Newsday counted high school senior shortstop Angel Lugo as among New York City's most promising professional prospects in May 1988 and the scouts seemed to agree.
Lugo's Grady High School team saw two or three scouts each game, just to see Lugo, but Lugo didn't mind, Newsday wrote.
"I'm pretty much used to it," Lugo told Newsday then. "I don't let it affect me, I just play my game."
Lugo's game eventually took him on to the pros - and also to the mound. He saw four pro seasons, first as an infielder and then as a pitcher. He topped out at high-A.
His game has since taken him to other pursuits in baseball, as a youth instructor.
Lugo's career began in 1988, taken by the Twins in the 22nd round of the draft out of Grady in Brooklyn.
Lugo started with the Twins at rookie Elizabethton. He saw 12 games and hit .194. He spoke to Newsday that August about his limited chances and playing in a small town.
"It's boring," Lugo told Newsday then. "The food is horrible. You can't find any good Italian food or Spanish food. All you have is McDonald's or Wendy's. It's tough when you're used to Momma's cooking."
Lugo returned to Elizabethton for 19 games in 1989. He then moved to independent high-A Miami for 1990. He also moved to the mound.
Lugo went 0-6, with a 6.99 ERA over 19 outings, six starts. He joined the Blue Jays system for 1991. He played at short-season St. Catharines and at single-A Myrtle Beach. He went 3-5, with a 4.39 ERA to end his career.
Lugo has since turned instructor in New York's Hudson Valley. He's served as director of the Hudson Valley Chapter of RBI and has been the longtime owner of Cadets Player Development Academy Performance Center in Fishkill.
Among those he's worked with was minor leaguer Lenny Torres, as the owner of the local training facility Extra Innings, according to Baseball America. He opened Extra Innings in 2007.
"It’s funny—I told the dad right after the first lesson—I said, ‘Listen, we have something special here,'" Lugo told Baseball America in March 2018. "He had very fast arm action. Mechanically, he had a few things to tweak and work on, the basic 13-year-old stuff. But his arm was so fast. I was just like, ‘Wow, this kid’s got something.’"
- Newsday, May 26, 1988: Grady's Lugo Isn't Short on Talent
- Newsday, Aug. 14, 1988: Making Transition Is Toughest Step
- Baseball America, March 1, 2018: Rising Son: Lenny Torres Jr. Represents Family, Beacon
Made the Majors:1,294-33.4%
Never Made Majors:2,579-66.6%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors:528
10+ Seasons in the Minors:324
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