Long Journey Continues for Local Baseball Player

It has been a long journey for Tommy Winegardner since he left Riverdale Baptist School, a baseball powerhouse in Upper Marlboro. Still, the former baseball star for the Crusaders hopes to continue his success at a new level if he is drafted by a Major League Baseball team in June.

"I hope it happens," said Winegardner, a junior for defending NAIA national champion Cumberland in Tennessee. A shortstop, Winegardner was hitting .356 with six homers and 34 RBIs in games through Sunday. He was one of just three players who had started every game for Cumberland, which was 39-12.

Winegardner said he was recruited by baseball powers Clemson, LSU, South Carolina and Florida coming out of high school. He decided to attend Division I Coastal Carolina because of the strong scholarship offer that he got there.

But after his freshman season in 2009, when he pitched and played second base, Winegardner left and headed to Polk State Junior College. "I was not getting what I was told. I tried to make the best of it," said Winegardner, adding that he was used more as a pitcher at Coastal Carolina that what he expected.

Winegardner, from Calvert County, said he was contacted by the Colorado Rockies last year but turned down the chance. Last fall, he attended the College of Charleston, another Division I school in the NCAA, but said he was just short of qualifying academically to play for them this season.

So this semester he transferred again, this time to Cumberland. He was eligible to play right away since Cumberland is an NAIA school.

Winegardner said he is a spray hitter, meaning that he hits the ball to all parts of the field. Since he was about 7 years old he has worked with former Orioles' minor league player Blake Doyle. Doyle worked for years as an instructor with his brothers based out of Florida.

Winegardner said his uncle heard about the Doyle brothers, and at times, the young hitter would make trips to Florida in the summer while Doyle would head to Maryland to see him play in the spring. Doyle's brothers, Denny and Brian, both played in the big leagues. Denny played with the Phillies, Angels and Red Sox while Brian played with the A's and Yankees and was a key player in the 1978 World Series for New York.

Winegardner is bidding to become just the latest product of the Riverdale Baptist program to play pro ball.

Over the years, the school has had players such as George Baker, Jackie Rexrode and Kenny Nelson make it to the minor league level. Baker played in the minor league system of the Orioles, Rexrode made it to the Double-A level with Arizona and Nelson -- a pitcher -- was a high pick of the Atlanta Braves nearly 10 years ago. Baker played in college at Liberty; Rexrode and Nelson signed out of high school.

Winegardner, who turned 21 in March, hit .495 with 13 homers as a senior at Riverdale Baptist and hit .292 in 26 games at Coastal Carolina in 2009.

Winegardner played four years for head coach Terry Terrill at Riverdale Baptist. "He is laid back and lets you play," Winegardner said of Terrill, who recently won his 900th game at the school.