Cuffman

The business side of baseball hasn't been too kind to Jake Cuffman.

The Butler graduate and 14th-round selection of the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2003 was released by the club during spring training.

A right-handed pitcher, Cuffman was then signed by the Toronto Blue Jays, only to be released by the end of May.

"I was throwing great in extended spring training for Toronto and they told me I'd only be there a week or two," Cuffman said. "I was there for a few weeks.

"Then they wanted to send me back to split-season Class A ball. I'm past that point. I told a coach I got close to in their organization that I didn't want that. Next thing I knew, I was released."

Cuffman, 24, has been out of baseball since. He's back home now, working for Mitsubishi Electric Power Products in Warrendale.

But he's not giving up on baseball. Not yet.

"I had to get away from the game for a while, go to work and earn some money," he said. "The minor leagues is not a glamorous life. You get money from your signing bonus out of high school, but you don't make much at all in the lower minors and you're gone all the time.

"Getting away from baseball for the time being gives me a chance to clear my head a little bit. What I've been through has been frustrating."

In six minor league seasons with the Pirates, Cuffman was a combined 5-10 with 181 strikeouts and 157 walks in 201 innings pitched.

"My big issue was control. That's what held me back," Cuffman said. "I can hit 90 miles per hour regularly and I've got the body frame. I have the tools to do this. It's up to me to figure it out."

It's up to his agent to find a team that he can figure it out with.

"I can't say that I'm done yet," Cuffman said. "I believe I still have what it takes to get to the big leagues.

"My agent will call around to teams next year. I've gotten offers from independent league teams for a chance to pitch, but I'm not looking at that option."

Cuffman admitted to growing tired "of the politics of baseball." He said the Blue Jays signed more players than they could keep and he was one of the odd men out.

When the Pirates traded away most of their veteran players at the major league level, Cuffman said he wasn't surprised at all.

"I knew that was coming," he said. "If you were part of the previous regime in Pittsburgh, you didn't have a chance. They've gotten rid of almost everyone in the organization who was there before the new ownership took over.

"A lot of good people get washed away because somebody wants their guy in there ... It's hard to understand. I've seen the business side of this game and it's not pretty."

Still, Cuffman is hopeful of getting another chance to prove himself.

"It's a crazy thing, pro sports," he said. "You have to be in the right situation at the right time. You never know when it's your time.

"Maybe pro baseball isn't in the cards for me. If not, I'll find out one day. But as long as I turn on a major league game, watch a guy pitch and say to myself, 'I know I can do that,' I'm gonna keep on trying.'