Loveless off to great start in Midwest League

CEDAR RAPIDS – Professional baseball is a process. A long one for most guys, a longer one for Derrick Loveless.

The Lansing Lugnuts outfielder played all the sports at Solon High School: football, track and field, soccer. He didn't focus on baseball until the Toronto Blue Jays took him in the 27th round of the 2011 draft.

His learning curve has been steeper than most.

'You see some guys right out of high school whose games are pretty mature,” Loveless said. 'I knew not playing as much as them, I had a lot more to pick up. I had to learn how to play the game, how to get better. It has been a long process.”

But one that Loveless seems so much closer to getting a grasp upon.

The 21-year-old outfielder came into Saturday hitting .297 in 20 games for the Midwest League's Lugnuts. That's over 100 points higher than his career average coming into the season.

The improvement has come even though he is making a large jump from true Rookie-level ball to low-Class A.

'It's good to start out pretty well, but I've always got to remember that it's a long season,” Loveless said. 'I try not to get on too much of a high about how well I'm doing because anything can happen. I put in a lot of hard work in the spring, and I'm just glad that has started to show early in the season.”

Loveless was lured away from a commitment to the University of Iowa by a signing bonus of $125,000, according to Baseball America, significant money for a guy taken so late in the draft. The Blue Jays liked his athleticism and upside.

He said he hasn't necessarily made any huge mechanical adjustments with his lefty swing this season. His biggest adjustment has come between his ears.

'I've just started focusing on trying to see the ball, not worrying about mechanics as much,” he said. 'Just go out there and play, put the bat on the ball. When I've struggled, I have tended not to be as focused on seeing what the pitcher is throwing and the location he was throwing to. This year, I just really wanted to go out and just see it. You have a better opportunity to hit the ball when you see it, compared to when you don't.”

Loveless, who has six doubles and 12 RBIs in 64 at-bats, got the opportunity to play the Cedar Rapids Kernels in early April, albeit at Lansing. The Lugnuts make just one trip to Iowa this season, to Burlington in late July.

'I just felt fortunate to be able to play that team because I grew up watching them,” he said. 'In fact, I think my first autograph ever was from a Kernels player.”

Now people are asking for his autograph.

'I didn't really know where I was going to wind up this season, but I really wasn't too concerned,” he said. 'I just wanted to go into spring training and improve. Show them that I'm getting better and not being stagnant with what I've been doing. I was blessed to make this jump. I was hoping it would come.

'(My career) has kind of been like a roller-coaster ride. You have your ups and downs. Unfortunately for me, I started going downhill. But the older I get, the longer I play, I mature more and understand what it takes to play this game at such a high level. The more I do it, the more I keep learning. It's teaching me so much more than just baseball. It teaches you how to deal with difficult times in life and stuff like that. It's been kind of crazy, but I've really enjoyed it.”

AROUND THE HORN

'The Chicago Cubs placed outfielder Ryan Sweeney on the disabled list Saturday with a right hamstring strain. The former Cedar Rapids Xavier prep injured his hamstring making a running catch in a game Friday against St. Louis. Hitting .200 with six RBIs in 20 games this season, Sweeney is expected to be out of action for three to four weeks.

'Former Cedar Rapids Prairie prep Scott Schebler had hits in seven of his last eight games entering Saturday to raise his batting average at Double-A Chattanooga (Dodgers) to .262. Schebler has four triples and six home runs in 27 games for the Lookouts.

'Former Cedar Rapids Xavier prep Jon Keller has not allowed a run in his last three relief pitching performances for Class A Delmarva (Orioles). That spans five innings.

'Cascade's Colin Rea continues to pitch well for high-A Lake Elsinore (Padres). He is 3-0 in six starts for the Storm, with a 3.86 earned run average, more than respectable in a big-time hitter's league.

'Cincinnati Reds closer Aroldis Chapman threw a perfect inning Thursday in an injury rehab appearance for the Dayton Dragons of the Midwest League. Chapman hit 101 miles per hour with one of his fastballs.

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