With spring in the air, it can only be time for one thing (besides post-Easter discounted sleeves of Peeps and Jim Nantz’s quiet, soothing, nap-inducing voice) — America’s pasttime. It’s baseball season, so we at White & Blue Review will, at least occasionally, dig into our vast collection of contacts and see what former Secret Servais members in the pros are up to nowadays. Journalism! Today: the work horse.
Remember Chris Gradoville? You know, the Chris Gradoville who started all 61 games for the Creighton baseball team in 2007 (his senior year), most of them at catcher, baseball’s most grueling position. The Chris Gradoville who seemed like he never got tired, throwing out a ridiculous 39 percent of the runners who tried to steal a base on his watch, who hit .339 at the plate while driving in 56 runs for a team that ranked in the top 25, won its first-ever Missouri Valley Conference Tournament title and earned a two-seed in an NCAA Regional in Fayetteville, Ark.
Well, that Chris Gradoville – the one who ripped the game-tying, two-RBI double down the left-field line in the bottom of the 11th inning in that MVC championship game against No. 12 Wichita State – is getting paid to play baseball. And, since I can’t get paid to play baseball, I went with the next-best thing: not getting paid to ask someone questions about getting paid to play baseball.
Gradoville, an Omaha native and graduate of Bryan High School, was selected in the 24th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft by the Texas Rangers. In 15 games that year with the Spokane Indians, he hit just .229 with 11 RBIs. In 2008, however, he spent the year with the Rangers’ High-A affiliate, the Bakersfield Blaze, and hit .309 with four home runs and 24 RBIs while throwing out 29 percent of would-be base stealers.
Last year, after moving up to AA Frisco, Gradoville hit .227 in 54 games and, perhaps more importantly, rocked some surely award-winning facial hair, as seen below.
White & Blue Review: What is life like in the minor leagues?
Chris Gradoville: It’s tough. We are always on a bus, and living in hotels just like you see in the movies. We live in two-bedroom apartments with three guys and sleep on air mattresses and lawn chairs. To play 140 games and live like this, and take bus trips after games all through the night, it’s tough, but it’s worth it and is all part of it. It gives us something to look back on once we make it.
WBR: Can you think of anything you’d rather be doing than getting paid to play baseball? (Besides, obviously, interviewing people about getting paid to play baseball.)
CG: There isn’t much else I’d rather do than play the game I love for a living. There is something that is a close second and that would be a professional hunter and have my own hunting show.
WBR: What was your off-season like? Did you have a job? Did you play ball somewhere?
CG: I just came home, back to Omaha, and worked out and traveled. I worked as well. I worked at an insulation company, and at Omaha Steaks. We have to have jobs in the off-season for now, until we make it to the Big Leagues. (Laughs) I worked out at the Ultimate Baseball Academy, which is where I could do all of my baseball-type workouts. It’s an amazing place.
WBR: What are you told from the coaches or the organization about what you need to work on to take another step?
CG: There is always something to work on with baseball, especially hitting. I was told this year to continue to work on my flexibility, my blocking and my hitting to where I am consistent and have a plan every time at the plate, where I compete deep into counts.
WBR: What are your goals for this year? Do you have a certain level you’d like to reach?
CG: Well, of course the Big Leagues. Being in AA, it’s that close, so we are always working for that. A goal for myself this year is to just stay consistent day in and day out and stay positive and know it’s a long season and to take advantage of my opportunities
WBR: Did you ever think you’d be where you are today?
CG: Honestly, no. I have always dreamed of playing professional baseball and getting to the Big Leagues, but when I came to Creighton, my freshman year was tough. I had a couple of surgeries, I redshirted, I was down on myself and I just never thought it would turn around. But it did and it has almost become a dream come true.
WBR: How much of your success beyond Creighton do you attribute to the Creighton staff and your experiences as a Bluejay?
CG: A lot. The coaches instilled an amazing work ethic in me and taught me ways to handle myself in ways I could never think of as an 18-year-old kid. The multiple drills and constant work with me on catching and my hitting and conditioning — I owe a lot to them and can’t thank them enough.
WBR: Do you keep in touch with any of your former Creighton teammates? Do you ever speak with or seek advice from other Jays in the pros?
CG: I keep in touch with a few guys. Pat Venditte, who is blowing up the media scene right now, is a really good friend of mine. I work out with him in the off-season, we hang out, etc. I also hooked him up with my agent so we have the same agency. Pat and I are really close. I talk to Zach Daeges every now and then. He was my roommate in college and our families are close. There are a few former players I talk to. My cousin, Tim Gradoville, is done playing pro ball now but I still talk to him and former Major Leaguer Chad Meyers. He was pretty influential to me in college and I still talk to him now and then.
WBR: Do you still follow the Jays?
CG: Oh, yes, every day I check on them. I still talk to Coach (Servais) quite often and his staff, and a handful of players. If I can, I follow the game on live stats or listen to the radio broadcasts. I’m tuned in, making sure the team is taking strides forward and building on that Bluejay baseball tradition we built up. In fact, to show how much I pay attention, I know that they are struggling to close out and win games and have lost by one run five times. (Laughs)
WBR: Ideally, where would you be in five years?
CG: I would love to be in the Big Leagues, either in a starting role or back up role. Whatever it is, in the Big Leagues somewhere, still playing baseball and living the dream.