Travel Baseball Teams in Maryland

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MLB Players from Maryland

Historically, Maryland has produced some great baseball players, people like Cal Ripken Jr. There are 16 current players (http://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/birthplace.php?loc=Maryland). Among them are Mark Texeira, Brett Cecil, Steve Clevenger, Steve Lombardozzi Jr., and Daryl Thompson.

Mark Texeira

Infielder Mark Teixera was born in Annapolis in 1980. He enjoyed hitting and fielding even as a preschooler. He was in good company! One of the other children in his neighborhood would also grow up to be a pro ball player.

Texeira played baseball (as well as basketball and soccer) at Mount St. Joseph High School; his position was third base.

School sports weren't quite enough for Texeira. He also played baseball with the American Legion.

Texeira continued his baseball career at the Georgia Institute of Technology. There he set some records. He was selected National Collegiate Player of the Year in 2000. He also made Team USA.

Texeira was 21 when he was selected in the 1st round of the 2001 draft. He played for the AA Tulsa Drillers. He also put in an appearance in the Arizona Fall League. His MLB debut came on April 1, 2003.

Texeira has supported many charities, including those that advance education and athletics. His work in DC had him briefly teaching baseball alongside Prince Harry!

Brett Cecil

Pitcher Brett Cecil was born in Dunkirk in 1986. He began playing youth ball when he was about eight. As a preteen, he pitched and played first base. His father would take him to Bowie, a drive of about 20 miles (http://collegepark.patch.com/groups/sports/p/dematha-grad-went-from-sandlots-to-the-show-2).

Cecil honed his ball skills at DeMatha High School and then at the University of Maryland. He was selected in the first round of the 2007 draft. The Class A Auburn Doubledays, AA New Hampshire Fisher Cats, and AAA Syracuse Chiefs were among the teams he played for.

Cecil made his MLB debut in 2009 at age 22. In 2013, he made All-Star.

Steve Clevenger

Steve Clevenger was born in Baltimore in 1986. He started tee ball when he was only five and progressed through youth leagues. He was in the Linthicum-Ferndale Little League during elementary school. He later played for the Dean Albany's Maryland Orioles for a number of years.

Clevenger also enjoyed watching baseball. He remembers his mother letting him take the day off from school to watch the Orioles on Opening Day.

Clevenger played shortstop in high school; he attended Texeira’s alma mater, Mount St. Joseph High School. His team won the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) title his senior year.

Clevenger went on to play for Southeastern Louisiana University. He was selected in the 7th round of the 2006 draft when he was 20. The Boise Hawks and Iowa Cubs were among his minor league teams. He made his major league debut in 2011.

Now Clevenger is with the home team. Like Steve Lombardozzi, he is a Baltimore Orioles.

Tomorrow's Ball Players

Today's ball loving youth can benefit from the same things this trio did: the opportunity to play on teams. Even if they don’t make it as far, they can take pride in their developing skills.

Texeira has offered the following insight: "If you have the same approach and work ethic each day that you come to the ballpark, good things can happen over time (http://www.jockbio.com/Bios/Teixeira/Teixeira_my-say.html)."

Good coaches and role models can be instrumental. Clevenger has said that a number of his former coaches played a role in his success (http://www.pressboxonline.com/2014/04/01/steve-clevenger-steve-lombardozzi-excited-to-play-for-hometown-orioles). He called his high school coach when he heard he had made the 25 man roster and was (at last) a major leaguer.

But academics are important even for those who, like Texeira, dream of the MLB as five-year-olds. "I would tell everyone to go to college, no matter what," he has said, "It gives you time to grow up."

Travel Baseball Teams in Maryland

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