschuk on Page 4. BY RUTH STEPHENS The Battalion Senior catcher Shawn Schumach er, who led the Texas A&M Baseball Team with a .374 batting average this season, left College Station Tuesday in pursuit of a professional baseball career with the St. Louis Cardinals. Schumacher will join the Cardi nals’ developmental-league team in Augusta, NJ. Schumacher said professional baseball has been a goal of his for a long time. “It’s something I’ve worked for all of my life,” he said. St. Louis is not the first team to draft Schumacher. The Pittsburgh Pi rates drafted him after his second year at Panola Junior College in Carthage, Texas, but Schumacher de cided to pass on the offer in or der to play Division I baseball. Schumacher spent his junior year at the University of Texas, where he was moved from catcher to first base. Schumacher said profession- Senior catcher Shawn Schu macher, who led the Texas A&M Baseball Team with a .374 bat ting average, was draft ed by the St. Louis Car dinals in this year’s Major League Baseball college draft. al scouts warned him his baseball fu ture was as a catcher, not as a first baseman, so he decided to move to a program where he would have an opportunity to catch. “Coach [Mark] Johnson offered me the opportunity to play at A&M,” Schumacher said. “He gave me no guarantees, though. I had to win the catcher’s spot.” Schumacher said his catching skills were rusty after a year at first base, but the A&M coaches came ear ly and stayed late to help him im prove his defensive skills. James Schumacher, Shawn’s fa ther, credits the coaches for his son’s success. “The coaches were a real plus for Shawn,” he said. “I can’t emphasize enough their positive influence. They helped him get over the edge. ” Schumacher said this season was a “Cinderella story,” see Catcher on Page 4. SALLIE TURNER/The Battalion (irsiinv jne I a io inti nsCwTii APPLY TODAY lawsuit,* ipeciiiei: if nearly Madiscr. over diei: idiminr exas ca;: to trial: with a ; Staff Application Fall '99 Name: pi! IPhone Number(s): Expected graduation (semester): :• Major: If you have another iob, what is it? Classification: How many hours per week? E-mail: Will you plan to keep it if hired? Please check the position(s) for which you are interested in applying. If yon are interested in more than one position, number them in order of preference with 1 being your top choice. City Desk Campus and Community News Reporter Aggielife Desk Lifestyles and Entertainment Feature Writer I Page Designer >SITY c Edito' , Editor > pinion. City Etf opus Ec b dio PrK i salvo. *enes;Jer Radio Anchor Reporter Opinion Desk Columnist Web Desk Web Designer Photo Desk Photographer Sports Desk Sports Writer Page Designer Visual Arts Desk Graphic Artist Cartoonist Night News Desk Front and inside page design Page Designer Copy Desk Copy Editor rvrariunit! , 3) What do you believe is the role of The Battalion on campus? Meier. Breaux, to json P» : • PubMis 3; Fax: 8& ' and eat# 5 -jliouisaifi! , ttalion.FiJ® gm* Wi Please type your responses on a separate piece of paper 1) Why do you want to work at The Battalion, and what do you hope to accomplish? 2) What experience do you have that relates to the position you are applying for? (include classes, seminars) 4) What changes do you feel would improve the quality of The Battalion! (give special attention to the section you’re applying for) Please attach a resume and samples of your work (stories you have written for publications or classes, pages you have designed, photos, drawings or other creative samples). Ttim applications in to Room 013 of Reed McDonald by 5p.m. Applications due Wed., June 30. mu A Central Texas Managed Health Care Program Makes More Sense Than Traditional Health Insurance That’s why Bryan-College Station has FIRSTCARE. No annual deductible No claim forms to complete Low co-payments Brazos Valley Physicians Organization Quality health care and controlled costs Bryan-College Station employers have an affordable solution to their group health care needs: FIRSTCARE, a health care program created to help control your rising medical costs. FIRSTCARE is a service of Hillcrest. FIRSTCARE Southwest Health Alliances Your Partner in Health. 254-202-5300 1-888-817-2273 More than 100,000 Texans depend on FIRSTCARE, available in Bryan-College Station. Ask your employer about it. For affordable, quality, convenient and comprehensive health care, choose FIRSTCARE. FIRSTCARE is a service mark of SHA, L.L.C.