The Alfonzo surname is obviously a prominent one in the New York Mets’ organization. Edgardo Alfonzo logged more than 1,100 hits as a Met en route to being named to their all Amazin’ team at second base. His older brother Edgar spent 17 years as a coach in the organization. And with any luck, another Alfonzo could soon become a more well known name in the minds of Mets fans. Edgar’s son, and Edgardo’s nephew, Giovanny, is currently a 25-year-old infielder for the Mets Single-A affiliate in Columbia, and he was recently kind enough to sit down with me prior to the Fireflies series opener in Lakewood.
Growing up in Port St. Lucie, I imagine you spent a good amount of time at the Mets’ spring training complex?
Oh yeah. We moved to Port St. Lucie when I was in kindergarten, and with my dad coaching for the Mets for 17 years, I was there from kindergarten through when I graduated, really. My family was part of the Mets family, and I grew up at that park.
The Alfonzo name is obviously extremely well known in this organization. Do you feel any added pressure to carry that on?
Yeah, so when I first got to spring training this year I was nervous. There was a lot of pressure, self inflicted pressure, not anything anyone said. All the coaches, all the front office guys, they all know my dad and my uncle. I wanted to show them they didn’t make a mistake by picking me up. Some of the rovers pulled me aside and just said, “hey man relax, have fun, we know you can play. You don’t have to prove yourself so much.” So that helped a little bit going into the season. I felt more relaxed to be myself, but definitely going into spring training, seeing that jersey with Alfonzo on the back, I was nervous.
This might be a stupid question, but I’m assuming you grew up a Mets fan?
Absolutely. Huge Mets fan. Growing up, I would make sure I got all my homework done, my baseball practice done, so I could watch my uncle and the Mets at 7 o’clock every night.
What was it like for your dad, who didn’t make it to the big leagues, to watch your uncle become one of the best players ever to wear a Mets uniform?
So my dad was the one who introduced baseball to my family so to speak. When he first signed in professional ball, he took the role of breadwinner in the family to bring the money back home. So I think that was something he was almost more focused on during his playing career. And then paving the way for my uncle Robert and then my uncle Edgardo to sign and have careers of their own was something he was proud of. One thing my dad took a lot of pride in: we would be at home watching the game and in the third inning, fifth inning, the phone would ring. And my uncle would be calling to ask, “Hey what did you see in that at-bat?” So he was my uncle Edgardo’s personal hitting coach. This was after Bobby Valentine, when Bobby was there my dad was up there in New York with them, kind of as an extra coach. So my dad definitely made sure he watched every at-bat, every single one, and if my uncle didn’t feel right he would always call. I remember this memory the most and it kinda sums up your question. In 2000, when the Mets made it to the World Series, we beat the Cardinals in the NLCS, and when we got down to the clubhouse in the family room they were bringing champagne and partying and my dad hugged my uncle and started crying. I’m getting emotional talking about it but he was just bawling his eyes out and I had never seen my dad cry. Watching him embrace my uncle, you could see he was living vicariously through him making it to the World Series.
What was it like growing up playing baseball with a dad who was a professional coach?
{Laughs} So my dad, what his job was at work was to help minor leaguers like myself make it to the next level. But to do that, he had to critique and make sure anything they did negatively that night was talked about and corrected. So for me, little league, high school it didn’t matter. I could go 3-for-3 but maybe I swung at a bad pitch, or threw to the wrong base. And that was what we talked about the whole way home. Instead of saying great job, 3-for-3, he would say that but then quickly move on to what I did wrong. And you know what, as a kid I took it to heart like he doesn’t like how I play. But as I got older, I understood he was trying to help get me ready for the next level every single step of the way. Especially in Port St. Lucie where everyone knows who the Alfonzos are, coaches, players, parents, etc. were maybe harder on me. But both my dad and my mom especially was very protective about that. If coaches would say, “hey Alfonzo, you should know better,” she would remind them that I’m still 10 and learning the game like their son is.
Your dad now has the Alfonzo baseball academy. Is that something you help out with in the winter?
