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Trots

02-27-2003, 10:06 PM

Then this one from Jim Hawkins of the Oakland Press. It's hard for even cynical, old, player hating writers (not that Hawkins qualifies as one of those), to dislike Pena.

At the ballpark is 'happy time' for Pena

By: JIM HAWKINS , Of The Oakland Press 02/27/2003

February 27, 2003
LAKELAND, Fla. There is unhappiness in left field.

There is uncertainty at third base. There is a crowd in center field and a scramble on the pitcher's mound.

However, at first base, there is nothing but non-stop smiles in the Tigers' camp this spring.

You can call Carlos Pena naive. You can call him gullible or guileless. Just don't call him a typical Tiger. He's not your typical ballplayer, period.

For one thing, Pena speaks three languages: English, Spanish and Italian. There is more to life than the infield fly rule.

"I just like the way Italian sounds," explained Pena, a native of the Dominican Republic and a graduate of Northeastern University in Boston. "I like the Italian culture."

And when was the last time you heard a ballplayer talk about culture?

Pena likes theme parks, roller coasters and the beach. While other players can't wait to get off the practice field and out on the golf course during spring training, the 24-year-old Pena would prefer to frolic at nearby Universal Studio's Islands of Adventure.

Clearly, he is still a kid at heart - a grown-up kid playing a kids' game for pay. And having fun.

Remarkable, in this era of overpaid, pampered, disgruntled prima donnas.

Personable to the point of enthusiastic, Pena is just happy to be here, even though he will earn only slightly more than the $300,000 major league minimum salary this season - about 1/40th of what Bobby Higginson will make.

Pena is one player who definitely does not have to change his attitude to comply with the new regime of Alan Trammell and Kirk Gibson.

He is already happier and more upbeat than just about anyone else in the clubhouse.

"I like people who smile," Trammell said.

Frankly, Pena reminds me a bit of a young Trammell. All he wants to do is play ball.

When Pena met his new manager for the first time in the Comerica Park clubhouse last month, he was almost speechless.

"When I walked up to Mr. Trammell, what could I say?" Pena recounted. "It was a dream.

"I said, 'Hi, my name is Carlos. Nice to meet you.' "

Since last summer, people have wondered if the Tigers got enough in exchange for ace pitcher Jeff Weaver. Initially, anyway, most thought not.

The jury is still out on Franklyn German and Jeremy Bonderman, but in Pena the Tigers have acquired a player who is almost too good to be true.

"People ask me, 'Why do you smile all the time?' " Pena admitted Wednesday. "I don't know why. I don't notice that I'm like that. But I don't waste time feeling sorry for myself.

"Of course, I have my down times. I have a regular life at home and difficulties are part of it. But when I'm at the ballpark I have my happy time.

"I love baseball," he said. "When I'm on the field, it's like I'm playing a game. When I'm here, I always want to look on the positive side. I focus on the good things. That's part of winning. And that's what I always try to do. That keeps you smiling.

"To survive, you have to keep that attitude. I don't take anything for granted. I definitely recognize the opportunity that has been given to me."

And he intends to make the most of it.

Another thing you notice right away about Carlos Pena: He doesn't think small.

"I'm shooting for the stars," he declared, relaxing in the Marchant Stadium clubhouse, while most of his Tiger teammates were rushing out the door. "I want to be a great player.

"I'm not here just to be here. I want to win a championship.

"I take a 'no-limit' attitude," Pena continued. "I don't set any 'win' goals. If you set a goal of winning 50 games, how are you going to get to 100? If you set goals you can be limited by them."

So powerful is Pena's positive thinking he managed to remain almost oblivious to all of the turmoil that enveloped the rest of the team last year. He refused to be tainted or contaminated or caught up in the quagmire that permeated the Tiger clubhouse.

"Either I'm ignorant or I'm living in my own world," he said, with a smile, of course.

The twice-traded Pena simply refuses to dwell on the past. "I only want to focus on the future," he said. "All those bad, negative things that happened last year? I don't even want to address them anymore."

At the end of our interview, I turned to walk away.

"Thank you very much," Pena said.

And he was smiling. He was sincere.

I told you this kid was too good to be true.

(Jim Hawkins is a sports columnist for the Oakland Press. E-mail him at jim.hawkins@oakpress.com.)

©The Oakland Press 2003