For Tommy Pham, it was now or never as 2017 approached.
In the early stages of 2016, he was telling the media about hybrid contact lenses for his eyes and noting how a vegetarian diet was going to keep him on the field. All hail, the power of kale!
Then, Pham got hurt on opening day, and couldn't solidify a spot on Mike Matheny's roster later in the season as the St. Louis Cardinals battled for a playoff spot. Pham entered this spring fighting fellow journeyman outfielder Jose Martinez for the final spot on the roster. He lost that battle with a paltry spring, hitting just .200.
The good thing about baseball is that comebacks are opportunistic weeds that grow like the grass in your backyard throughout the hot summer months of a season. When Randal Grichuk started to slump and Martinez got hurt, Pham had a shot to shine one last time. After three false starts, Pham's career is taking off this season, and it couldn't come at a better time for the Cardinals, who are wallowing in fourth place in their division.
Pham's robust start has given the team a new energy on the field, and a renewed table of interest into the quiet yet potent vocal 29 year old baseball player.
In 31 less games than he played in last season, Pham has surpassed the 159 at bats he accumulated in 2016's campaign, but the production has hit a new level. The nine home runs and .479 slugging percentage are nice touches, but don't sleep on the eight stolen bases and .366 on base percentage. Unlike sophomore slumping Birds like Aledmys Diaz and Stephen Piscotty, Pham's value is enduring as June welts into July.
The best part about Pham's resurgence: no one saw this coming, but himself. He got his contacts corrected earlier this year, and that has improved his range in the outfield, allowing him to play all three fields for the Cardinals. Coming out of spring, you had to use bubble wrap to imagine a world where Pham played more than a month straight without getting hurt. For the first time in his MLB career, Pham's body is getting out of the way, and allowing him to flourish.
Where would the Cards be in June without Pham? Last place, placing price tags on more players than necessary, and dreading the next game. He doesn't just win you a game with his bat; Pham can take the extra base, kidnap doubles in the field, and slug a home run to put some distance in a box score. He can do it all. It only took eleven professional seasons.
For all the hoopla that Martinez's story got in April (he is acquitting himself well as a bench bat at the moment), Pham's past isn't draped in precious colors and warm Hallmark moments. His father spent time in prison when Pham was a kid, and you can sense the chip on his shoulder whenever he is answering questions. Since he experienced the harsher side of life without the presence of a father growing up, Pham always seems to carry that raw edge onto the field. Some people use misfortune as a means to block their career path; Pham uses his tumultuous past as fuel, and it's finally showing up in the stat column.
Will it last? That's a wicked smart gambler's best guess, and not one I am going to make. Pham is playing the best baseball of his career, and in the game of sports, predicting the future isn't a practical matter. You can project and cover up, or just sit back and enjoy the rosy rewards of a guy who has battled for every at bat.
Unlike Randal Grichuk, Pham wasn't handed a spot in the Major Leagues. He wasn't drafted high, given endless opportunities, and nurtured in special assignments to Palm Beach. He was shuffled back and forth between minor league affiliates and the big league club for years. Pham had to fight his way back, and if there is one person who should start every day, it's Thomas Pham.
After all, Pham was born in Las Vegas, so he knows the odds of a late blooming baseball player sustaining a season long performance. That's why he's never satisfied. Pham blasted two home runs and threw two runners out at home plate in a game last week, becoming the 14th player in league history to do so. After the game, all he wanted to discuss were his strikeouts. He wasn't satisfied. The thirst in Pham is never quenched, and that's only good news for the Cardinals.
On a team of so called team players and lots of mercenary type personalities, Pham's rugged identity burns bright. For the sake of enjoying this dreary season and good baseball, let's hope he keeps riding that light.
With Pham and the Cardinals, better late than never.
