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Recently, McGuff was kind enough to answer some of our questions about his two-month pro career and what led him to this point. Thank you Patrick, for your time and thought-filled responses.
Seth Stohs (SS): Growing up in Ohio, what was your favorite team to follow? Who were some of your favorite players?
Patrick McGuff (PM): Growing up around Cincinnati I was a huge Reds fan throughout my life. I always loved watching Ken Griffey Jr. play. He was definitely my favorite player.
SS: What were some of the better memories of your high school baseball career? Did you play other sports or were you involved in other activities?
PM: Some of the better memories of my high school baseball career came from being a younger guy on the varsity baseball team. I really enjoyed hanging out with the older guys as a freshman and sophomore on the varsity team and the guys really made me feel like I belonged. My junior and senior years were a blast too, I really enjoyed the staff there we always had a lot of fun. I also played basketball in high school up until my junior year when I decided to not play my senior year and focus on baseball.
SS: What was the recruitment process like for you out of high school, and what was it about Sinclair that made you want to go there?
PM: The recruitment process for me wasn’t very active in high school. I had no Division 1 offers. I had a lot of D2 and D3 offers to play as a position player but I felt my future was in pitching so I decided to go with the junior college route. I originally started at Wabash Valley College in IL my freshman year but decided to transfer to Sinclair for my sophomore season. Sinclair had a very good history of winning and sending guys to quality schools, Coach Dintaman is an incredible coach. I loved my time at Sinclair and would consider it to be one of the best baseball decisions in my career.
SS: What were a couple of your highlights from your two college years at Morehead State?
PM: Winning our conference tournament my junior year was a big highlight for my career at Morehead State. With that win it led us to a regional at Louisville which was also an incredible experience. I had a ton of fun that year and winning came so easy to our team it was extremely fun to watch and be a part of. A highlight from my senior year was for three of our guys to go in this past year’s draft. Matt Anderson (Pirates) and Tyler Keele (Diamondbacks) were some of my closest friends, and I was extremely happy all three of us got the opportunity to play at the next level. Morehead State was filled with many good memories.
SS: Did you have the chance to speak with many scouts before the draft? Did you have any idea where in the draft you might be selected? What was your interaction with the Twins scout?
PM: I didn’t have a whole lot of interaction with scouts until the end of the season. I started the year slow but finished very strong which put a good impression on a few scouts. I had an idea I would go late but honestly did not know if I would go at all. I filled out some paperwork for the scout that drafted me (Alan Sandberg) after I threw in our conference tournament but didn’t hear from him again until draft day.
SS: The Twins took you in the 36th round. How did you find out that you had been drafted? How busy was your phone at that moment?
PM: I found out I had been drafted from Alan giving me a call saying that he thought they were going to take me with their next pick. I was sitting on our couch at home with my mom and dad and we heard it over the radio broadcast of the draft and we went crazy. It was one of the happiest days of my life. After I had been drafted Alan called me back and my phone was going crazy. It was a good feeling and a good reminder of how much support I have throughout this journey.
SS: What has the adjustment like for you, from the amateur/college game to the professional game, both on and off the field?
PM: At first the adjustment was a little tough going into college. I was a little bit of a hot head in high school so realizing how much I represented on and off the field and how I need to present myself in a professional matter at all times was different. Luckily I had very good college coaches to guide me throughout the processes on and off the field. Coach McGuire at Morehead constantly preaches on how to be a professional on and off the field and I was lucky to have him guide me throughout the process.
SS: You put up great numbers in five appearances in the GCL, and now have been very good in Elizabethton. You had the long 15 inning scoreless streak to start your pro career. Are you at all surprised to have experienced such success already, and what do you think has been the biggest reason for the success?
PM: I have been very blessed to start my career with the success I have had. It was a good feeling to have and a feeling that I did belong in professional baseball. I believe my biggest reason for my success so far has been my aggressiveness at everyone I face. I pride myself in attacking the zone and being able to throw all four of my pitches for strikes.
SS: At this very early stage in your career, what would you say are your biggest strengths?
PM: I think my biggest strength is my mentality. I feel like I have a good mentality on going at every hitter and not allowing a free pass. Another strength is the ability to throw four pitches for strikes in any count.
SS: What are the areas of your game that you would like to spend time working to improve?
PM: I would definitely like to improve my velocity in the off season. Adding some more sharpness to a couple of my pitches will also definitely help me be a better pitcher.
SS: Do you know if you’ll head to Instructs, or will you be going back to school in the offseason? What was your major in school?
PM: I am heading back to school once the season is done. I was pursuing a health and physical education degree but I have changed my major to University Studies due to the fact I will graduate this December.
SS: Who are some of the people who have helped you get to this point in your career?
PM: My parents have definitely helped me get to this point in my career. They have been very supportive throughout my life and I could never thank them enough. Also coach McGuire at Morehead and Coach Dintaman at Sinclair, they were phenomenal coaches and I couldn’t have been in better hands throughout my college career. Another person is Alan Embree my summer pitching coach the past 2 summers, he helped me so much with my mentality and how to go about getting batters out.
SS: Favorite baseball movie?
PM: Definitely Bull Durham.
Again, thank you to Patrick McGuff for taking time to answer our questions. Please feel free to ask any questions you would like in the comments.
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