The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/80446
Athletic Park. The Prospect Classic is an annual USA Baseball showcase, featuring players from the Collegiate National Team and players with the 18-and-under National Team. "Right after we played in the Prospect Classic, we flew from Raleigh-Durham to Miami, went through customs and then flew to Cuba for five days," Turner said. "Once we were done with that series, we flew back to Miami, practiced at Marlins Park, got on a plane later that night and flew to Houston, spent the night in Hous- ton and then flew to The Netherlands the next morning. We flew in that morning and played a game that night. So it was a lot of getting off the bus and playing, getting off the plane and playing." back over here the game will slow down a little more." ■ Trea Turner summer for Team USA] sped up the game, so coming "I think [playing this The trip to Cuba, from July 3-9, was es- pecially memorable. Cuba won three of the five games, but the USA salvaged the series finale 5-4 thanks in large part to Rodon, who allowed three runs on eight hits in six innings. He struck out four and did not allow walk, although he did not cruise through the Cuban lineup without mishap. After working a one-two-three first in- ning, Rodon opened the second inning with a fastball up and in to Cuban slugger Al- fredo Despaigne, who belted it for a long, majestic home run. "He just crushed it," Rodon said. "I went in hard up around the letters, a 95-mile-an- hour fastball, and he turned it over for a 400-foot home run. Crazy. That just shows that you can't get away with high heat there. You've got to stay low in the zone. I learned a lot facing teams like that." Rodon actually missed part of the trip to Havana to attend the presentation of the Golden Spikes Award on July 6. Florida's Mike Zunino won the award, but Rodon, NC State's first-ever Golden Spikes final- ist, had a memorable two days in the Big Apple, including a visit with Joe Torre at the MLB offices, a trip to the MLB Fan Cave and a front-row seat at Citi Field, where he got to kibbutz with David Wright, Ike Davis, Jimmy Rollins and others before a Mets-Phillies game. "I really didn't want to go [to the Golden Spikes]," Rodon said. "I wanted to go to Cuba. But I'm glad I got to go and ex- perience that. My dad and I got to spend 60 ■ THE WOLFPACKER Carlos Rodon went 2-0 with a 1.42 ERA this summer for USA Baseball's Collegiate National Team. PHOTO COURTESY BRIAN FLEMING PHOTOGRAPHY some time with Ike Davis. He just told me to keep on grinding, don't stop working. Those words will stick with me forever." Team USA's schedule concluded at Honkbal-Haarlem Baseball Week, a six- team tournament featuring the national teams from the United States, Cuba, Japan, Puerto Rico, Chinese Taipei and The Neth- erlands. Team USA won the bronze medal. Rodon, who earned two of the USA's five wins in the tournament, started and worked seven shutout innings in a 1-0 vic- tory over The Netherlands in the medal round semifinals. Going back to his start against the Cubans on July 9 in Havana, Rodon did not allow a run in his final 10 innings of the summer. Team USA got back to the States on July 24, giving Turner and Rodon a few weeks off before reporting to campus for the fall semester. Expectations for NC State will be at an all-time high in 2013, thanks in large part to Rodon, Turner and the Wolfpack's splendid 2012 freshman class. Rodon was the National Freshman of the Year and both were consensus Freshman All-Americans. Based on their experiences this summer with USA Baseball, don't be surprised if both are even better as sophomores. "I think [playing this summer for Team USA] sped up the game, so coming back over here the game will slow down a little more," Turner said. "Coach [Elliott] Avent always talks about slowing down the game. I think meeting all those new coaches and teammates and playing against 30- and 40-year-old men kind of sped it up for me. "I feel like that experience will help me slow it down when we get into our season. I'm ready to go." ■