※ [本文轉錄自 Cardinals 看板] 作者: azure0920 (WS Champ STL Cardinals) 看板: Cardinals 標題: [翻譯] Ankiel is closing in on big leagues again (1) 時間: Sat Jun 23 01:24:26 2007 By Joe Strauss ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH 06/22/2007 MEMPHIS, TENN. — Those who saw it still talk about "the bomb" Rick Ankiel drove over the right-field fence last month, over a berm and past a walkway at Round Rock's Dell Diamond. They talk about his right fielder's arm, center fielder's speed and his aptitude for learning a proper drop step needed to run down balls hit over his head. 上個月,那些還在討論"不定時炸彈" Ankiel的人,都被吸引到德州圓石鎮Dell Diamond 球場右外野的全壘打牆邊. 他們談論那個有著右外野手的肩膀, 中外野手速度的選手. 還有他學習接飛過頭頂高飛球的能力. And lately, the only organization Ankiel has ever known has pondered the proper time for promoting its former star-crossed pitcher to St. Louis as a position player. As the talk grows louder, Ankiel reminds himself not to listen. 在不久之前, 那個Ankiel唯一待過的球團仔細考量過, 何時才是把曾經是投手丘上的 新星帶回聖路易的好時機. 當人們的討論的聲音越來越大, Ankiel卻是儘量的不想去 聽它. "I just get excited about being successful," he says. "I try not to get too excited about where I'm at now because you never know what's going to happen." No one is more entitled to that philosophy than Ankiel. "我對於目前的成功感到相當的興奮", 他說到:"我嘗試著對於我的未來不要興奮過 了頭, 因為你永遠不知道接下來事情會怎麼發生". 沒有人比 Ankiel 更了解這個 道理了. Ten years after being drafted, seven years after winning 11 games as a too-young-to-drink rookie lefthander and six years after virtually vanishing from the major leagues, Ankiel is close to accomplishing the truly Ruthian feat of moving from a major-league starting rotation to outfield. In between he has experienced a lifetime's worth of professional and personal angst. His return would represent an organizational as well as a personal triumph. 自從被選秀會挑中已然十年經過. 那個在大聯盟拿下11勝的左手新秀已然從 20歲 變為27歲, Ankiel 正踏著先人 Babe Ruth的腳步從大聯盟的投手丘邁向外野手. 在這些年裡, 他經歷了職業生涯的最高峰與個人的最低潮. 他重新的挑戰大聯盟 代表了紅雀隊球團, 更是他個人的另一個成功. "I want to go up there and stay there and play for years," Ankiel says. "I don't want this to be a novelty where people say, 'Wow, look, he made it back' and then I go away." "我想升上大聯盟, 我想待在大聯盟打上好些年的球". Ankiel 提到, "我不想被人 當作小說裡的題材一樣, 升上大聯盟, 然後就沒有了" Ankiel has had enough of being someone's novelty. He lived it for the last five years of his pitching existence, until his inability to retain command of his brilliant assortment proved too much to carry. Ankiel 已經經歷太多小說中誇張的情節了. 他坦然接受曾經在投手丘上輝煌過五年, 卻因無法維持投球動作的協調性而被迫離開的事實 Now a month shy of turning 28 and one of only two remaining players in the organization from the 2000 NL Central Division championship team, Ankiel is ready for something else. 在還有一個月要滿28歲的現在, Ankiel成為唯二 2000年國聯中區冠軍還待在紅雀 球團的球員. 他已經準備好要再度挑戰大聯盟了. "I'm 27 now," he says. "I need to prove I can play or get out of the way." Proving himself was no problem a decade ago. Or has it already been an eternity? "我才27歲, 我必須要證明我可以在球場上競爭, 不然就是徹底離開球場", Ankiel說到 12年前他就已經證明過一次了. 或者我們應該這樣說, 證明Ankiel的能力從來不是 個問題 USA Today named Ankiel its high school player of the year in 1997. Two years later, managers in the Texas League and Pacific Coast League named him the top prospect in their respective loops. 