Drive paying off for Jon Jay

During a stint with the St. Louis Cardinals in spring training, outfielder Jon Jay hit .231 with three RBI.

Although it was nothing to brag about, Jay left Jupiter, Fla., as confident as ever that he could play for the Cardinals. So after joining the Redbirds, Jay went out and showed he was ready, hitting over .300 in the season's first three weeks.

It was enough to open some eyes in St. Louis as the Cardinals gave their second-round pick in 2006 his first promotion to the big leagues on April 26. This time, the former University of Miami star didn't disappoint.

In just over a month with the Cardinals, Jay hit .302 with four RBI and his first big league homer in 26 games. Jay finally got to see his confidence become fruition.

"It's definitely nice to see it, to be able to see it and feel it," Jay said. "Sometimes you envision it, but you don't really get to feel it. It was a great feeling.

"I've always had confidence, even when I was struggling. I know I can play this game. I was just fortunate to put together a good string there. It helps when you're able to compete. That's the best baseball playing field that there is. It's just good to be able to show what I can do in that short period. Hopefully, it's going to help me out in the future."

What made his big league dream's coming true even more special was that his parents were there to enjoy it with him.

"They're the ones that have been there every step of the way, taking me since I was 5 years old to everything," Jay said. "So it was nice for them to be able to see that."

Jay returned to the Redbirds on June 4 and quickly picked up where he left off. In his first four games back, Jay knocked in at least one run in each game while hitting .474 (9-for-19) with eight RBI.



(commercialappeal.com)