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Playing in major-league ballparks is nothing new for Mike Koplove. Neither is playing at Veterans Stadium.
However, pitching at the Vet as a big-league player remained an unattained goal for the Packer Park native — until last Tuesday night.
Fate brought the stadium and the player together just in time: It’s the Vet’s final year and the first season that 26-year-old Koplove appeared on the Arizona Diamondbacks’ opening-day roster.
The relief pitcher came in with one out in the eighth inning, and picked up his first win of the season against the Phillies.
"It was perfect timing to get here at least once before they tear it down," Koplove said of the stadium while sitting in the visitors’ dugout before last Thursday’s game. "You can’t beat that, to pretty much get a win in your home stadium. It was a pretty amazing experience for me."
Each of Arizona’s three games featured 100-plus Koplove fans scattered throughout the Vet, many easily detectable by their number 58 jerseys and other Diamondbacks apparel. On Wednesday night, section 348 was decorated with a "Koplove Krew" banner, painted in official Diamondbacks colors — purple and black. Family members, friends and neighbors all treated the piece of cloth like a guest book, signing their names when they passed by.
The outfield seats were filled with Chestnut Hill Academy students, alumni and faculty members, supporting their now-famous grad with their own "We Love Mike Koplove" sign.
Koplove was equally excited about coming home, but had a severe case of rookie jitters at the thought of pitching at the Vet.
"I was telling my friends and family that this is the most nervous I’ve been for a game in my entire career," he said, "even more so than my debut in San Francisco a couple years ago."
On Tuesday, the right-hander quickly cured his nerves by getting Mike Lieberthal to ground out and striking out Pat Burrell. The Diamondbacks helped the reliever in the ninth by plating five runs.
On Wednesday, the whole Arizona bullpen got the night off, thanks to Curt Schilling’s 14-strikeout, 2-0 shutout. As a longtime Phillies fan, Koplove was very familiar with the former Phils’ pitcher’s dominating performances.
Now, "it’s just a privilege to get to watch him pitch every five days," he said.
Koplove returned to action last Thursday afternoon, with the score tied at 4. This time, the Phillies had runners at first and second with two outs. David Bell doubled to left to give the Phillies a 5-4 lead, and the home team added another run on a bases-loaded walk. Since Koplove inherited the two runners, he wasn’t charged with the loss.
The trip to Philadelphia also gave the player a chance to have dinner with his family and teammates and watch his 9-year-old brother, Kenny Koplove, play in his baseball games. The lucky little leaguer was thrilled to meet his brother’s teammates, including Schilling, who signed a ball for him. But once Schilling handed the ball to Kenny, the youngster turned it over, added his own signature, and gave it back to the all-star pitcher, eliciting a chuckle from the Koplove clan.
"Maybe in 15 years, when he is in the big leagues, it’ll be worth a lot more," Mike said.
For now, having one Koplove in the major leagues is keeping the family busy enough. They have traveled to Cleveland, San Francisco, St. Louis, New York, Boston and Arizona to see Mike play. His father, Steve Koplove — one of several family members who made the trip out to San Francisco for Mike’s September 2001 debut — said it’s still hard to believe his son is playing in the majors.
"He has been professional for two-and-a-half years now, and I don’t think it has sunk in yet," Steve said. "I don’t think I understand it yet, how he got there."
After all, the pitcher wasn’t selected until the 29th round in the 1998 June free-agent draft. But the athlete, also known as "Kop," made the most of his opportunities, which included appearing in 55 games last season and recording a 6-1 mark with a 3.36 ERA over 61.2 innings. Koplove, who serves as the setup man for closer Matt Mantei, is hoping to maintain that performance this season.
"I got a lot of confidence from last year," he said. "My goal this year is just to pitch the way I did last year and stay as consistent as I did throughout the whole year. Just take it one outing at a time.
"I haven’t really done too much different, but the success has been there so far."
Including Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Koplove has pitched 27 innings, compiling a 1-0 record with a 2.33 ERA. Add 21 strikeouts and nine walks, and his game is right on target.
Koplove could make another Veterans Stadium farewell tour if the Diamondbacks and Phillies both make the playoffs. It’s way too soon for either team to start making postseason plans.
But Koplove is anxious to come back next year once the Phillies move into their new digs at the north end of the parking lot.
"I am definitely anxious to see it," he said of the ballpark-in-progress. "These fans deserve it. I am sure it’s going to be beautiful."
