Two voices will remain part of Tim Roberson’s memory for life.
One is that of the Boston Red Sox scout who called him four years ago, with an offer to play pro baseball, when Roberson wondered if his career was over.
The other voice came last Friday night from Sea Dogs first-base coach Joe Thurston, who was yelling at Roberson, as he rounded first base:
“You got to go for it. You got to go for it,” Thurston repeated.
And Roberson did, hustling around second and into third base.
Add that 10th-inning triple to his double, grand slam and single Friday night, and Roberson became only the third Sea Dogs player in 22 years to hit for the cycle.
“It was surreal,” Roberson said. “It’s a day I’ll never forget.”
A likeable figure in the clubhouse, Roberson was cheered by his teammates last Friday in New Britain. By Tuesday, the cheers turned to good-natured ribbing before Portland’s game at Hadlock Field. Comparisons were being made between Roberson and Yoan Moncada, the much-ballyhooed Red Sox prospect who signed for a $31.5 million bonus.
The difference between Moncada’s bonus and Roberson’s is about $31.5 million.
“Yeah, somewhere around there,” Roberson said with a grin.
Roberson, 24, a catcher and first baseman, has never been ballyhooed as a pro. Yet he is the type of player you root for, someone grinding it out and working for every bit of playing time.
“All of us, coaches and players, are excited to see somebody like Tim have success when the opportunity is presented him,” Sea Dogs hitting coach Dave Joppie said.
Joppie said Roberson keeps his approach simple at the plate, and that is working. After going 2 for 5 Tuesday night, Roberson is batting .378 (17 for 45).
“I’m seeing the ball well,” Roberson said. “When I’m in there, I do what I can to help this team win, have fun and be around the guys.”
That love of baseball and being on a team made it difficult in early June 2011. Roberson had just finished a solid career at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, but his name was never called during the draft.
Roberson went back home to West Palm Beach and worked for his parents’ security company. He was on his way to an assignment guarding a pool – “pretty laid-back job,” he said – when his phone rang. Red Sox scout Laz Gutierrez wanted to sign Roberson to a pro contract.
“It was one of the happiest days of my life,” Roberson said.
He never made it to the pool, rushing home instead and packing for a flight to Lowell, Massachusetts, to join the minor league Spinners.
Roberson would be in uniform but, as a non-drafted player, he had to wait to play. He got into 22 games in 2011. Roberson returned to Lowell in 2012 for 21 games.
The 2013 season featured stints at Class A Greenville and Salem, combining for 64 games. He was batting .272. Roberson also spent time on the disabled list, making room for other players.
“It’s been a patient journey, but I enjoy it,” he said. “It is what it is. Stick with it, come out to work every day and enjoy it. It’s baseball.”
Robersongot ample playing time last season in Greenville and Salem (111 games; hitting .231) and began this season in Portland. But the Sea Dogs had two other catchers and Roberson started the year on the disabled list.
“He always has a good attitude, from spring training to the end of the season,” said Chad Epperson, Boston’s roving catching instructor. “He’s had a couple of times when he’s started the year on the DL with some teams but – kudos to him – he continues to work. Those kind of guys always find a spot, and he’s found his, and is making the best of it.”
His best came out Friday in the 10th inning. His blast to deep center not only gave him the cycle, but scored the winning run.
“I didn’t even think about (the cycle),” Roberson said. “But Thurston was yelling at me. I just put my head down and ran.”
Roberson followed Friday’s cycle with four hits Saturday; then an RBI single Sunday. His stretched his modest hit streak to four games on Tuesday.
Tim Roberson, often overlooked and always under-hyped, is getting his chance.
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