Yeah, we started that from the ground up last year. Colors, logos, tryouts, building rosters, everything. We’re still trying to figure out all the tournaments and stuff like that. He wanted to stay at home. His last year coaching professionally with the Tigers, he was up in west Michigan and then in Venezuela in the fall and my mom wasn’t having the two months at home anymore. So he decided to start up the academy to work with kids to get them ready for high school and college ball. We’re bridging 11-to-14-year-olds right now so we have an organized ladder going up. Eventually when my career is done I want to get 15-, 16-, 17-, 18-year-old kids to help them get ready for college because that’s where my networks are.
What was it like for you getting drafted by the Marlins?
So junior year in college, I had a great year at Tampa and thought I would get drafted. A bunch of teams called and said they were interested in the middle rounds, I heard 8-20. At that time I was a day out of nose surgery and on medication and the fact that my name never got called was emotional and eye opening. Definitely a chip on my shoulder type of deal. So going into my senior year, I knew I had to hit home runs and hit doubles and I had a great senior year. Did everything I wanted to do on the baseball field. I was getting calls from as early as the sixth round that year. Ended up going 21st round. Now, was I upset about how late I got taken? Yeah a little bit, I thought it would be a little sooner. But the fact my name got called, soon as I heard that I didn’t care at all. I didn’t care who took me, I just didn’t care. I just wanted to play ball.
How difficult was it to be cut by the Marlins after just two seasons?
I felt like I had a very small amount of time to showcase what I could do. When I got called up to Greensboro (Grasshoppers, Marlins Single-A affiliation), I was hot, I was hitting leadoff, hitting second, playing short, third, second didn’t matter. I was playing every day and then I got hurt. And after that injury, I felt like I never really got an opportunity to get back on the field with an everyday role. With that being said, I was putting a lot of pressure on myself to do well when I did get on the field which in turn didn’t amount to anything. I wasn’t putting numbers together at all. When I did get released, I told myself putting pressure on yourself isn’t going to work. I wanted to work out more during the season and there were some other things I took out of that that I could do better personally: taking your role for what it is, controlling what you can control and always being mentally prepared.
How did you hook on with the Long Island Ducks in independent ball last year?
So my uncle knew Kevin Baez and Mike Pfaff, the GM, up there. He called them and said my nephew just got released by the Marlins, he’s looking for an indy ball team to play for this year. And they said I could be a role player there. So I went up there, was a role player for about a quarter of the season and then ended up being the everyday third baseman. In that time where I was a role player though, the guys there took me under their wing and helped me learn to mentally prepare. Everyone is physically ready at this level but it’s up here, the mental side of the game that you have to always be ready and involved in the game. In that time, I learned to mentally mature as a baseball player and play the game not do the game, and I feel like I’ve brought that here.
Who were some of the most influential teammates you had in Long Island?
Ruben Gotay I had known from when he was with the Mets and he’s unbelievable. Quentin Berry is probably the funniest teammate I’ve ever had. He’s one of those guys where he could sit there and talk and may not even say anything funny but you’re giggling the whole time. Just the way that he speaks, he sounds like Kevin Hart. Marc Krauss was great. David Aardsma was like a grandfather type teammate every time he had a story you wanted to sit and listen. Unbelievable person with a big heart. Delta Cleary Jr. is just a funny funny guy.
Is Eric Gagne as intense as he always looked coming into games with the Dodgers?
Absolutely. Absolutely. How would I describe Eric Gagne? You know what, what you saw on TV was how he was all the time. A great teammate, unbelievable teammate, but definitely intense. You could tell it mattered to him.
You have been described to me as the leader of this team. Is that a role that has always come naturally to you?
I think everyone’s parents probably say something similar but my parents definitely taught me to be a leader not a follower. If you want something done, then do it your way and try to get other people to understand why you want to do it that way. I think at the same time, I’m the oldest guy on this team. Not by a lot but one or two years do help at this level. And seeing some of those guys last year with the Ducks, how they handled themselves and dealt with losing, winning, everything. Last year was the most important time of my career because I learned so much, and so everything I got out of playing with the Ducks I’ve brought here. I just want what’s best for everybody, I want the organization to say you know what, this kid gets it. I want them to know that I’ve been around and I know how the game works, and I’m not going to cry when I’m not in the lineup. I think it just comes with experience. The players come to me when they have something to ask and that’s something that makes me feel good. There was something the other day that (Blake) Tiberi came up to talk to me about, and Pedro (Lopez, Fireflies Manager) walked up behind and I stopped to you know, let him coach. And he goes “no, no I want you to finish.” So I said what I had to say and he said “That’s exactly what I was going to say” So that gives me confidence. I feel like I know what I’m talking about.
