BY JAMES COOK
jcooke@record-eagle.com
May 20, 2008 10:29 am TRAVERSE CITY -- Mike Epping dodged disaster but couldn't dodge the aftermath. In August 2005, Epping, the Traverse City Beach Bums' starting center fielder, was taking classes at the University of New Orleans and getting ready for his final season of college baseball. Then Hurricane Katrina struck. Katrina roared through New Orleans, almost overnight turning a party town in a virtual cesspool. Luckily, Epping wasn't there at the time. "I evacuated the day before and was with a teammate at his house when it hit," Epping said. Ironically, the university was used as an evacuation point and staging area by the National Guard, but Epping was safe and sound many miles away. UNO was one of the first large colleges in the area to reopen. After running classes strictly online starting in October, the main campus reopened in December. The area was devastated by the storm and a relief effort that was slow and ineffective for many who needed it most. When he came back, the home of Mardi Gras was nothing like it was before. It was like he had changed teams, only the teammates were the same. The city was different and even their home stadium wasn't the same. The Privateers -- whose mascot is a pirate -- played about a third of the 2006 season in a stadium across town while their own facility was being refurbished. "It's really tough to describe," Epping said of what he saw when returning for the first time after the storm. "I go back every off-season to see everybody. It's getting better. It's getting better." Like many of his baseball brethren, Epping was already a little bit of a baseball vagabond before Katrina handed his senior year a detour. After an all-state prep career at Moore High School in Oklahoma City's southern suburbs, he played two years at Oklahoma City University, helping the Stars to the NAIA World Series. He moved onto Texas Christian, but was unable to play due to a stress fracture in his ankle. He ended up in New Orleans, a year before the worst natural disaster in the city's history. Epping rebounded. As a junior, he played regularly, but wasn't a full-time starter. As a senior, he erupted with a season that earned him second-team All-America honors. In just 64 more at-bats, he struck out five times fewer and walked 20 more than the previous season. His on-base percentage rose from .299 to .473 and his steals skyrocketed from two to 42 as coaches gave him the freedom to run. The 42 thefts were third in the nation, on top of 58 RBIs and 56 runs in 55 games and a .400 batting average. The San Diego Padres drafted the left-handed hitting outfielder in the 13th round of the 2006 draft. Playing for four different teams in the Padres' system in two years, he reached AAA for 25 games last season (Doug Garcia was the only other Beach Bum to have made it up to AAA before Epping and catcher John Brummett). But after the season, Epping received bad news from the Padres organization. "They said they didn't have a starting spot for me," Epping said. "I could come to spring training and fight for a reserve role." And with that he ended up in Traverse City, where he'll roam Wuerfel Park's spacious center field. Epping and fellow outfielder Jake Whitesides were the first two Bums players to arrive in Traverse City. The pair appeared at Fan Fest on May 19 and have stayed in TC since to work out at Wuerfel Park. When new cities are a common occurrence in your journey, you may as well get used to the newest one as quickly as possible.
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Mike Epping Record-Eagle