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Oakland All-Star Andrew Bailey has ties to Atlantic County
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Oakland A's manager Bob Geren called a meeting before Sunday's game in Cleveland. He planned to tell the team who made the Major League All-Star Game.
While southern New Jersey native Andrew Bailey waited to learn his fate, his family was having their own meeting at his grandparents' house in Brigantine.
"He called us 20 (minutes) of 1 p.m.," said his mother Lori. "He said, 'I can't talk. I have to go on the field, but I got named to the All-Star team.' "
Though Bailey, 25, didn't immediately celebrate - he settled for hugs and high-fives from teammates- the 18 family members in Brigantine popped open champagne for the Paul VI High School graduate's latest achievement.
His uncle Chuck Urban of Absecon received a quick phone call at Resorts Atlantic City where he works because he couldn't make the party.
"I knew before the selection show," Urban said. "It was a pretty interesting Fourth of July weekend for us."
The simplest way to describe the last year of Bailey's life is whirlwind. He went from a struggling starter on Oakland's double-A team to an MLB All-Star.
Bailey is 4-1 with nine saves and a 2.03 ERA. He has 57 strikeouts in 48� innings. He is the top American League reliever in strikeouts and only trails Los Angeles Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton for the major-league lead.
"It's been a bit of a roller coaster," said Bailey on Thursday in a telephone interview from St. Petersburg, Fla., where Oakland is playing Tampa Bay. "Everything has happened so fast. From my major-league debut, to my first win and then first save."
Bailey played baseball in southern New Jersey before he was drafted. His last high school game was at Holy Spirit, and on the bus ride home, he was offered a scholarship to Wagner College in Staten Island, N.Y.
He led Haddon Heights to the American Legion World Series in 2003. However, he was never an All-Star - not in high school, college or the minors.
Not until now.
"(His Oakland teammates) cheered like crazy," said Bailey, who was drafted in the sixth round in 2006.
"I was completely shocked. I didn't think it was going to be me."
Lori thought her son had a shot. She and her husband Bill, who live in Medford, tracked the baseball talk on the Internet. Andrew Bailey was mentioned as one of the players with a chance.
It hadn't been this easy.
Bailey struggled last season in the Texas League with the double-A Midland RockHounds. He was 1-8 with a 6.18 ERA in 15 starts. At the All-Star break, he was moved to the bullpen, where he flourished. He finished 4-1 with a 0.97 ERA in 22 appearances.
He earned a spot in the Arizona Fall League, where teams send their top prospects. There, he struck out 16, walked one and had a 1.29 ERA in 11 appearances. Bailey made such an impact, he was a non-roster invitee to spring training.
"He kept throwing scoreless innings no matter what situation they put him in," Lori said. "Every Monday (during spring training), he kept saying, 'I am still here.' He kept hanging in there. That part was amazing."
Bailey will be in the American League bullpen for Tuesday's 8 p.m. game with guys he can learn from. He will be teammates for a day with the New York Yankees' Mariano Rivera, Boston's Jonathan Papelbon and Minnesota's Joe Nathan.
Bailey already has gotten advice about the All-Star Game. Oakland teammate Nomar Garciaparra, a six-time All-Star, told him to bring a video camera. Years from now, he would appreciate his own highlights of the batting practice, the Home Run Derby and the fans.
And, like his first appearance, his first win and his first save, his parents will be attendance with his sister and girlfriend.
"We went when he made the team. We needed so badly to be at Opening Day," Lori said. "It's been a ton of fun, and we never expected this year to go this way."
E-mail Susan Lulgjuraj:
Posted in Sports, Phillies, Breaking_news on Friday, July 10, 2009 12:05 am Updated: 10:25 am.
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