Baseball Player Magazine

The path to success isn’t always easy, but it is a journey that is to never be forgotten and one that builds both character and strength. This couldn’t be truer in the case of Minor League pitcher John Mincone. Born July 23, 1989, this 6’2”, 215 lb. lefty has experienced more in his 20 years than most do in a lifetime. His path has taken him from his backyard all the way to Mesa, Arizona as a part of the Chicago Cubs organization, with a few significant “character and strength building” stops along the way.

Ben Stein said, “The indispensible first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: Decide what you want to do,” and at a young age, John Mincone did just that. 

John sat down with BPM before heading back out to Arizona and told us a little about his journey to the Minor Leagues, as well and the intensity of a very special day that he will never forget. 

Has playing professional baseball always been your dream?

My life has always revolved around baseball. Ever since I can remember I’ve been throwing a baseball, either to one of my grandfathers, my dad, or one of my four brothers. My parents always told me I had the talent to become a professional baseball player, and since then it’s been my dream.

We want to know your story, but let’s skip ahead to draft day. What was it like? Was the experience anything like what you expected?

The weeks leading up to draft day made the day it self so much more stressful, but it was a day I had been waiting for my whole life. For about two weeks prior to the draft, I dropped my life as a teenager and traveled from city to city, participating in pre-draft showcases. I spent hours on the phone on a daily basis with scouts from all 30 major league teams. Each call made me realize more and more that I may have the opportunity that every boy dreams of; having their name called in the MLB Amateur Draft. The morning of the draft I was woken up by a call from an area scout, saying that he just talked to the scouting director and if I was still available, I’d probably be taken anywhere between the seventh and tenth rounds. Naturally I was excited. The draft started at 12:00 pm on June, 10, 2009. I had picked up my youngest two brothers, Christopher and Michael, from school early that day. I was sitting in my living room with my father, my brothers Matt, Christopher, and Michael and my grandparents. My mom was holding her phone tightly at work and both my brother Stephen and my girlfriend Brittany were at school waiting to feel their phones vibrate in their pockets. As the tenth round passed without my name being called, I began to get frustrated. The early picks for the 11th round went by, once again without my name being called. I turned the computer away, I had to get up and walk around. About thirty seconds later I heard screams from my grandparents and brothers, but it never clicked in my mind that they were screaming about me. I looked down at the screen and then heard what I’d been waiting to hear my whole life. “The Chicago Cubs pick player ID #1111, John Mincone, left handed pitcher, Suffolk Community College in Brentwood, NY.” My stomach dropped. Almost instantly I received hundreds of text messages and phone calls from my friends, family and former teammates offering me congratulations. I called my mom, my brother and my girlfriend to tell them the news; I was now a Chicago Cub. There was no greater feeling in the world. All the hard work that I had put into the game and all of the hard decisions I had to make had paid off. That night we had my family over, along with some friends and past coaches to celebrate. With all of the commotion the day had brought, I hadn’t had the chance to reflect on what had happened. It all hit me when I finally got into my room that night and was able to collect my thoughts. The entire process was exhilarating, stressful, mentally draining and exhausting, but I would do it again a million times over just to be able to have that draft day feeling again. 

Can you take us through the journey that got you to the minors? Let’s start with Little League.

I played Little League for the Huntington Hurricanes. This team is one of the main reasons I have developed into the player I am today. The team was coached by my father, Joseph Mincone, along with Micah Thode, Mario Del Prete and former NY Mets minor league pitcher Eric Stampfl. They taught me how to love and respect the game of baseball and to never let tough situations bother me when I am on the mound. 

How about high school?

I went to Half Hollow Hills East (Thunderbirds) in Dix Hills, NY and played for head coach Marco Marcelo. I was a Suffolk County All League IV player my sophomore and junior seasons, but not a pitcher, as a first baseman. In May of 2005, my sophomore year, I underwent Tommy John Surgery and wasn’t able to pitch again until the summer after. My senior year the team went 20-3, winning Suffolk County League III for the first time since 1980. That year, I played first base and was the teams’ number one starter on the mound, which was an incredible feeling. On the mound I was 7-0 with a .66 ERA and hit .545 with four homers. I was named to the Suffolk County team in the Vytra Grand Slam Challenge, a game where the top seniors from Suffolk County play against the top seniors from Nassau County. I received the Suffolk County League III MPV and the Paul Gibson Award for the pitcher of the year in Suffolk County. The previous two winners were Glenn Gibson, fourth round pick of the Washington Nationals in 2006 and Michael Belfiore, first round pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2009. I was also lucky enough to be named to the All Long Island team and First Team All-State. In addition to my time on the field, my parents always stressed the importance of education, so I was very proud to receive the NY State Scholar Athlete award for academics my sophomore, junior and senior year. 

Wow, that is incredible! Has it always been baseball, did you play any other sports growing up or in high school?

I always played golf growing up. It was sort of a bonding time between my parents and all my brothers. It represented a time we could go out for a few hours, relax and have fun with each other. The first two years of high school I played golf on the team, but I decided that I needed to put all my focus towards baseball. I still play golf every chance I get with my 17 year old brother, Stephen. We both get really competitive out on the course, but year after year I seem to be losing ground, or he is getting really good! 

So what about the summer, where did you play ball?

I played for the Long Island Titans throughout high school during the summer. Every Titans team I have played for was made up of some of the best players I’ve ever played with. Kids traveled from all over the Northeast to play with us. My coaches Paul Carufe and Tom Downey really took their time to get to me and every player on a personal level, it made the experience that much more amazing. 