1997年 Ankiel被USA Today 選為最佳高中球員, 兩年後, 他被德州以及太平洋小聯盟 　的總教練們選為頂級的新秀 Ankiel reached the major leagues after 52 appearances spread over four affiliates, where he had struck out 416 and allowed 225 hits in 298 2/3 innings. Now he is trying to progress just as quickly as a hitter. 僅僅在小聯盟出賽 52次, 待過四支球隊後, Ankiel被升上大聯盟去. 他在小聯盟 298 2/3局的投球中, 三振 416次, 只被敲出 215 支安打. 現在他以同樣驚人的 速度在小聯盟以打者的身分發光發熱. Two years after the experiment began, and one year after missing an entire season because of a knee injury, Ankiel is pushing for the Pacific Coast League lead in home runs (19) and RBIs (53). 在正式棄投從打的兩年後, 其中還包含一年因傷膝蓋受傷無法出賽, Ankiel 正領先 　AAA 太平洋聯盟的全壘打(19) 以及打點成績(53) Yet he remains at Memphis mostly as a matter of inconvenience. 有著這樣的成績卻只能留在Memphis 是因為一些無法避免的麻煩 If Ankiel were promoted and struggled, the Cardinals would be unable to return him to Memphis without first putting him through waivers. Any team could then pluck Ankiel for nothing except the waiver fee. 如果Ankiel升上大聯盟不能維持這樣的打擊成績, 紅雀隊無法把他輕易送回 Memphis 的小聯盟. 在把Ankiel 送回小聯盟的wavier 過程中, 任何一個球隊可以不需要付出 高額代價的把Ankiel 挑走 The club acknowledged this week that if it had remaining options on Ankiel, he probably would have been promoted to replace disabled center fielder Jim Edmonds. Ankiel must instead wait, likely until at least mid-August. 紅雀球團承認, 若不是因為Ankiel已經沒有任何 option 可以無條件通過wavier, 那麼這個禮拜因為Jim Edmonds 進DL而填補空缺的就會是他. 而如今 Ankiel只能 期待八月中的45人球團擴編了. "We discussed it, but we felt that Rick needs as many at-bats as he can get and to experience a lot of situations," says Walt Jocketty, who was in his third year as Cardinals general manager when the club selected Ankiel in the second round of the 1997 draft and subsequently signed him for $2.5 million. "We had talked about giving him 400-500 at-bats, then bringing him up in the fall. But if he continues to progress as he is, we may bring him up sooner." 球團經理Wakt Jocketty 談到, "我們和Ankiel討論過這件事, 我們認為Ankiel 目前 需要的是更多的實戰打擊機會, 以及處理更多的飛球". 在Jocketty 擔任球團經理的 第三年, 他以兩百五十萬美金的高額簽約金把 1997年第二輪選秀的 Ankiel簽了下來. "我們談到 Ankiel 需要四百到五百個打數, 然後在秋天的時候把他升上大聯盟. 但是 以他現在的這個成績保持下去, 等不到了那個時候他就會被升上大聯盟了" Manager Tony La Russa offers a bit more conservative estimate, insisting "the more at-bats he takes, the better his shot is here. He's learning every game he plays down there. It is Triple-A. He's learning. He's adjusting. He's hitting .280; he's not hitting .380. It would be great to leave him there all year." 紅雀隊總教練 Tony La Russa 給了一個比較保守的意見, 他說: "有越多的小聯盟 打擊經驗, 他能待在大聯盟的機會就越大. Ankiel 還在小聯盟中學習如何當一個 稱職的外野選手. 他的打擊率是 .280 而不是 .380. 讓他有個完整的小聯盟球是 相當重要的 The Cardinals have done everything possible to retain the rights to the one-time prodigy, including conspiring with Ankiel's agent, Scott Boras. As he passed through waivers shortly after his position switch, Boras warned prospective takers Ankiel would not pitch for them. 紅雀球團已經用了各種方法去留住這位曾經輝煌的天才球員, 包括和大牌經紀人 Scott Boras 仔細商量過. 在 Ankiel 被降回小聯盟決定棄投從打之後, Boras 警告任何想要交易Ankiel 的球團, Ankiel不會再回到投手丘上. (個人幻想, 要是那天Spiezio, Ankiel已經在大聯盟中, 他會想上來投嗎? XD~) Only a portion of the salvage plan is dedicated to seeking a return on a 10-year-old investment. 