Greatest 21 Days Baseball Profiles

After declining the opportunity the previous year to turn pro, Washington State hurler Guy Normand finally signed in 1986, taken by the Astros, The Portland Oregonian wrote . "I'm glad it's over," Normand, who played his high school ball in Oregon, told the paper . "I want to give pro ball a shot. I want to go back to see what a real professional career is like. I'm just happy to get the chance." Normand eventually took that chance to six pro seasons. He topped out at AAA . Normand's career began that year in 1986, taken by the Astros in  the 13th round of the draft out of Washington State . Normand started with the Astros at short-season Auburn . He got into 8 games, starting six and had a 4.28 ERA.  He moved to single-A Asheville for 1987 and went 16-5, with a 3.48  ERA in 31 outings, 25 starts. Normand then pitched 1988 and 1989 at single-A Osceola.  Normand then started 1990 at AA Columbus , agreeing to go to Mexico and playing for Monclova. N...

Into his seventh season with time in the majors in July 1999, Trenidad Hubbard had found ways to get to the majors, but he continued to work to stay there.  He spoke to The Los Angeles Daily News then about everything he had been through. "I'm the guy who had the dream," Hubbard, then with the Dodgers, told The Daily News . "When I was growing up in Chicago, I was Rick Monday and Jose Cardenal and Ernie Banks. I  knew that's what I wanted to do, play baseball in a big stadium. I didn't know that for the most part, it's a struggle to get up here. Sometimes an even harder struggle to stay there." Hubbard ended up seeing the majors over a decade , getting into 476 total games and seeing 80 or more games in a season four times. Hubbard's career began in 1986, taken by the Astros in the 12th round of the draft out of Southern University and A&M College in Louisiana. Hubbard was also credited early in his career as Trent Hubbard. Hubbard start...

After becoming a bona fide major league star by 1990, the Astros' Glenn Davis looked beyond his work as a baseball player and toward what he could do off the field, according to The Fort Worth Star-Telegram . He turned to kids, specifically building a home for underprivileged children in Columbus, Georgia, where he'd once played in the minors, having had a rough upbringing himself, The Star-Telegram wrote . "When I was younger, a lot of people held out their hand and helped," Davis told the Star-Telegram . "Where would I be without that? I don't know." Where he ended up was in a major league career that spanned a decade, slowed at the end by injury. Along the way, he hit 30 or more home runs three times and made the all-star team twice . Davis' career began in 1981, taken by the Astros in the first round of the January draft-secondary phase out of State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota . Davis started with the Astros in the rookie Gulf Coast Le...

During his first big practice as a professional in 1987, Matt Rambo pitched for the club's special instructor at Utica, showing what he could do, not through speed, but through pitching, The Philadelphia Daily News wrote . "I did have some jitters out there," Rambo told The Daily News for a feature on the Phillies minor league club. "I have dreamed of being a pro pitcher for as long as I can remember. I would have signed out of high school if some team had wanted me then." As it stood, Rambo gained enough notice in college to be taken in the second round of the 1987 draft. He went on from there to see time in five seasons. He topped out at AA . Rambo's career began that year in 1987, taken by the Astros 52nd overall out of Richland College in Texas. Rambo started with the Phillies at short-season Utica . He saw 13 starts and went 4-4, with a 3.74 ERA. He then moved to single-A Spartanburg for 1988 and went 12-10, with a 3.73 ERA. For 1989, he saw Sparta...

Newly minted Brewers minor leaguer Bryan Foster got limited playing time early at rookie Helena in 1986, but the Indianapolis-area product looked past that, he told The Indianapolis Star that July. "I'm learning an awful lot," Foster told The Star then. "It's disappointing that I don't get to play more, but I'm improving. Just working out every day, taking infield practice and B.P. helps." Foster eventually improved enough to make five pro seasons with the Brewers and Astros . He topped out a high-A. Foster's career began in 1986, taken by the Brewers in the eighth round of the draft out of North Central High School in Indianapolis. At North Central, Foster drew high praise from his coach Tom Bradley the month before the draft, as the coach told The Star of the college and professional scouts watching him. "He's the most outstanding shortstop in the state," Bradley told The Star . "He is an all-around ball player. He is e...

T.J. Lucin 's main goal was so ingrained in his playing that he wrote it on each piece of equipment he had - "FMLBBP," The Berwyn Life wrote upon his selection by the Astros in the 1989 draft. The abbreviation stood for "future major league baseball player," The Life wrote . "It's something I've always dreamed of," Lucin told The Life . "In the past, I've done it, but I wasn't so outward about it." Lucin took a big step toward that goal with his selection that June. But he couldn't sustain his momentum. Lucin ended up playing two seasons . He topped out at single-A. Lucin's career began that June, taken by the Astros in the 21st round of the draft out of Morton College in Illinois. Lucin was also credited by his given first name, Anthony Lucin. Lucin arrived at Morton after transferring from Pima Community College in Arizona, as the team needed a catcher. He homered in a May 1989 game for Morton. As Morton prepared...