Published: July 18, 2008 10:32 pm            

Gamboa comfortable in black and orange

BLUEFIELD — Black and orange appeals to Eddie Gamboa.

As a member of the Merced High School Bears in California and the Eau Claire Express of the Northwoods League in Wisconsin, Gamboa wore a uniform with those colors.

As a member of the Bluefield Orioles, nothing has changed.

“My coach was like ‘You can’t get rid of the black and orange anywhere’ so it’s working out great,” said Gamboa, a right-handed pitcher with the Orioles.

At 23, the 6-foot-2, 195-pound Gamboa is one of the veterans on a squad whose oldest player is 24 (Josh Faiola) and youngest is 20.

“I’m a little old so I hope to progress (quickly), but it’s all about proving yourself, showing that you can get it done and you belong here,” Gamboa said. “If you can do that, you’ll be given another opportunity to play at another level.”

While Gamboa has posted a 1-2 record with a 2.63 ERA in five starts for the Orioles, Gamboa isn’t all that pleased. That despite striking out 15 and walking just five in 27 1/3 innings.

In July, Gamboa has been impressive, posting a 1-1 mark, while allowing just three runs in 17 frames.

“I’m not really happy, I’ve still got a lot of things I’ve got to work on such as mechanics and situational pitching, but that comes with innings,” said Gamboa, who earned his first win Wednesday, helping to snap Pulaski’s 11-game win streak. “We’re about a third of the way in and we’re learning as we go.

“It’s day by day so it’s not too bad, but I’m not too happy with it right now.”

Much like the rest of the Orioles, Gamboa is living a dream, and he’s glad to be doing it in Bluefield. He especially likes the enthusiasm shown by some Orioles’ fan, including long-time vocal supporter Henry Belcher.

“I like it, it’s a good atmosphere, and the fans that come are very supportive,” said Gamboa, who turns 24 on Dec. 21. “We’ve got ‘Double Out’ (Belcher) so it makes it fun. It’s just exciting to come and be here.

“It’s a dream come true for all of us here so we get to share our own experiences, and we have a good time.”

Gamboa has benefited from the knowledge of Bluefield pitching coach Troy Mattes, who manages to find time each day for each of the 18 or so hurlers on the Orioles’ roster.

“Troy is doing a great job working all of us individually,” Gamboa said. “There are so many pitchers here and for him to be able to work with all of us, it is almost amazing for him to have the patience he has with us so it’s working out great.”

Some folks never know what they want to do with their lives. That wasn’t a problem for the Sacramento, Calif., native, who was 27-9 as a high school pitcher at Merced.

“Ever since the age of a 5-year-old or even 4-years-old, this is always what I’ve wanted to do,” Gamboa said. “I grew up around baseball so I feel like I should be here and I’m trying to do the best that I can.”

Over the years, Gamboa has played a pair of positions, and could hit, as shown by averages of .367 and .340 in his final two seasons at Merced. However, Gamboa knew pitching what his future.

“I was a shortstop and a pitcher, but I wasn’t too good at shortstop so my next thing was a pitcher,” said Gamboa, who was 4-1 with a 1.74 ERA with the Express in the Northwoods League last summer. “That is something that has gone well for me. I enjoy it. I look forward to getting better every day and competing.”

Gamboa played four seasons at UC-Davis, a Big West Conference school that reached the NCAA Division I tournament in the spring. Gamboa, who was 7-3 with a 2.61 ERA and 66 strikeouts as a senior for the Aggies, tossed a four-hitter in a regional upset of eventual region winner Stanford.

Unlike most of his teammates, Gamboa was able to complete his degree in Communications and Spanish at UC-Davis, and then held out hope for a professional career.

“It kind of worked out for me,” said Gamboa, who was a 4-1 as a junior at UC Davis, including a win in his only start against Washington State. “A lot of guys leave their education and kind of leave and come and play, but I was fortunate to finish and still come out and play.”

A 21st round draft choice in June by the Orioles, Gamboa was thrilled when it happened.

“I was very excited. You’re looking at the screen watching for your name to pop up,” said Gamboa, who missed his sophomore season at UC-Davis with an injury.

“For my name to finally pop up midway through, I was really happy to be part of the Orioles organization so I’m very excited.”

While Gamboa was confident that his opportunity would come, he was still a little nervous as the draft progressed.

“Going into it I wasn’t sure. Being a senior it’s more difficult to prove yourself so I was a little nervous,” Gamboa said. “I felt really good about the year and we had a lot of success as a team and I felt I was going to be given an opportunity and fortunately it worked out.

“I’m here in Bluefield and I’m enjoying it as much as I can.”

Even though Gamboa grew up in California, his favorite team came from this part of the country thanks to the power of television.

“I grew up following the Braves because of TBS,” he said. “TBS was nationwide and they were always on TV.”

Since arriving in Bluefield, Gamboa has found plenty of support from the local community. His host family has been very helpful to Gamboa and fellow teammate Jason Rook.

“We’re having a great time out here, I’ve got a great host family that takes care of me and (Jason) Rook,” Gamboa said. “She is definitely helping us out in the best way possible.”

“Patricia has done a great job, taking us out to dinner, snacks for the road. For us guys that don’t have cars and can’t get around that helps out tremendously.”

Life as a professional baseball player suits Gamboa just fine.

“We’re just trying to enjoy it,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll be here for as long as we can and be an Oriole.”

—Contact Brian Woodson

at bwoodson@bdtonline.com

        

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