My Interview With Justin Masterson, Part I |

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My Interview With Justin Masterson, Part I

By Administrator | February 16, 2009

Justin Masterson was born on March 22, 1985, in Kingston, Jamaica. He is the middle of three children born to Mark and Judy Masterson. His father was a youth pastor in Fort Wayne, Indiana, before taking the post as Dean of Students at Jamaica Theological Seminary (where he had once been a foreign exchange student). After a three-year stint in Kingston, the elder Masterson moved his family to Beavercreek, OH, where he became pastor at Creekside Community Church. The family lives there still.

The entire family, on both sides, is heavily involved with the Christian faith and their respective churches – one uncle is a church pastor, another uncle is the principal at a Christian school, and two cousins are youth ministers. Mark and Judy raised their children to be selfless, God-fearing people. Mandy, Justin’s older sister, is a fifth-grade teacher in Indiana… John, his younger brother, lives in Beavercreek and works with the youth ministries there.

Justin began his collegiate studies at Bethel College, the evangelical Christian college in Mishawaka, Indiana, that is affiliated with his father’s missionary church.

He left Bethel after his sophomore year to pursue his baseball career playing for Hall-of-Famer Tony Gwynn at San Diego State University.

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S1F: You were at Bethel but then transferred to San Diego State University. You went from a small, faith-based school — one that your father was affiliated with — to a larger, secular school far away from your home and your family. I would imagine it was an agonizing decision to leave Bethel. Can you talk a little about the decision?

JM: You’re right, it was a very difficult decision. My parents had wanted me to have at least a year of Christian College, but they were willing to let me go wherever I wanted. I had a great friend base established at Bethel College. It was a great foundation, not only socially but also for my faith as well. I was at a Christian college, but what I realized while I was there is there’s a very diverse realm of where people are at in their Christianity, and while Bethel strives to have Christians attend there are a lot of people there who aren’t necessarily followers of Jesus Christ. You get that exposure, which is nice. There are opportunities there. It opens your eyes. You have a better understanding of other religions and other practices.

When I went to the Cape Cod League I met a friend of mine, Bruce Billings, who is now in the Rockies organization. He had been the ace at San Diego State the year prior. We got to know each other and became good friends, and out of the blue he suggested I transfer to San Diego State. We didn’t really have a pitching coach at Bethel my sophomore year – we had a guy who tried hard and put his heart into it, but it just wasn’t what I was looking for. I had thought of transferring somewhere, though I had never voiced it, and I was looking for an opportunity.

I wrestled with the decision that summer, and near the end of the summer I decided San Diego State was the opportunity I was looking for. It wasn’t anything against Bethel, I just felt like it would be a good move… even if nothing good came of it, I thought it would be a good character-builder. I liked the idea of having that urban setting and being in an atmosphere that I wasn’t familiar with. It was a chance to go to a beautiful city like San Diego. It was a chance to try out life.

S1F: Did the transfer prove to be everything you hoped it would be?

JM: Some college coaches made fun of me a bit because San Diego State is a good school but their baseball program has been up and down over the years. Some would say that the transfer didn’t help my draft status at all, and that it might have hurt it in some respects. Some people thought I might have been a first-rounder if I stayed at Bethel and maybe dominated again. Of course, I went in the second round and I’ve made it to the major leagues, so it really doesn’t matter anymore.

S1F: But you had an excellent stint at San Diego State, and against seemingly tougher competition, so I would think the transfer was a tremendous help to your development…

JM: When I was at Bethel I thought: “what’s the big deal about Division One, let’s try it out”. Coming from an NAIA school, the game was a little different but not a lot different. Baseball is baseball. In D-1, you have more well-rounded athletes. Instead of your 3-4-5 hitters just being big hitters, in D-1 they were quick, too, and they were good fielders and they could throw. At NAIA, guys were more one- or two-dimensional. A guy might be a great hitter, but that’s about all he could do… or he might be a great fielder, but he’s not really all that quick. Most of the guys don’t have a combination (of skills).

S1F: So do you think the transfer was helpful?

JM: To an extent. As you move up through the minor leagues, you learn that while baseball is a little different, it’s not a lot different. If you continue to do the things that you do well, you’ll be successful. When I went from NAIA to Division One, I wanted to be the same guy that I had always been and I think that helped with the transition. I knew I had to stick with what made me good, but I also knew I would have to continue to get better. I took that attitude all the way along. Even when I made my (major league) debut, Josh Beckett said: “the things that you were doing in the minor leagues, the things that made you successful there, those are the things that are going to make you successful here”.

S1F: Who has been the most important influence in your baseball development?

JM: I think the person who put me on the best footing would be the dad of one of my best friends, Randy McCasland. He was our coach growing up in rec ball. He taught me there are three things that will affect success in anything: first, the people you surround yourself with… second, the education your willing to get (at the time, it meant the books I was willing to read about baseball)… and third, what you’re willing to do that someone else isn’t willing to do – the extra time you’re willing to put in to be the best.

I was big into baseball, so he bought me all of these books on baseball – I read probably fifteen or twenty pitching books before I was out of high school. So I’d have to say him because he helped set me on the footing of what I needed to do to be successful at what I want to be.

