By Steve Nielsen

Every kid dreams of putting on a big league uniform one day and getting the chance to play in front of thousands of fans. Well for one former Illinois high school prep star, he got that chance.

Jake Odorizzi was a 2008 graduate of Highland where he led his Bulldogs to a State Championship his senior year. Committed to Louisville out of high school, Odorizzi chose to follow his dreams of being a major league pitcher after being selected in the 2008 MLB draft with the 32^nd overall pick by the Milwaukee Brewers. After signing with the Brewers he spent the next 4 years working his way through the trials and tribulations of the minor leagues. As the 2008 Prep Baseball Report Player of the Year, Odorizzi regularly showcased a 90-95 mph fastball that was literally unhittable at the high school level. Now he’s getting the opportunity to show what he can do against the best hitters in the world.

                                            

You only get one chance to make your Major League debut and for Jake Odorizzi that opportunity came on Sunday, September 23^rd.  After being traded to the Kansas City Royals in the Zack Greinke deal, Odorizzi has been getting closer to cracking into the big leagues. Going 15-5 with a 3.03 ERA between AA and AAA this season, Odorizzi got the call on September 16^th. With a week to prepare for his start on September 23^rd, it gave Odorizzi the chance to settle into a routine and a big league uniform. In his first big league start Odorizzi went 5 1/3 innings, surrendering 3 earned runs to the Cleveland Indians. He showed great command of a 91 mph fastball walking only one batter and striking out 3. Although not getting the win in his debut, Odorizzi pitched well enough to deserve plenty of praise from the Kansas City coaching staff. These last few weeks of the regular season should prove to be invaluable experience for Odorizzi; hopefully giving him the upper hand to win a spot in the rotation coming out of spring training in 2013.