June 7, 2006

Baseball draft | Royals take Hochevar with first pick

More than just an arm
Former Tennessee pitcher has always focused on the mental side of baseball, and it has served him well in his career.

By J. BRADY McCOLLOUGH
The Kansas City Star

The night before the Royals picked him No. 1 in the draft, Luke Hochevar pitched against the New York Yankees. It wasn't Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett who got rocked for eight runs in less than two innings on Monday night, at least in Hochevar's mind.

Hochevar (pronounced HO-chay-vur) sat on his couch in Knoxville, Tenn., and visualized every pitch Beckett threw as if it were his own. His buddies, who were watching with him, could only laugh. There goes Luke with his Jedi mind tricks again.

"I catch grief all the time," says Hochevar, who pitched three years at Tennessee. "They'll be like: `Luke, go do some mental exercises. Go mentally prepare for your simulated bullpen.' That's fine, as long as I'm prepared."

Tuesday, the Royals surprised the baseball world by selecting Hochevar over Andrew Miller with the franchise's first No. 1 overall pick. But those who know Hochevar say Kansas City is getting more than an arm. It's getting a total package, a 22-year-old who has the mind and the will to be a No. 1 starter in the majors.

Hochevar, a devout Christian, called the events of Tuesday morning "a miracle," so maybe it's fitting that a sign posted on the blue doors of the Royals' war room read: "Chapel in progress. Please enter quietly."

Hochevar has prayed often this year as his career hung in limbo. The Dodgers drafted Hochevar with the 40th pick last year, but Hochevar and agent Scott Boras failed to reach an agreement with the Dodgers.

So instead of starting his professional career, Hochevar went back to school. He pitched with the independent Fort Worth Cats of the American Association during the month of May. Then he got the call. The Royals were going to make him the No. 1 pick in the draft.

But can the Royals sign the Fowler, Colo., native? Royals scouting director Deric Ladnier says they can, and so does Hochevar's father, Brian Hochevar.

"My personal feeling," Brian says, "is that it's as close to a done deal as it can be.

"I think hungry is a mild term for Luke. He is starving to get out there and back in affiliated baseball."

***

Every great pitcher has a first-broken-window story. Luke's came when he was 2, which may seem early, but that's because you don't know Brian.

Brian played a year of professional basketball with the Denver Nuggets in 1979. He had Luke in the gym at 2, which is why it's no surprise that Luke threw a rock at a car window and broke it only a year after he started walking.

"I came out of the womb," Luke says, "and he was after me, saying you can play harder."

Brian first told Luke that he could be a major-league pitcher when he was 12 years old.

"But," Brian told him, "you're going to have to outwork everybody around you to get there."

Years later, at Tennessee, Luke set himself apart with that lethal combination of paranoia and doggedness. He won the SEC Pitcher of the Year Award and the Roger Clemens National Pitcher of the Year Award his junior year when he went 15-3 with a 2.26 ERA.

"He was polished," says Tennessee pitching coach Mike Bell, "but always seeking knowledge."

Bell was astonished with Hochevar's three-hour workouts.

"You hear stories about the professional guys - Clemens, Schilling," Bell says. "But on the collegiate level, I've never seen anything close."

Hochevar started meeting twice a week with Tennessee director of mental training Joe Whitney during his sophomore year, and he hasn't stopped since. During the Tennessee season, they'd go over the opposing lineup at each meeting, and Hochevar felt as if he had faced each batter twice before the game even started.

"He has one of the strongest mental games of anyone I've worked with," Whitney says. "He's at the top of the list as far as his ability to compete under pressure, to prepare for a game and his ability to stay in the present."

***

Hochevar insists he's just not an LA kind of guy.

"I'm an outdoors man," Hochevar says. "I like to hunt and fish. I grew up on a farm. I'm not too up to date with all the fashion and stuff. I don't know if I'd fit in too well in LA."

Hochevar fell to the 40th pick last year because of signability questions, which ultimately proved to be valid. Negotiations moved slowly, but in September, Hochevar switched agents from Boras to Matt Sosnick. He reportedly agreed to a deal, but then rejoined Boras and did not sign. The two sides didn't come close again.

All of this led Hochevar to Kansas City. It seemed that the Royals' visit to watch Hochevar pitch for Fort Worth last Tuesday was just a formality. The team had already made it known that Miller was probably its top choice.

But Ladnier says that on Monday morning, the Royals decided on Hochevar because he had the best chance of any pitcher in the draft to contribute at the major-league level right away. The Royals hope to see Hochevar, at the very least, in Wichita by season's end.

"I'm going to be the hardest worker, not just in the minor leagues but also at the major-league level," Hochevar says. "I take so much pride in how I get after it. I expect that out of myself."

J. Brady McCollough - jbrady@coveringsports.com (email) - 816-868-2621 (cell)