He was 6 years old and on a T-ball field the first time his father noticed it, and it ended with one of A.J.'s teammates in tears.
"A.J. was playing third base, warming up between innings and I noticed him bouncing throws to the first baseman," Bruce Cole recalls. "I asked him why he wasn't throwing the ball to his glove and he told me it was because [the first baseman] couldn't catch it. I told him to just throw it, and it was the other guy's job to catch it.
"He threw it the next time and hit him right in the chest, and the kid fell down and started crying. We figured a lot of things out quickly that day."
A dozen years later, Cole is one of the country's top pitching prospects. He has signed to play at Miami next season, but with a fastball that has registered as high as 98 mph, he is projected to be a top-20 pick in the 2010 Major League Baseball draft by several publications, including Baseball America.
The attention, though, does not consume Cole (6 feet 5, 190 pounds).
"I just try not to make other people feel bad about what I can do," said Cole, who played two years above his age level until he was 12. "I just try to stay humble and not really brag about myself. Most people say good stuff about me, but I'm not one to keep it going."
Since last season, each of Cole's biggest high school outings has drawn at least a dozen pro scouts.
Oviedo coach Eric Morgan, who played in the Seattle Mariners' minor-league system, said Cole's demeanor is what strikes him most. Cole's next scheduled start is set for Friday against Seminole.
He is 0-0 in two starts this season, allowing four runs — none earned — in 10.3 innings. He has struck out 15 and walked one. He was 6-1 with a 1.45 ERA and 70 strikeouts in 48.3 innings last season.
"For the amount of attention he gets, he's got such an even keel about everything,'' Morgan said. "Never once since I've been coaching here has he mentioned the draft or anything about scouts or anything outside of helping this team.''
Perfect Game has Cole ranked as the No. 2 high school prospect in the country for 2010.
"He's as advertised as much as any high school pitcher can be," Perfect Game national scouting director David Rawnsley said. "We've seen him a ton the past few years, and to be that highly ranked and throwing that hard usually translate into a top-10 or -15 pick in the draft.
Rawnsley said the most intriguing thing about Cole is that he's "not physically mature yet," likening his current size to where Detroit Tigers' 6-5, 225-pound starter Justin Verlander was coming out of high school.
Cole has worked with individual pitching instructors since he turned 10 years old and found his stride playing at the AAU level. He currently plays with the Orlando Scorpions travel team and coach Sal Lombardo, who runs the Next Level Baseball facility in Altamonte Springs.
Lombardo said Cole's skills are reminiscent of former Apopka standout and Kansas City Royals pitcher Zack Greinke, the reigning American League Cy Young winner.
"I don't think [Cole] knew how good he could be when he first started," Lombardo said. "His work ethic has taken over. If you don't know him, he comes off a little introspective. But that's a good trait for a pitcher especially and he just goes to work."
"For a guy to come out here when there's 30 or 40 scouts watching and videotaping everything he does and for him to be able to focus in situations like that show he's going to be able to make it," Lions pitcher Adam Maxon said.
Said Cole: "I just want a successful last year of pitching. I want to play together with all these kids that I probably won't see for a while. I've been playing with them my whole life, and I want to leave on a good note." |
