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Pickin' Up Pieces

A major contributor to the Chatham A's success this year has been second baseman Evan Longoria. Named as a starter for the East Division All Stars, Longoria leads the league in homeruns with eight and RBIs with 31. He's also currently batting .321 and leads the team with a .565 slugging percentage.

"Being named an All Star never even crossed my mind," said Longoria, a Downey, Calif., native. "I've really enjoyed every moment that I've been here and love being in Chatham, there's no where else I would rather be."

Adjusting to the wooden bats has been a good transition for Longoria, who batted .316 last season as a sophomore for Long Beach State. He said he hasn't had to make any major adjustments to his swing or how he approaches pitchers. He added that the biggest difference he's noticed in the league has been the elevated level of competition.

"There are a lot of really good players in this league so it's really an honor to be named an All Star. When I learned I was coming to the Cape I was ecstatic. The league has such a great reputation and is a great way to start to make a name for yourself and gives us that much of an edge in the draft."

Longoria has also been touted for his glove. A natural infielder, Longoria has played second, third, and a little shortstop for the A's this season and will start at second base Saturday in Hyannis.

Entering the summer, Chatham A's starting pitcher Jared Hughes didn't think about making the Cape League All Star team.

Injured and rehabbing for much of the 2004 season at Long Beach State, Hughes was happy to be healthy enough to play; little did he know his league leading six wins and 1.54 ERA would earn him not only a spot on the East Division All Star team, but also the starting nod for Saturday's All Star game in Hyannis.

"This is really an honor for me, especially considering I was injured for much of last season," said the hard throwing righty. "I'm really just so happy and thankful to be here."

In 41 innings pitched for the A's, Hughes has racked up 42 strikeouts while giving up an anemic nine walks. The righty said his transition from batters using metal to wooden bats hasn't been too hard.

"I throw a two-seam fastball that gives me a lot of ground ball outs, which I was able to do with the metal bats, too, so I'd have to say that it's not that different."

The 6'7 Hughes said he's known about the Cape league "all his life" and had been looking forward to hopefully playing in the league.

"I knew if I was able to play in college that I hopefully was going to be able to come up here and play. The league has really lived up its great reputation; I was supposed to play in the league last year but I was injured. This year I was able to play and I just love being here and love the town of Chatham."

Hughes will start for the East Division All Stars on Saturday and pitch two innings.