Announcing...Minor League Mondays! Starting With An Interview With Brooklyn Outfielder Darrell Ceciliani

How have you liked Brooklyn this year, on and off the field? 

I love it.  It’s been a great experience for me…and a totally new one.  There are more fans in the stands every night than live in my hometown, so that’s pretty exciting.

What is the biggest difference between playing in Brooklyn and Kingsport?

The fans.  Instead of a couple of hundred fans, there are 6-8,000 every night.  Plus, the competition is better, and it’s just a great overall baseball environment.

Obviously you get a lot of comparisons with another Madras, Oregon product, Red Sox OF Jacoby Ellsbury.  Do you know Jacoby personally?  And do you mind the comparisons, I'm sure you've been in his shadow to some degree since high school...

The Ellsburys are good family friends.  I played ball with his younger brothers growing up.  Jacoby’s a great guy to be compared to.  He’s an awesome player, and he’s in the big leagues.  That’s what I’m striving for, so I’ll take that comparison any day.

Can you describe draft day for us?  How did you hear you'd been selected by the Mets, what were you up to, immediate reaction, that kind of stuff.

I was actually in class, taking a final, and I got a call from my head coach.  As soon as I was done with the test , I got the voice mail and went straight to his office, where he told me the good news!

What do you feel are your strengths and your weaknesses as a baseball player?

I pride myself on my defense, and whether I’m hitting or not, I know I can affect a game that way.  I definitely try to use my speed to my advantage, both defensively and offensively.  I want to force the issue with the other team, and make them react to me…not the other way around.

Can you describe what baseball was like for you back as a kid in Oregon?

Just a lot of fun.  I worked on my family’s ranch, so I didn’t really play on travel teams or anything like that.  Baseball was a way for me to have fun and hang out with my fiends.  It wasn’t until my junior or senior year (of high school) that I started to feel like it was something I could be successful at, and then I started to get pretty serious and competitive.

Who was your favorite professional player growing up and why?

Ken Griffey Jr.  He could do it all, and he was a gamer.  I just loved everything about the way he played.

Back to growing up on a cattle farm; for those of us who live in the greater NYC area and have barely even seen cattle, what was that like?  I happen to be the proud owner of a crazy herding dog so I know that had to be fun...

I loved it.  I’m an outdoors guy all the way.  I never wanted to be behind a desk or a counter, so working on the ranch was perfect for me.  I think it also helped with my mental toughness, and taught me responsibility and work ethic.  If my dad went away for a couple of days, I was in charge of the ranch, and that can be a lot of work.