So high school is done and it is time for college, where did you attend?

College was a long and frustrating road for me. I started off at James Madison University (JMU) in Harrisonburg, VA. My older brother, Matthew, was a senior at JMU my freshman year and even with him there I struggled adapting to life on my own. I had a lot of growing up and maturing to do. A month after the season started, I felt a shooting pain in my left elbow while long-tossing at practice. I hopped into my car and drove back home to see Dr. David Altchek at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan, the same doctor I used for my surgery a few years before. I was told it was the last of the scar tissue breaking down, which was a good thing, but I would have to sit the remainder of the season out. After the season was over, I came back home and played summer ball with the Long Island Titans. I made a decision to transfer out of JMU, and go the Junior College route. I enrolled in St. Petersburg College in Clearwater, FL to start the 2008 school year. Things were going great until one day after a workout I was throwing a football around with some kids on the team and my foot got caught in a hole in the ground. I tore ligaments in my ankle and was put in a hard cast for three months. I decided it was best if I finished out the year at home, so I transferred back home to Suffolk County Community College (Longhorns) to play for Coach Bobby “Skip” Molinaro. Suffolk at this point, had won the Region XV Championships the previous two years and had advanced to the NJCAA College World Series, so I knew if there was a program back home that would give me the best chance for exposure to professional scouts, this was it. As the season went on, I began to get an increasing amount of attention from Major League scouts, and eventually regional and national cross checkers were making their way out to a small, Division III Community College in Brentwood, NY. I know that I would not be playing professional baseball if it were not for the events of the previous 18 months that lead me to Suffolk. Skip spent countless hours talking to scouts and contacting them, letting them know when I was going to pitch next, making sure they were at all my starts. I am so grateful to Skip and the rest of the staff at Suffolk who pushed me and helped me accomplish my dream of becoming a professional baseball player. 

Can you give us your top baseball highlights from high school and college?

I’ve had many high school highlights. I’d have to say that winning our league championship my senior year and winning the Paul Gibson award are up there on the list, but my best memory is from the summer after my junior year. I made the Long Island baseball team going to compete in the Empire State Games, sort of an “Olympics” for the state of New York. Our team won the Gold medal, going undefeated in the process, marking the first time in 13 years that the Long Island team won a Gold medal in baseball. 

As for college, I have two major baseball highlights. When I was at James Madison University my freshman year, we won the Colonial Athletic Association Conference Tournament and continued on to play in the NCAA Regionals at NC State. My best college highlight is definitely winning Region XV while at Suffolk County Community College last season and then playing in the NJCAA College World Series in Tyler, TX.  I was named Region XV player of the year (2009) and was a named to the First Team NJCAA All-American, leading the nation with 107 strikeouts in 62 innings pitched, and an ERA of .98. 

You have been in the Minor League system for a year now; how has your life changed over the past year? Has it been both positive and negative?

Life in the Minors has been great so far. I have made so many good friends and met so many people who have and will further affect my life in so many ways. Over the past year I truly learned the meaning of hard work. After my first three starts of the season, I was put on the DL to rehab some partial fraying of my shoulder of my in the labrum and rotator cuff. During that time I was at the field by 6:00 am every day. I would workout, do my pfp’s, conditioning, and my rehab until game time. Those were some of the longest days of my life (so far), but I would not trade them for anything, I was getting paid to do something I love.  

How would you describe life on the road in the minors? How do you adjust?

Life on the road is definitely an experience all on its own. You take bus trips, sometimes over 10 hours to get to a stadium, and sometimes you are on the road for weeks at a time. Fast food is king while you are on the road. When I am starting, I like to get to the stadium a few hours before the game. I love watching the teams warm up, it really gets me focused on the game and gives me a chance to watch the other team’s hitters take batting practice and I can study their tendencies. About 30 minutes before game time I’ll start to run, stretch, and long-toss. After that, about 15 minutes before the game, I head to the bullpen and start throwing. I will always end my bullpen right before the opposing pitcher throws his first pitch of the game, to give myself a one inning rest period and to acclimate myself to the game. 

Best and worst moments in the minor leagues so far?

I really love everything about the minors. I have had so many great moments already, but the best had to be picking up the win on the 4th of July in front of a packed house at the Texas Rangers’ Spring Training Stadium. It was the first time I had pitched in front of a crowd that size and it was the most fun I have ever had on a field. I can’t really call anything my worst moment. I’m getting paid to do the one thing I love. If I had to choose it would be getting put on the DL. I hate missing starts, but I put my work in and was able to throw in games again for Instructional League games last September. 

What do you miss most about being at home on Long Island?

I miss my family and my girlfriend a lot. I know they all support me in everything I do and I love them all for always supporting me. God has really blessed me with an amazing family. 

You have really had some incredible experiences and accomplishments, who would you say is your biggest influence in baseball?

I truthfully can’t pinpoint. My father has taught me everything I know about the game, but my mechanics and mental makeup are sort of a hybrid from my grandparents, my dad and my little league coaches. I am so fortunate to have great coaches in the past and present, I have been able to take bits and pieces from everyone and develop who I am, what I do and how I do it today. 

John, we can’t thank you enough for talking with us. We wish you the best for the 2010 season. Keep us posted and let us know where we can see you play ball!

“John is a great competitor who was enjoyable to coach, as well as to watch perform on the mound. Pressure is not in John’s vocabulary as he always keeps his poise. The day he was drafted was probably as exciting for me and his baseball family at Suffolk West as it was for him. I’m confident he will succeed in achieving his goal of becoming a major league pitcher.” -Bobby “Skip” Molinaro