Saturday, June 25, 2011
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Peoria Chiefs players Greg Rohan, left, and Logan Watkins, walk around the outfield of Wrigley Field before the start of Wednesday's Midwest League game with Kane County.
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Peoria Chiefs player Greg Rohan
South Range grad Greg Rohan enters the second half of the year leading the Midwest League in batting average
By joe Scalzo
Q. How do you eat an elephant?
A. One bite at a time.
Peoria Chiefs infielder Greg Rohan entered the second half of his baseball season Friday night fresh off an appearance in Tuesday’s Midwest League All-Star game, a berth he got in large part because of his appearance at the top of the league’s batting leaders.
The only thing that’s stopped him this season is an infection in his lower leg, which caused him to miss a dozen games. And he’s still in the top 10 in the league in batting average (where he’s first with a .329 average), hits, RBIs, on-base percentage and OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging).
How has he done it?
One at-bat at a time.
“I think I’m a more mature hitter, more confident,” said the 25-year-old Rohan, a South Range High graduate. “I’ve just tried to slow everything down and really concentrate on having four or five good at-bats and not give up on one, even if I have two strikes.”
Rohan, a 21st-round pick by the Cubs in the 2009 draft, started last season in Class A Peoria and was promoted to Advanced A Daytona, where he hit .250 with a .624 OPS in 41 games.
“I had a good experience down in Daytona,” said Rohan. “I obviously didn’t have the average or slugging I wanted, but I learned a lot. I think I’m more confident in my approach.
“I’m definitely looking forward to moving up [again]. That’s everybody’s goal as a minor leaguer.”
Rohan comes from a strong sports family. His father, George, played baseball at YSU, while his uncle Ed played football for the Penguins and his uncle Steve played basketball at Florida Atlantic and at YSU. Rohan’s brother George played independent baseball after graduation, his younger brother Gerrad was a senior for South Range this season. His cousin Eddie (Ed’s son) was a 50th-round pick by the Mets in this year’s MLB draft.
“Eddie’s one of the hardest workers I know,” said Rohan, who was taking batting practice when Eddie was drafted and called him almost immediately. “I just told him that everybody is in their first year, so everybody is in the same boat. It’s the same game just with better players.”
And one of the best things about the game, Rohan said, is where those players come from.
“I’ve played with guys from all over the country and all over the world,” said Rohan, who started his career in Boise, Idaho. “Several times I’ve taken a step back and looked to my left and seen a guy who defected from Cuba and I can’t imagine what he’s been through. And I’ll look to my right and see someone from South Korea.
“There’s a lot of language barriers and a lot of cultural barriers, but as soon as we get on the field, we all have the same signs and the same routine, so it just kind of works out.”
While the promise of promotion is always in the back of minor leaguers’ minds, Rohan said he’s doing his best to focus on his current job, not his next one.
“I just want to have a really good second half, put a lot of good numbers and concentrate on each at-bat,” he said. “And when I get to September, whether I’m here or at a different level, I want to sit down and be able to say I gave it all my all the whole season.”