S1F: During your senior year at San Diego State, as draft day approached, did you have an inclination the Red Sox would draft you? Had they been in contact with you?

JM: Randy (Rowley, Justin’s agent) had an inclination they would, but I hadn’t talked to their scout that much and hadn’t really done too much with them. I mean, there were a few guys that I’d talked to, but no one that I had REALLY talked to. I felt like I had done well at San Diego State, but even then people were still very skeptical.

Honestly, I got a lot of the religious comments… you know, “what if he plays a year or two and then feels the calling of God to go elsewhere?” I mean, I feel God’s calling to use baseball as my work and so the calling is already there, but there were quite a few people who said things like that.

S1F: I read where the Sox felt like they were lucky that you were there when they were picking…

JM: Even then, though, (the Sox) passed on me four or five times before they picked me. There were a few articles I’d read that said that, as a second-rounder, I was one of the most overrated players picked. There are so many factors that clubs take into account when making their picks, so it’s just not that simple. But like I said before, there are a lot of guys who were picked before me who aren’t in the majors yet, so I guess that says something (about whether the Red Sox had ‘reached’ when they made their pick).

S1F: How did you spend draft day?

JM: We had a draft party and I had some friends come over. I think we had maybe fifteen or twenty people come over. It was neat. Daniel Bard was taken before me, and we were already good friends because we played on the Cape together (in Wareham). So I called him (after he was picked) and he called me (after I was picked). The phone rang off the hook with congratulations. It was cool.

S1F: How did you find out that you were picked? Did you find out over the internet or did you get a phone call in advance?

JM: I got a call in advance. (Scout) Dan Madsen called and said they were thinking about taking me with their next pick and I said ‘okay’. Then he talked with Randy, and that was that.

S1F: Other than Madsen, who was the first person from Sox organization who called you on draft day?

JM: I think Mike Hazen gave me a call, but I’m not totally certain.

S1F: How did you celebrate?

JM: The afternoon party just continued. We just hung around. I did some interviews with some of the local tv stations. Some people asked me if I was going into the military… I told them I’d been drafted in baseball, not in the military. So it was kinda funny.

S1F: Was there a sense that a dream had come true when you were drafted?

JM: Well, not really. It was more like a goal being realized. To make it to the major leagues was a goal, not really a dream. The difference is that in a dream you say, “if it happens, it happens”… whereas with a goal you are working towards something. You say, “this is what I want to happen, this is what I am going to make happen” and then you go out and work towards it. And so the draft was my first step. It was what I had in my plan… it was one of my goals.

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Masterson Interview Part II

Masterson Interview Part III

Masterson Interview Part IV

Masterson Interview Part V

Topics: Sox Player Interviews, Sox Players |

9 Responses to “My Interview With Justin Masterson, Part I”

SeaBeachFred Says:
February 16th, 2009 at 9:39 pm
Another great job Jeffrey, but deep down you knew that already. May I point out to you that this is why Red Sox Nation is what it is. Most teams don’t have bloggers like you that go to the horse’s mouth for some inside info on the whys and wherefores of their team. The Red Sox seem to have a plethora of them, and as that number grows so does the bandwagon where new Red Sox fans climb aboard. The difference with our bandwagon and others is that we have to keep making it bigger because once you get on the Red Sox one you never get off. Thanks for the info.
Fort Fragments: TinCaps, Wizards and Local Ties | Baseball in Fort Wayne Says:
February 27th, 2009 at 11:07 pm
[...] Major Leaguer with Fort Wayne ties - one that many don’t realize - is Boston hurler, Justin Masterson: His father was a youth pastor in Fort Wayne, Indiana, before taking the post as Dean of Students [...]
My Interview With Justin Masterson, Part II | Says:
February 28th, 2009 at 8:44 pm
[...] Interview Part I [...]
My Interview With Justin Masterson, Part III | Says:
February 28th, 2009 at 8:46 pm
[...] Interview Part I [...]
My Interview With Justin Masterson, Part IV | Says:
February 28th, 2009 at 8:48 pm
[...] Interview Part I [...]
My Interview With Justin Masterson, Part V | Says:
February 28th, 2009 at 8:50 pm
[...] Interview Part I [...]
Chilling Out With Justin Masterson… Finally! | Says:
February 28th, 2009 at 8:54 pm
[...] Interview Part I [...]
Rod Murch Says:
April 8th, 2009 at 6:24 pm
Nice interview and totally enjoyed!

Justin is a class act and I’m proud to say he is from our town of Beavercreek, OH. I saw him pitch a couple of times in high school.

Last year my daughter and I were in Massachusetts for a family wedding a made a trip to Boston to see the Sox. Justin came out to see us after the game, even though his bus was getting ready to leave for the airport and his start the next night in Cinci.

Great kid!
Deadline Deals and Fort Wayne Connections | Baseball in Fort Wayne Says:
August 1st, 2009 at 8:21 am
[...] – the first Jamaican-born baseball player to appear in a Major League game – lived in Bluffton for a short while. addthis_url = [...]