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March 22, 2010

George Bremer: Up in the sky, it's a Blue Jay

By George Bremer, Herald Bulletin Sports Writer

As I recall, my first professional goal was to become Superman.

Few 6-year-olds, however, are gifted with the job requirements — faster than a speeding bullet, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, etc. So even at that tender age I quickly realized I wasn’t qualified.

Not every childhood dream dies so easily.

Adam Lind is not a superhero, but he came pretty close last summer.

The former Highland High School star hit .305 with 35 homers and 114 RBIs last season for the Toronto Blue Jays, and his professional life was forever altered.

Nowhere are those changes more evident than Dunedin, Fla.

Three years ago, when I first traveled to the Blue Jays’ spring training home, Lind still was trying to make a name for himself at the major league level. Toronto’s offense was stocked with high-priced veterans, led by designated hitter Frank Thomas.

Lind was a long shot to make the opening day roster when I watched him play against the Boston Red Sox in the first game that spring. He’d been called up at the end of the 2006 season and done a nice job at the plate, but the acquisition of Thomas during the offseason spelled his doom.

By the time my wife and I returned two weeks later, Lind had been re-assigned to the minor league camp. He played in “B” games on the back fields outside Dunedin Stadium.

The only sign of him inside the facility was a blue cardboard cutout resembling a baseball. It was placed on a wall behind the right field bleachers and recognized Lind as one of several players to have advanced from Dunedin’s Single A team to the major league roster.

But it seems he’s only now arrived.

I returned there for a game last week, and Lind’s name and photo adorn a white banner hanging from the rafters not far from that blue cardboard baseball. The banner hangs among several celebrating some of the franchise’s biggest names.

Roy Halladay, George Bell and Paul Molitor are honored in close proximity to Lind.

The left-handed slugger also is featured on the cover of Toronto’s spring program. He’s holding the bat at a familiar angle behind him, and his lead hand is steadied in front of his chest. It’s what my colleague Quintin Harlan refers to as “The Starting Lineup pose,” referencing a line of action figures popular during the 1990s.

Young children roam the stadium bleachers wearing replicas of Lind’s jersey.

Yet his hunger remains the same.

Lind remains focused only on his next at-bat. He told me before spring games began he still has several goals to achieve, including an All-Star Game appearance and a World Series ring.

The kid who dreamed of baseball stardom still is alive inside him.

And that could be his most dangerous weapon of all.

Contact George Bremer: 640-4831, george.bremer@heraldbulletin.com.

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