Published: 12:17 AM, Sat Jun 26, 2010
Navy an easy choice for Elmore
By Earl Vaughan Jr.
Scholastic sports editor
The U.S. Naval Academy has established a beach-head on the shores of Fayetteville high school baseball. And the home it has chosen to invade is that of Fayetteville Academy pitcher and infielder Josh Elmore.
In a community filled with Army and Air Force personnel, Elmore decided to break ranks with local traditions and take his baseball talents to Annapolis, Md. In a little more than a week, he'll begin summer school and get his first taste of college-style baseball practice.
Elmore had offers from a number of other schools, he said, but none of them the size of Navy.
But even with that argument, how could he pick the Midshipmen? It certainly wasn't because of what he was hearing from his friends.
"There are always your buddies giving you a hard time,'' he said. "I've got a friend who just got out of the Air Force, and he's been giving it to me. But it's all in good fun, just your buddies picking on you.''
For Elmore, the decision came down to some simple facts.
"I've grown up here my whole life,'' he said. "I've always been around military guys. I've always been used to it. It's not unfamiliar to me.''
But going to Navy or Army or Air Force carries a requirement other colleges don't, mandatory military service after graduation. That's not how Elmore sees it.
"I think of it as an opportunity to serve my country,'' he said. "And I've got a job right out of college. Not many people can say that.''
Elmore is the second Cumberland County baseball product in recent years to choose playing for one of the service academies. The other, Kevin McKague, is on the baseball team at Army.
Elmore said he got a chance to see McKague play for Army last season when he attended the Army-Navy game, but he's never spoken with him about his career at West Point or his reasons for deciding to go there.
It's doubtful if it would have affected Elmore's choice of Navy anyway.
"My dad's best friend went there and has been talking to me about going there forever,'' he said. "I like the program, the facilities. It's a great school, great education. There's no down side to it.''
That includes choosing a major. Elmore said Navy doesn't put limits on the choice of a major just because there's a military commitment waiting after graduation.
"It's almost exactly like a regular college,'' Elmore said. "You have your top three or four choices of what you want to do. When I was up there for my official visit, they said 98 or 99 percent get their first choice.''
Elmore has all but made his, he said, leaning strongly toward a major in either engineering or naval architecture. But what happens if Elmore's Navy baseball career really takes off and the major leagues are interested in him come graduation time? Will that required military commitment destroy any chance Elmore might have of getting into professional baseball?
"The Navy is pretty good about working with guys on that,'' Elmore said. He mentioned the story of a recent Navy graduate who was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals.
"He applied to shorten his time with the Secretary of the Navy,'' Elmore said. "That is under review now. They said he'll be able once he's out of the Navy to join a major league club.''
Elmore will get his first taste of Navy baseball when he reports for what's called plebe summer in about a week.
"The only thing I can equate it to is basic training, but you have classes during the day,'' Elmore said. "You also have a sports period every day.''
While the rest of his classmates take part in intramurals, Elmore and the other varsity athletes will get to practice with their new teams. He'll also take part in fall baseball at Annapolis. When he returns to school shortly after Christmas, practice begins for the official spring baseball season.
Elmore doesn't think he'll have a problem adjusting to the regimented Naval Academy lifestyle.
"I get up every morning, work out, get done what I need to get done,'' he said. "Once I get my feet under me, I think I'll adjust to it well.''
He hopes to both pitch and play first base in his freshman season at Navy. First base and outfield are the only two field positions Navy lets pitchers play, Elmore said, because the throwing motion used is the same as for pitchers.
"I plan on giving it my best,'' he said. "I'll do whatever my coaches tell me to and work at it until I can't go any further.''
Scholastic sports editor Earl Vaughan Jr. can be reached at vaughane@fayobserver.com or 486-3519.