6 Chapter 5 On His Own

Chapter 5 On His Own Now Derek had a contract with the Yankees. Did that mean he'd be putting on pinstripes and playing in Yankee Stadium? No! That was the major leagues. Like all the other new players, Derek would have to prove himself in the minors first, with teams owned by the Yankees organization. By now, Derek was two weeks late for Rookie League play in Tampa, Florida. So he had to get ready quickly. He felt terrible saying good-bye to Sharlee. She'd be starting high school soon. Leaving his family was just about the hardest part of playing baseball. Derek boarded the plane to Florida "with a lump the size of a golf ball in my throat."

德里克和洋基队签了一份合同。 这是否意味着他会穿上细条纹球衣，在洋基体育场打球? 不!那是大联盟。 像所有其他新球员一样，德里克必须首先在洋基队拥有的球队中证明自己。 到目前为止，德里克已经晚了两周参加佛罗里达州坦帕市的新秀联赛。 所以他必须尽快做好准备。 跟莎莉告别，他觉得很难过。 她很快就要上高中了。 离开家人是打棒球最难的部分。 德里克登上飞往佛罗里达的飞机时，“喉咙里有个高尔夫球那么大的肿块”。

THE MINORS MINOR LEAGUE (OR "FARM") TEAMS FIRST FORMED THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL LEAGUES IN 1901 AND PLAYED ORGANIZED GAMES. EVENTUALLY, THESE LOW-LEVEL TEAMS JOINED MAJOR LEAGUE TEAMS TO "FEED" PLAYERS INTO THEIR HIGH-LEVEL CLUBS. ALSO CALLED PLAYER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS, MINOR LEAGUE TEAMS TRAIN ATHLETES FOR THE MAJORS. AS PLAYERS IMPROVE, THEY MOVE UP TO THE NEXT LEVEL, USUALLY IN THIS ORDER: ROOKIE LEAGUE CLASS A CLASS AA, OR DOUBLE A CLASS AAA, OR TRIPLE A AND FINALLY, THE MAJORS!

1901年，小联盟(或“农场”)球队首先组成了全国职业棒球联盟协会，并进行有组织的比赛。 最终，这些低水平的球队加入了大联盟的球队，将球员“送入”他们的高水平俱乐部。 也被称为球员发展计划，小联盟球队为大联盟训练运动员。 随着球员的进步，他们会进入下一个级别，通常是这样的顺序:新秀联赛a级aa级，或双a级aaa级，或aaa级，最后是大联盟!

In Tampa, everyone already had a roommate. Derek felt like an outsider. Derek was alone in a strange city, barely eighteen. It was hard getting used to everything—even baseball. Derek went 0 for 7 in his first game. After a week, he still hadn't had a hit. For the first time, Derek wondered if he'd be good enough to make it. He called home throughout the day and sometimes in the middle of the night. Almost always, he was in tears. His parents were so worried, they flew to see him twice in six weeks. Derek felt lost. But he didn't show it. He kept calm on the field and with his teammates. Slowly, he made progress. In the fall, he went to the University of Michigan. Then in the spring of 1993, it was

在坦帕，每个人都已经有室友了。 德里克觉得自己像个局外人。 德里克独自一人在一个陌生的城市，年仅18岁。 一切都很难适应——甚至棒球也不例外。 德里克第一场比赛7投0中。 一个星期过去了，他仍然没有成功。 德里克第一次怀疑自己是否足够优秀。 他整天都在给家里打电话，有时甚至在半夜。 他几乎总是泪流满面。 他的父母非常担心，他们在六周内飞去看了他两次。 德里克感到不知所措。但他没有表现出来。 他在场上和队友之间都保持冷静。 慢慢地，他取得了进步。秋天，他去了密歇根大学。 然后在1993年的春天，它是

back to baseball for his first full season as a pro. Derek was heading to Class A in the minor leagues. One more step on the way to the majors.

作为职业球员，他第一个完整的赛季回到了棒球场上。 德里克要去小联盟的A班了。 在通往大联盟的路上又多了一步。