Your uncle is now managing with the Cyclones. Are you in touch with him regularly for advice?
So I started off the first month and a half this year hitting .300. And then I dropped all the way down to .230. I think last week he called me and said, “hey I just watched your video from last night and you’re opening up a little bit.” And that was big time for me. We do speak regularly, not always about baseball. When he saw my numbers going down he kind of just said make this adjustment, you’ll be fine. My dad too, my dad was in town telling me the exact same thing my uncle called to tell me.
What was it like this spring to sign, not just back in affiliated ball, but with this organization?
So there were three to four organizations getting very interested right before spring training opened and the Mets weren’t one of them. All of a sudden, on a Tuesday night, my uncle calls my dad and says Gio has a tryout with the Mets on Saturday. So I had four days to get baseball ready and I really wasn’t ready. I was spring training ready not tryout ready. So I started taking 1,000 swings a day, I was sprinting, doing everything to get ready. Saturday came and everyone around me said I looked good but I felt I had just an okay tryout. I didn’t think I swung the bat as well as I could have. So two weeks later, on another Tuesday, the Mets called and said show up on Monday for spring training. When my agent called and told me, I was with my mom and dad and brother and I just bawled my eyes out. I sat there and cried. For one, just getting back in affiliated ball I didn’t know if that would ever happen. But the biggest reason was I always imagined being a Met. Always imagined having an orange and blue uniform on. Always imagined having Alfonzo on the back of my jersey here. When I thought about all that and they said I was coming in, that was probably one of the most emotional moments of my career.
You’re listed on the media guide as a shortstop, but just from talking to you it seems like you’ve played everywhere. What do you consider your position and which one are you best at?
My favorite position is shortstop and I think I’m best at shortstop. Reason being, I think at shortstop you have to have a bit of a captain’s feel. Catcher, short, center field, and that’s my mentality. I think I’m able to control the field a little at shortstop and I have the most passion there. At the end of the day though, I’ll play wherever they ask as best as I can. I’ve played right field, left, short, second, first, third, just this year. On the professional level, I’ve played every position but catcher. I pitched two innings in Greensboro and actually have a win and a save. I’ve done a little bit of everything.
What’s the worst thing about playing in the minor leagues other than the bus rides?
Other than the bus rides? Ummm. {Laughs} Besides the bus? Sometimes the hotels are good, sometimes they’re just terrible. Sometimes the fans are good to us, sometimes they’re bad. But sometimes some of the parks just aren’t as updated. For example, we were just in Hagerstown and Hagerstown has been around for years. Willie Mays actually played his first professional game in Hagerstown. But their locker room had no AC. And it’s very small. So we had 30 guys in this locker room half the size of the dugout with no AC. It was kinda tough. But then you come here to Lakewood and it’s big league here.
What would it mean to you to get bumped up to St. Lucie before the end of the year?
So a dream of mine is obviously to play in the big leagues. But another dream is to play at that stadium in Port St. Lucie, First Data. It was Thomas J. White when we first moved there and then Tradition Field, and now First Data. It’s been a dream of mine to be in that locker room with a uniform and take the field. It’s something I’ve always wanted. So for the rest of this season, you know, I can’t control whether I get to go up there but as of late I’ve felt good at the plate and I want to continue to feel good. I want to make every play defensively. I want to help my team win. I want to make the playoffs here with the Fireflies. And if I do get called up, it would just be a dream come true and I would probably get emotional calling my parents. Because I grew up at that field, running around the tunnels, in the locker room, the dugouts, up in the press boxes, everywhere. It was a second home for me.
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Through play on Monday, Alfonzo is hitting .240 in a super utility role for the Fireflies, but he’s added significantly more extra base prowess to his game this season, as evidenced by his career high .347 SLG%. I’d personally like to thank him again for how accommodating he was, and how generous he was with his pregame time. All of us at BP wish him nothing but the best for the rest of this season and beyond.