August 1, 200323 yr I know most of you have a subscription to ESPN magazine or have read the Dontrelle willis issue but in case you dont i thought maybe you'd like to read some of the passages from the article The story of the suits began when Marlins first baseman Derrek Lee bought Willis a couple of Ultra-Expensive Models but it's a rite afforded only to those rookies who 1) are respected by the veterans and 2) earn it. Willis met both criteria. He was so excited about his new suits that he immediatly called his mother back home in Alameda, Calif. He was staring at the clothes as he told her of Lee's generosity Joyce Guy-Harris was excited for her son, but her excitement was tempered by a nagging concern. She said " Thats great, Dontrelle" -There was a Pause- "Dontrelle?!" , "Yes, Mom?" "Do we have to pay him back?!" The Call Up - Carolina Mudcats manager called him into his office. " Albuquerque's nice this time of year" Woodson said. Willis' heart nearly jumped out of his chest. Albuquerque? Albuquerque meant a promotion to the Marlins' AAA team. Albuquerque! Albuquerque meant one step closer..ONE step away. ""Triple A"" willis said. "Thats Awesome"..."But your not going to AAA Woodson said "Your going to the Show" It took a second for the implications of Woodson's B-Movie routine to filter through to Willis' brain. The Show? That Show?! Willis 2 months into his big league experience is sitting in a posh hotel room on Chicago's Magnificent Mile. His Timberland boots and his Urlacher Jersey are on the floor beside him. Diamonds sparkle from both ears. As he talks N.C. seems like yester and a lifetime ago. "Im telling you, I almost fell down" he says. "It was like i won an Emmy or something. I wanted to start kissing him" Dontrelle cocks his head to one side and looks around the hotel room " I didnt though he says. " We were in the locker room, so i had to keep my gangsta on" One LAST story..Willis had already struck out Sosa 2 times by the time he faced him in the 6th inning on July 8. The rain was coming down with biblical force, and Sosa kept fighting off 93mph fastballs as they bore in on his hands. One thought went through Dontrelles mind: This is me, This is how I pitch. If you hit the ball and you hop and you get me, then you get me. BUT you have to beat my best. On the 11th pitch of the At bat Sosa fought off another fastball well enough to drop it down the RF line. He slid in 2nd base with a dead bird double. As Sosa lay there, asking for time. He looked up at Willis. And Winked. And what did Dontrelle do? How did this greenhorn rookie, with just 60 days of bigleague experience respond to the great sosa? He winked right back? Did you even have to ask?!
August 1, 200323 yr Those are all hillarious... I love this kid... There's just that something about him, and you cn't help but love him!
August 1, 200323 yr Author Those are all hillarious... I love this kid... There's just that something about him, and you cn't help but love him! yep same here.... as Brad Penny was also quoted in the article as saying. "If you dont like Dontrelle, than you dont like people"
August 1, 200323 yr yep same here.... as Brad Penny was also quoted in the article as saying. "If you dont like Dontrelle, than you dont like people" Have you heard Brad's nickname in the dugout? "The Duke"
August 1, 200323 yr lol "the duke" who gave him that? CBS.com said that the Marlin players gave him the nickname.
August 1, 200323 yr Remember the reliever who came in to pitch the last out in the movie Major League? They called that Yankees pitcher "the duke". Just a big mean looking dude. Guess that fits Penny, lol.
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