He grew up around baseball, and loved playing the game. But at some point during his time in college, Jason Maxey began to question his love for the game.
Now serving as a bullpen catcher with the Bowie Baysox, Maxey appears to have found his passion again. While on the inactive list, he is working hard to bounce back from a shoulder injury that put a damper on his pro dreams.
“He?s got a tough job, and now he can?t play,” said Bowie manger Don Werner, whose team is an Oriole affiliate in the Double-A Eastern League. “Somebody who?s just signed into pro ball, they?re thinking of playing.”
Instead, Maxey catches pitchers during pre-game workouts and throughout the game.
“He?s not getting discouraged. He?s still working,” Werner said, noting that Maxey has asked to work on his defense. “You can?t say enough about him.”
Maxey, 23, began his collegiate career with the University of Maryland. But while with the Terps, the left-handed hitter stopped having fun.
“It just wasn?t a good situation. I feel like that is one of the reasons my shoulder is messed up,” Maxey said, while in the Bowie bullpen before Sunday afternoon?s game.
According to Maxey, the staff at Maryland advised him to keep throwing and that the pain in his shoulder would eventually subside. Maxey said throwing simply damaged his shoulder more.
Maryland head coach Terry Rupp could not be reached for comment.
“I wasn?t having any fun,” Maxey said. “I was at a point where I was like, if this is how baseball is going to be, then I really don?t want to play anymore.”
A year later, Maxey joined a loose Towson bunch and rediscovered his passion for baseball.
“More importantly it got my love for the game back,” Maxey said of the decision to transfer. “At Maryland, I didn?t like going to the ballfield. It was just miserable. I went there (Towson) and got the love of the game back, and when you have fun out here that?s when you play your best.”
Maxey blasted 23 home runs, setting a new Towson record.
After a record-setting senior season at Towson, Maxey seemed primed for a future in professional baseball.
But after being un-drafted, Maxey inked a deal with the Orioles.
Last summer, he was used primarily as a pinch-hitter and reserve catcher with the Aberdeen IronBirds, a short-season Single-A affiliate of the Orioles.
Now, Maxey is making the most of his opportunities in the Bowie bullpen.
“We have a good time down here, laughing and joking around. It?s also a good place to watch a game to learn,” Maxey said, noting that his seat down the right field line offers him a completely different vantage point of the game.
“I?d like to stay here and play,” Maxey said. “It would be ideal playing in Double-A, even if it?s sparingly, just to get at-bats and experience. If I can play anywhere, that?d be a good deal for me.”
