Digital PlayBall - Issue #1 (Article Story Test)

DIGITAL PLAYBALL

New Dragons manager, Travis “Gookie” Dawkins, actually made the corresponding huge jump, from the Midwest League to Cincinnati in one year - when he was the Reds’ number one prospect some 21 years ago. Let’s look back at how he got there and how he moved into coaching.

Dawkins was the finest baseball player ever to come out of Newberry, South Carolina, a town of about 10,000 residents located about an hour from the state capital of Columbia. A shortstop, he was viewed as one of the top 50 high school prospects in the country during his senior year at Newberry High School in 1997 and was drafted by the Reds in the second round that June.

“I was just one of those kids that enjoyed whatever sport was in season,” he says. “We really didn’t have structured practices in high school. I have two older brothers and whatever sport we were playing, I played with them and their friends so, I also grew up playing with older guys. I never really thought about professional baseball until I was a senior. I just enjoyed playing. I tell the young players that they have to be able block out the scouts, the distractions, and play the game the way they always have.”

After a year and a half of minor league experience, he opened the 1999 season with the Rockford Reds

in the Midwest League. Ironically, that 1999 season was the final year of existence for the Rockford Reds. The franchise moved to Ohio the next year and became, of course, the Dayton Dragons. Dawkins was long gone by the time the club relocated to the Gem City.

Dawkins spent the first three months of the 1999 season with Rockford. On a team that also featured such future Major Leaguers as Adam Dunn, Austin Kearns, Brandon Larson, and Corky Miller, Dawkins was viewed as the best prospect of them all. By mid-summer, he was promoted from Rockford to Double-A Chattanooga in the Southern League and was there for a little more than a month. When MLB rosters expanded on September 1, he was promoted to Cincinnati. He made his big league debut on September 3, 1999 when he replaced Barry Larkin at shortstop late in a game at Philadelphia.

“We had a great team in Rockford,” he remembers. “At one point, we had the best record in all of baseball. I went to Chattanooga for a short time and then got the call-up. I remember it like it was yesterday. We were playing the Greenville Braves, which is 40 minutes from my hometown so, I had my family there. Buddy Bell was the player development director and he was up in the stands so, my family knew before I did. I was a nervous wreck, happy but, at the same time, I did not know how the (big league) guys would treat me. I didn’t sleep that night. I never imagined getting to the big leagues at the age of 20. I was lucky to play with great guys. Barry Larkin taught me a lot. Pokey Reece (did too). Being able to be with those guys was valuable. They showed me the way.”

CareSource’s Veteran Salute program highlights five veterans’ stories during the course of each season. Veterans who are chosen are honored at a Dragons game with an on-field ceremony and given VIP treatment during their special game.

CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT YOUR VETERAN’S STORY!

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