Once upon a spring day in 1975, NYIT freshman Don Cooper pitched a complete game to defeat an Adelphi University team of older, more experienced players. It was a victory he will remember for the rest of his life—a moment, he says, when “I knew I was going to play pro ball.”

Thirty years later, Don, now the Chicago White Sox pitching coach, celebrated with his players when they ended an 88-year drought to become the 2005 World Series champions. “I fulfilled my childhood dreams,” he recalls. The next year, the NYIT grad was welcomed back to his alma mater and given an honorary doctorate degree at the university’s 45th annual commencement.

Those lucky enough to have experienced the thrill of staring down a 90-mile per hour fastball will tell you that what you see across nine innings is not all there is in the life of a professional baseball player. But along with the intense pressure, physical training, and mental discipline needed to succeed comes the incredible sense of self-accomplishment and admiration among fans worldwide.

Allen Watson and Ray Giannelli (B.S. ’96) join Don as NYIT alumni who have lived and breathed the world of Major League Baseball. As a pitcher for several baseball teams, including the New York Yankees and the New York Mets, Allen has enjoyed his share of memorable moments, including three appearances in the 1999 American League Championship Series.

“It was an incredible time,” says Allen, owner of the sports bar Triple Play, in Queens, N.Y. As a pitcher on the Yanks, he recalls, “Every time we went out there, we thought we were going to win. We didn’t think anyone could beat us.”

Ray’s baseball career spans 10 years across several teams, though he actually rejected his first offer to join the big leagues. “During my junior year [at NYIT], I was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles but did not sign,” he says. “I instead chose to finish my degree.” It was a gutsy move, but one that paid off.

After earning his bachelor’s degree in marketing, Ray signed with the Toronto Blue Jays and posted big numbers in the minor leagues, including a tremendous 1989 season in which he hit .301 with 18 home runs and 85 RBIs for the Myrtle Beach Blue Jays. In that same year, he was ranked in the top five of every offensive category for third basemen in the South Atlantic league.

Ray recalls the moment he got called up to the majors in 1991. “At first, I thought they were talking about a promotional game,” he says. “ ‘Nope,’ they said, ‘Pack your bags.’ ”

He made his major league debut on May 4 and lined a single in his first at-bat against the Kansas City Royals. Though he was sent back to the minors later that season, Ray returned to the majors to play alongside Allen on the 1995 St. Louis Cardinals.

Allen, who was drafted in 1991 by the Cards, is quick to note that getting to the majors is not for the timid. “Everyone around the world plays baseball,” he says. “The competition is fierce.” One key to success, according to Allen, lies in the mental focus one brings to the game.

1  |  2  |  Next

Spring 2009 Home