The Pittsburgh Pirates had its 129th home opener Monday and won 5-4 against the Detroit Tigers. The game was played in front of a regular season high attendance total of 39,933.
It was a special moment for all in attendance and even more so for five Pirates — Arquimedes Caminero, Jung-ho Kang, Andrew Lambo, Radhames Liz and Rob Scahill — who got to toe the base line and have their names called with the rest of the team’s 25-man roster for the first time.
Caminero has waited nine years for his opportunity to be on an Opening Day roster after first being signed by the then Florida Marlins and Monday, all of his hard work paid off.
“I just dreamed about being on the Opening Day roster of a team and that’s the Pirates and it’s a goal and a dream coming true,” Caminero said.
Caminero was an off-season acquisition from the Pirates in the off-season, and his velocity and control impressed the team enough for his to earn a roster spot.
“When I found out that the Pirates picked me up, I was excited,” said Caminero. “Being with the Pirates is another level to me. I feel great with this team and it’s a pretty good feeling.”
Though Caminero never got a chance to pitch in the home opener, he felt very much a part of the day’s events.
“It was great, especially the fans that came out,” Caminero said. “It was a great crowd, and to do what we did was great. You could not expect anything better with a home opener.”
Jung-ho Kang was an off-season acquisition from Korea and this was the second time he got to be introduced along with his teammates. This time however felt different from Opening Day in Cincinnati.
“It’s a lot more fun and exciting here because of the passionate fans and it’s the home of the Pittsburgh Pirates,” Kang said through translator H.K. Kim.
Kang did get an opportunity as a pinch-hitter in the game and grounded out to second base.
He did note that there were definite differences to his time and experiences playing in Korea.
“Here everybody is friendly, everyone gets along whether you are a veteran or a rookie and that’s a big part,” said Kang. “The food is different and the language is different, and that’s something I’m embracing right now.”
Rob Scahill believes it is his versatility which earned him the 25th and final spot on the Major League roster. Whether he pitches one inning, three innings or makes a spot start, Scahill considers himself ready.
Still, when Scahill was initially optioned to minor league camp, it was hard to fathom that he would break Spring Training with the team just a few days later.
“When I got optioned and didn’t make the team, I was disappointed because I thought I did well enough to deserve an opportunity,” Scahill said. “Some times it doesn’t work out but a couple of days later, I got a nice little meeting and was told I made the team. I knew the situation with Stolmy [Pimentel] and everything so I figured that I was going to spend some time in Triple-A and pitch my way onto the roster. I guess they saw enough things that I could do in Spring Training that they gave me the opportunity.”
Scahill has spent parts of each of the past three seasons with the Colorado Rockies and has the most experience of any of the five to participate in their first Major League home opener. This however does not mean that this was just like any other game. In fact, Scahill had extreme emotions that went in the other direction.
“Just to have the crowd roar when you get called out there and then standing out there when the starting lineup gets announced, and you hear the support these fans give it gave me goose bumps five or six times,” said Scahill. “It’s definitely something I’ll remember for the best of my life.”
