Questions and Answers with D-Backs' Ohlendorf

After spending three years as the ace of the baseball team, senior Ross Ohlendorf was picked in the fourth round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player's Draft last June by the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Ohlendorf decided to sign — forfeiting his final year of Princeton eligibility — and spent the rest of the summer pitching for the Yakima Bears, going 2-3 with a 2.79 ERA.

Back on campus for the fall semester, Ohlendorf recently sat down with 'Prince' senior writer David Baumgarten.

'Prince': Let's start off with a few warm-up tosses . . . favorite baseball movie?

Ross Ohlendorf: "Bull Durham." When I was playing in high school I got compared to Nuke LaLoosh because I didn't have any control.

P: DH or no DH?

RO: DH — I don't want to hit.

P: Favorite team (before Arizona)?

RO: Houston and Texas.

P: Favorite player?

RO: Nolan Ryan or Roger Clemens.

P: Playoff prediction?

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RO: I think the Red Sox will get to the World Series, but I think the NL team will win. I'd like to see the Astros, but I think it will be the Cardinals.

P: OK, you're warmed up — let's move on. Why did you choose Princeton?

RO: The academics were a big thing, and I really liked the campus and Coach Bradley a lot when I visited. I was recruited by some bigger baseball schools — University of Texas and Baylor — but I wanted to leave Texas. I'm definitely glad I did.

P: How did you improve over your Princeton career?

RO: Coming in, I hadn't played all that much baseball. I could throw pretty hard, but I didn't really know how to pitch. I felt like the jump I made freshman year was really big. Having a coach helping me with mechanics helped. I feel like each year my control got better and I started throwing harder consistently.

P: How hard do you throw now?

RO: I used to be low-to-mid 90s, but this summer I was more high 80s. I'm not really sure what happened.

P: What was the highlight of your Princeton career?

RO: Beating Virginia in the [NCAA] Regionals last year. We played really well — we'd never beaten a No. 1 seed before. Definitely a big win, I think they were in the top 10 at one point last year. Just really exciting.

P: When did you start thinking of a pro career as a possibility.

RO: My junior year in high school, we got a new coach — Keith Mooreland, who had been an All-Star with the Cubs. He convinced me that I could play in college and then after. Before that, I had been thinking about playing college basketball.

P: What was your reaction when you got the call during the draft.

RO: I was watching on the internet. I was hoping to go higher, so I was a little disappointed. But I was glad I went to the Diamondbacks because I like the Western part of the country. They also aren't very good, which means the chances of moving up are better.

P: How difficult was the decision to sign?

RO: It wasn't that bad. The last two years, I was pretty sure I would go [after junior year]. When I didn't get drafted as high as I thought I would, I considered coming back and getting drafted next year, because the signing bonuses are significantly higher. But it was a pretty big risk and I felt like I was ready.

P: What did Coach Bradley and your parents think?

RO: He felt like I should sign, that I needed to move on. He'd taught me about all he could, he thought. My mom thought I should listen to Coach Bradley.

P: What was the toughest thing to give up?

RO: Not being here this spring with all my classmates, not being able to play with all my teammates.

P: Princeton has turned into quite a pro-baseball pipeline.

RO: Hopefully it will keep going. I think there are a couple guys on the team that will eventually get drafted. I think a big part of it is that Coach Bradley has stepped up the recruiting, nationally. And once someone like Chris Young ['02] signs [a pro contract], it makes the decision to come here easier.

P: Have you kept in touch with Chris and Tom Pauly '03?

RO: I talked to Chris when I was choosing an agent. I've kept up with Thomas. The summer team I played for, he'd played for the year before [Chatham A's of the Cape Cod League]. He's only a year ahead of me, so we share experiences. He's doing really well, hopefully he'll be up there with Chris pretty soon.

P: How was Yakima?

RO: It was okay. It was the worst stadium in the league and had the lowest attendance. It was pretty dry, but it was neat to get to live out there. I hadn't been to Washington before.

P: Were you happy with your results?

RO: Yeah, especially with a couple starts I had. I hadn't pitched in a while, since the Regionals, so the first couple times I felt pretty uncomfortable. But once I got back into it, I felt pretty good.

P: Do you know where you'll be pitching next year?

RO: You make a team during spring training, but they're hoping I'll be in "high-A" in Lancaster, Calif. Yakima was in a short-season league.

P: Do you have a timeline for getting to the majors?

RO: I don't know. I think I'll have a better idea after pitching a full season this summer. I think at least three years, probably.

P: Is minor league life like "Bull Durham?"

RO: Some kids go out a lot, but some guys would never go out. You get a lot of different lifestyles. But there weren't any older ladies and we didn't have anyone as old as Kevin Costner.

P: Biggest perk?

RO: Getting paid, I guess [laughs].

P: Have you met any of the big-leaguers? I know Coach Bradley is good friends with Randy Johnson from when they played together.

RO: No, but hopefully I'll get to meet him during spring training.

P: What's your plan for finishing up academically?

RO: This spring I'll be in training, so I'll finish up next fall. I'm pretty sure I'm going to walk this year [at graduation]. The Diamondbacks gave me permission.

P: Is it strange being back?

RO: Not really. I definitely have more time on the weekends — I went home for the Texas-OU football game last weekend, which I hadn't been able to do the last three years.

P: Do your friends give you much grief about signing the big contract?

RO: No, I'm kind of surprised, it hasn't come up much.

P: You are apparently still driving for Tiger Foods, though?

RO: It's fun. I don't know, it's so I don't feel bad about spending my signing bonus, I guess.