The night before he left to play for the Harwich (Conn.) Mariners in the Cape Cod Baseball League, Zak Blair had said all he was looking for was a chance to show what he could do.
Six weeks later, Blair, the son of David and Carole Blair, will be starting at second base in the CCBL All-Star Game as a representative of the Yarmouth-Dennis (Mass.) Red Sox.
“When I left, like we talked about before, I just wanted to play hard every day, give 110 percent and work hard off the field to achieve what I wanted to on the field,” the Jefferson graduate said. “That hard work has paid off and I’m fortunate enough to be starting in the all-star game.
“I didn’t come up here saying I wanted to make the all-star team. I was just going to take every opportunity day by day, game by game and pitch by pitch and try and win every situation I was in and win as a team. With that mindset, I was fortunate enough to make the all-star team.”
Player introductions will begin at 5:45 p.m. Saturday at Whitehouse Field in Harwich. The national anthem will be at 5:55 and the first pitch of the 50th CCBL All-Star Game will be at 6:05.
“It’s the best league in the country,” Blair said. “To be selected for the all-star team and start the all-star game with the best players in the country is surreal.
“I will take it in. Hopefully I will be in the majors with these guys some day. I’m so blessed to be selected.”
When Blair first arrived in the league, he was to be a temporary player for the Mariners. He has started every game this season for the Red Sox.
“I was with Harwich and we had a scrimmage with Yarmouth-Dennis,” Blair said. “The Harwich coach only wanted big-name Division I players like the guys from Stanford and LSU. He told me I had a better opportunity with Yarmouth-Dennis. The Yarmouth-Dennis coach wanted me with him. I’ve started every game and I haven’t had even one day off and that’s perfectly fine by me.
“When I came up here, I wanted to be one of the hardest workers ever to play in this league. I think the coaches realized I was working hard and on Opening Day I was starting at shortstop. My whole life, I’ve had to prove myself. This was just another step in the right direction. It’s another step I had to take to get to the next level.”
Before he left, Blair had talked about wanting to play against the best possible competition. He has not been disappointed in that while in South Yarmouth.
“It’s even better (than I thought it would be),” he said. “It’s everything that I wanted to play against. It’s the best competition in the country. I’m facing the best pitchers in the nation. I don’t think I’ve seen any pitcher throw under 92 and I don’t think I’ve seen a pitcher with bad off-speed pitches.
“This is a chance to see how I stand up against the best competition.”
Blair has earned every second of his playing time. He is second in the league in batting average at .368 (43-for-117). He also has scored 23 runs, driven in 15, doubled three times, tripled once, gone deep twice and stolen six bases.
“The way the season’s been going for me, I didn’t know (I was going to be an all-star),” Blair said. “But I’ve been playing pretty well. I didn’t know what to expect as far as the all-star selections. I just heard I was starting a few days ago. I don’t know that I was surprised.”
In starting every game for the Red Sox, Blair has played a number of positions.
“I’ve played everywhere,” he said. “I’ve played second base, shortstop, right field, center field and left field. Wherever the team’s needed me, I’ve played. I’m hitting really well so they have to find a spot for me in the lineup.”
During one three-game stretch, Blair was 10-for-14 (.714). On July 15 at Wareham, he was 3-for-5 with a double. The next night at Harwich, he was 4-for-4 and scored three runs. On July 19 at home against Brewster, he was once again 3-for-5.
“That’s baseball,” Blair said. “Every baseball player goes through stretches where he’s hitting line drives but they’re right at somebody and he’s got nothing to show for it. During those (three) games, I was still hitting the ball hard, but I was hitting it where they weren’t. I was seeing the ball well.”
Blair has a pretty good understanding of why he is playing so well.
“It’s the confidence factor,” he said. “I go up to the plate and I really believe in myself each at-bat. I know I can succeed against the best players in the country. It’s a focus factor. I have been locked in.
“Even on the days when I’m 0-for-3 or 1-for-4, I’m still having good at-bats, hitting the ball hard and making loud outs. I’m just trying to be a tough out and trying to help my team in any way possible.”
Blair’s parents haven’t been able to make the trip up to see him play, but he has had some family visit.
“(My parents) haven’t been able to come up,” he said. “But they have webcams at the fields and they can watch over the Internet. My dad’s loving it. He wants to be up here. My grandparents, Ed and Carole Navozny, and my aunt and uncle, Jerome and Bobbi Sheehan, were just here. It’s always good to see some family when you’re far from home.”
Blair has also developed a good relationship with John and Julie Santoni and their kids, Connor, 12, and Emma, 9. The Santonis are serving as Blair’s host family.
“They’re a great family,” Blair said. “I couldn’t ask for a better family to be with. They’ve made my transition very, very easy. They’re great kids. They definitely look up to me like a big brother. They come to my games and I’ve been to a few of Connor’s Little League games.
“We’ve definitely been like a real family.”
Blair has not lost sight of the reason he is playing in the CCBL. The league was but a step on his ladder to the majors.
“I was a temporary player, I was signed to play full-time and now I’m starting in the all-star game,” Blair said. “I am working as hard as I can to turn as many heads as possible. I want to make somebody give me a chance at the next level. I want an opportunity just like I had here.”
Ettinger is a freelance writer from Ashtabula.
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