Solon grad Loveless ‘humbled’ to be an All-Star

COMSTOCK PARK, Mich. - Derrick Loveless never imagined he would be an all-star in the Midwest League this season.

But there he was Tuesday afternoon, preparing to hit the field for batting practice, hours before the stadium lights flipped on for the 50th edition of the Midwest League All-Star Game at Fifth Third Ballpark.

Loveless, a former standout at Solon, was representing the Lansing Lugnuts of the Eastern Division.

'I'm pretty humbled by it,” Loveless said. 'There are a lot of good players here. It's an honor to be here with them.”

Loveless, a 27th-round pick by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2011, spent his first three seasons in rookie ball but has adjusted nicely to life in the MWL.

The Lansing outfielder is batting .256 with one home run. He has knocked in 24 runs and has stolen eight bases.

Last night, Loveless hit into a double play in the bottom of the eighth. He grounded out in the ninth as the West beat the East, 7-0, in front of a crowd of 7,046. The East had just two hits.

'I'm getting better, getting more consistent with every part of my game,” Loveless said. 'Mentally, I'm getting stronger and understanding the game a lot better. I know there are tough times and good times in baseball. Staying even keel is important.”

Especially in a game where failure is often a part of life on the road to success.

'I try not to think about the failure, but I know it will happen at times,” Loveless said. 'I have to remind myself that it's part of the game. You can't always succeed.”

The good thing for Loveless is that he has his dad to lean on for advice. His father, Derrius, played football at Iowa.

'My dad has helped me out a lot,” Loveless said. 'With him being a former athlete, he has the same perspective as I do. It's easy to talk with him about things that are weighing on my mind.”

Loveless almost followed in his father's footsteps to played college football. He was also a track star in high school as he maximized his athleticism.

But as he got older, he decided baseball was the way to go.

'At the beginning, football was what I wanted to do,” Loveless said. 'When I started to get better at baseball, I changed my mind.”

Bryan Haar of the Cedar Rapids Kernels singled in the seventh last night for the West. Pitcher Kohl Stewart did not get in the game.