Long Beach State University Athletics
Nelson Embodies Dirtbag Image
3/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | General
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Nelson Embodies a Dirtbag Of the 21 newcomers to the Dirtbags roster in 2007, Chris Nelson may
most embody the spirit of Long Beach State's baseball nickname. But without
question, he's the only magician on the team. The junior transfer from Riverside City College broke the hamate bone in his left hand during January drills, and subsequently had surgery to remove the superfluous bone, was fitted with a cast, and told that he'd be idle for a month. The next week, Nelson showed up at practice with his glove. He went to the outfield, put his glove on his throwing hand, and began catching fly balls. He would quickly and seamlessly tuck his glove under his arm and throw the ball back in. Presto, change. Soon after, he removed the cast earlier than doctors wanted and he continued to do the glove switch during drills, impressing coach Mike Weathers enough to upgrade his status when games began from injured and unavailable to defensive replacement and pinch-runner. Now Nelson is healthy and has regained the starting center field job he won in fall drills. He appeared in the Dirtbags' last three games and is 3 for 7 with three runs scored, two RBI and the kind of defense that makes coaches sleep well at night. He'll be atop the lineup for this weekend's series against Arizona State starting tonight in Tempe. "I didn't even know I had a hamate bone," Nelson said with a laugh before the trip. "I fouled off a pitch and had severe pain in the hand, and when the doctors put on the cast, they said I'd be better in a couple of months." Not soon enough for Nelson. He had a trick up his sleeve for this situation. While in high school at Temecula Valley, he suffered an elbow injury and did the same thing, albeit with one difference - that time, the injury was to his throwing arm. So he threw with his off hand for awhile until his elbow healed. "I had some previous history with injuries and I taught myself to throw with both hands," he said. It takes a patient coach to send a player onto the field who is juggling his glove while he plays. But once Weathers saw how effortlessly Nelson did it, he felt confident. "I knew he had done it before," the Dirtbags coach said. "The kid has such great eye-hand coordination that he made it look easier than some guys who don't switch their gloves. So I felt confident using him in the field (five times) before he could start swinging." Weathers' optimism for 2007 - and the No. 19 Dirtbags are off to a good start at 8-4 - featured Nelson becoming a key part of the team. He is a gamer in the best tradition of the Dirtbags as born under Dave Snow in 1989, the kind of kid who plays the game beyond full speed and revels in getting dirty. "He had the best average in fall drills. His skills were so good in center that I moved Robert Perry, who is a very good center field, so we'd be stronger defensively," Weathers said. "He's a guy like Rolando Avila, Edger Verala, Izzy Gonzalez - he just plays hard and leads by example. He works so hard that it sets a tone for everyone else. He has no agenda. He has no expectations of pro ball so he plays the game full out." "I love playing," the 5-11, 185-pound junior said. "When I met coach Weathers, I knew of the Dirtbag history and the kind of guys they produced and the mentality of the team, and I thought I might fit. "I go at every game as if it's my last. I just love playing. It's the way I learned to play the game, and it upsets me when I see guys take it for granted and don't work as hard as they should. We get results in games but effort begins in practice." Nelson grew up in Temecula and signed to play at Arkansas out of high school, but he was coming off elbow surgery and the transition to another state didn't take, so he returned home and landed at Riverside City College. That's where he says he developed most of his skills. UC Riverside and a few other schools also recruited him, but Long Beach felt like the right fit. "The hand is still sore, and everyone who's had the surgery said that's the way it is. But I can deal with the pain. I've played in pain my entire career and I know how to deal with it." It helps to have magic. |