在挽救Ankiel球員生涯的計畫中, 只有一小部分是讓他重新登上投手丘 "I have a very strong feeling for him as a person as well as a player," Jocketty says. "It was unfortunate he came to a point in his career where he couldn't go on as a pitcher and was ready to go on in a different direction. "我對於Ankiel 不論是個人,或是擔任球員的時候都充滿信心", Walt Jocketty 說到: "很不幸的是他不能以投手的身分繼續球員生涯, 但是他已經做好準備往不同位置前進" "I knew he was a great athlete. I'd seen him hit. I knew he was athletic enough to play the outfield. He was interested in doing that. It just came down to giving him time to develop." "我了解他是一個相當優秀的運動員. 我很希望他能成功轉換成一個打者. 我知道他 有著足夠的能力去擔任外野手的工作. 他對於這個改變很有興趣, 我們需要的只是 給他足夠的時間去做準備" THE DARK DAYS On the day Ankiel announced his retirement from pitching, La Russa voiced remorse for his unconventional handling of him during the first round of the playoffs in 2000. 黑暗的日子 在 Ankiel宣布棄投從打的那天, La Russa 發表了自責的聲明, 因為他的特異的調度 把這個左手菜鳥排進了 2000 年季後賽的第一場先發名單. Trying to protect Ankiel, who was 21 then, La Russa had veteran Darryl Kile attend a news conference for the presumptive Game 1 starter. 當初為了要給Ankiel 多一點保護, La Russa 讓老鳥 Darryle Kile 代替Ankiel 參加季後賽第一戰先發投手的記者會 (這樣翻對嗎? 我沒看過記者會..) The ploy backfired the next afternoon when Ankiel, the Cardinals' true Game 1 starter, suffered a loss of command that marked the beginning of the end of his promising career as a starting pitcher. 這個記者會的安排, 到了下午有意想不到的後果, 紅雀隊真正的先發投手Ankiel因為 喪失的投手的協調動作而被迫離開投手丘 From there, Ankiel's career went into free fall. His next four seasons became a series of closeted practices, false starts, injuries and doubt. 自此, Ankiel的球員生涯就像自由落體般不斷沉淪. 接下來的四個球季就是一連串的 練習, 失敗, 受傷和質疑 "I don't want to be guessing about what he was feeling," La Russa says. "I'd rather stay away from that." "我不想去猜測他有什麼樣的感受" La Russa說到: "我不想去揭人瘡疤" Ankiel's struggles became more pronounced shortly after his father, Richard Patrick Ankiel, was sentenced to six years in federal prison for his role in a Bahamian drug trafficking ring. A half-brother also had entered the penal system because of a drug offense. Shortly after Richard Ankiel's drug conviction, Ankiel's parents divorced. Ankiel 的磨難不久又因他的父親販毒,被判六年監禁後又被加深一步. 他同父異母 (還是同母異父?) 的兄弟也因為藥物問題而受到懲楚. 他的父母也因此離異. The spiral led Rick to heed Boras' advice to leave Florida after the 2000 s eason and stay for two months in Newport Beach, Calif., with a former teammate, infielder Adam Kennedy, whom the Cardinals had dealt to Anaheim. 這一連串的事件讓 Ankiel去聽從經紀人 Boras的建議搬離佛羅里達, 在2000球季後 到加州Newport Beach 跟他的前隊友Adam Kennedy 住了兩個月 "It's been seven years," Kennedy says. "I got to see him enjoying baseball again, running around the outfield again, hitting and stuff. Off the field this spring, he was more calm and a lot more focused." Kennedy 提到: "那是七年前的事情了, 我希望能看到 Ankiel 再度享受棒球的樂趣, 不論是在外野奔馳, 站上打擊區, 或者其他的事情. 在這個球季前的春天, 他顯的 比以前更要沉穩也更專注於工作" If seven years have dulled anyone's memories, Kennedy remembers well the first impression Ankiel created. "To this day, a healthy Ankiel is better than anyone I've ever seen," he says. "The best fastball, the best curveball, the best changeup I've ever seen. All in one guy." 即使經過七年的時間, Kennedy 記得他對 Ankiel的第一印象. "一直到現在, 健康的 Ankiel 比我看過的任何人還要優秀", "他有我曾見過最棒的速球, 最棒的曲球, 最棒 的變速球, 我在同一個人的身上看到了全部" (待續...) --

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