Burt Struggling in Somerset
by Mike Ashmore
July 20, 2006

Not even a Spring Training home run off a future Hall of Famer was enough to save Jim Burt, Jr.'s job with the New York Mets. A few days after taking Pedro Martinez deep in a simulated game, the Mets couldn't find a spot for him and released him.

"It was him and Tom Glavine throwing," Burt said. "They were both rehabbing. I got four at-bats off of Glavine and only one off of Pedro. He left me a fastball, and I got into it. It was a pretty neat experience."

Looking for a second chance, Burt attended the Somerset Patriots open tryouts in April and was one of two players invited to Spring Training with the team in Lakeland, Fla.

With most players calling the level of play in the Atlantic League between Double-A and Triple-A, Patriots manager Sparky Lyle has used Burt, who's never played any higher than Single-A, a lot more than he was expecting to when he was first signed.

"He's a very raw player," Lyle said. "He's only been to A-Ball, this is kind of above his head a little bit. We had a conversation, and I told him I thought he was overmatched here, but he didn't think so."

Out of the Patriots first 64 games, Burt has appeared in 50 of them, and is now serving as the team's regular first baseman after some time in the outfield. Lyle did praise his defensive skills at the position, something Burt certainly doesn't disagree with.

"Defense has never been a problem," Burt said of his ability to play multiple positions.

"I know I can play anywhere. I think my versatility is what got me on this team, but putting some numbers together with my bat is what's going to get me out of this league."

Right now, Burt and his bat are struggling, with the 25-year-old hitting .228 with two home runs and 14 RBI in his first 162 at-bats.

But Burt does know what it takes to be a champion, winning the College World Series in his freshman season with the Miami Hurricanes in 2001. The son of the New York Giants defensive lineman of the same name, he was accepted into both Harvard and Princeton and would have played football at both, but he instead chose to follow in his father's footsteps in a different way by going to Miami and winning a championship.

"That was one the only of one the four years where I didn't start," Burt said. "I played in every game as a replacement in the outfield, so I was a part of the team. But after you win that first one, you want another."

Playing for the only three-time champions in Atlantic League history, Burt's got his best chance yet to get that elusive next ring.

Patriots Notes: Pitcher Dave Elder, who played for the Patriots in 2004 and 2005, signed with the team and arrived in Somerset on Wednesday. Elder was released by the Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, and was 1-0 with one save and a 2.84 ERA at the time of his departure. He takes the roster spot of pitcher Billy Sylvester, who left the team for Taiwan. Somerset also released pitcher Justin Wechsler.

Around the Atlantic League: Four games into his stay with the Bridgeport Bluefish, the Mets signed infielder Edgardo Alfonzo. Alfonzo, who spent eight big league seasons with the Mets from 1995 to 2002, played in the first game of the Bluefish's three-game series in Somerset and went 0-for-2 with an RBI in the July 14th contest.

Patriots Trivia: Which two Somerset Patriots played for Team Canada in the 2006 World Baseball Classic?

A randomly selected winner out of all the correct answers received will win the just released 2006 Somerset Patriots card set, featuring 30 cards of all your favorites from this year's team. E-mail the answer to mashmore@mikeashmore.com with the subject "Patriots Contest" for your chance to win.

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