20 questions with Portland's Eric Junge

MiLB.com: You've done a great deal of traveling during your offseasons. Where are some of the places you've been?

Eric Junge: This past offseason I went to Argentina and Uruguay on one trip and Ireland, England and Germany on another. Last year I saw Vietnam and Cambodia during my time off. I've been to India; I've been to all sorts of places.

MiLB.com: Out of all the countries you've traveled, which stands out as your favorite?

EJ: I'd say Cambodia. The food is great, the people are smiling all the time, and materialism is not on the top of their priority list. It was affordable.

MiLB.com: You were born in Manhasett, N.Y. Did you know that is the "East Egg" in F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby?

EJ: I did know that, I love that book; I read it in high school, and I just read it again recently. Fitzgerald's one of my favorite authors, I've read all of his books. The Great Gatsby is my favorite book.

MiLB.com: Are you a big reader?

EJ: Yes, I love reading. I'm not a big TV person so I'll usually read in my free time between games or before games. Right now I'm reading Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. It's on The New York Times best sellers list right now.

MiLB.com: What other books top your personal list?

EJ: There's a few. I'm kind of waiting for The Da Vinci Code movie to come out. It was a good read; it's not really literature, but more entertainment.

MiLB.com: When did you decide to pursue a career in professional baseball?

EJ: Some time in junior college I realized it was appropriate for me. I was studying a business degree and just didn't want to go into the work world. I began playing when I was 8, but not until junior college did I really consider it.

MiLB.com: How do you deal with knowing you could work your hardest and still never make it to the Majors?

EJ: I don't think about it. I don't see the 22-year-old guy who comes to Triple-A, makes two starts and then gets called up to the Majors. If I focused on that, I'd lose focus.

MiLB.com: Describe the moment you were drafted.

EJ: I was at home just hanging out with a buddy and got the phone call. I hung up and said, "Hell yeah, I'm so psyched!"

MiLB.com: After being born in Manhasset, you grew up in Rye, N.Y., which is about 15 to 20 miles from Shea Stadium. Are you a Mets fan?

EJ: Definitely. I grew up around there so, of course, I'm a Mets fan.

MiLB.com: What's the best baseball advice you've ever gotten and from whom?

EJ: I don't remember who said it, but it was have fun. Have fun even when you're failing -- just remember it's a boys game.

MiLB.com: How you deal with being in the public eye now that you're in the Minors?

EJ: If I was a big-league star like Albert Pujols, I'd be shy to a certain extent. I know they're kind of a public commodity, but I would value my privacy. Right now, I'm relatively unknown so it's not an issue at all. I'm from New York so I've got that attitude, I can handle anyone.

MiLB.com: You pitched in 10 Major League games during 2002-03. What was the biggest difference between the big leagues and the Minors?

EJ: The big leagues are the big stage, the hitters are more refined. It's like going from Off Broadway to Broadway.

MiLB.com: What advice are you giving young guys trying to break into pro baseball?

EJ: I can only speak for pitchers, but I tell them to command your fastball. Throw fastballs; use them as your weapon. Everything else is secondary or tertiary.

MiLB.com: What are your pet peeves?

EJ: I have a couple (laughs), but nothing you would want to write about.

MiLB.com: Who are your biggest baseball and non-baseball influences?

EJ: Baseball would be Todd Stottlemyre. Non-baseball would be some music people who've influenced me. Guys like John Coltrane and The Shins.

MiLB.com: Who would you be most flattered to hear yourself being compared to?

EJ: Jason Schmidt of San Fransisco or Todd Stottlemyre.

MiLB.com: What are your weird superstitions?

EJ: They're not that weird, just putting on my left sock first, left shoe, left pant leg, things like that.

MiLB.com: Aside from playing baseball everyday, what's the best part of playing in the Minors?

EJ: The free time we get. I have five months off, which is when I do my traveling, so it's awesome.

MiLB.com: What's the worst part of being in the Minors?

EJ: Being so close, as in Triple-A, without getting the recognition or respect from the game. You're so obscured and overshadowed by the Majors, but they're so similar. It's hard to deal with.

MiLB.com: What's the weirdest thing a fan has done for you?

EJ: I was in High A, and I threw a shutout. After the game, an 80-year-old Mexican lady came up to me, grabbed my arm and said "Tu tienes un brazo de oro," which means "You have an arm of gold." It was weird, I never forgot the saying.