Mike Curry
San Antonio, Texas
Like everyone else on the planet, COVID-19 upended Murphy native Michael Curry’s 2020.
Curry, who was drafted in the 16th round by the San Diego Padres in 2018, was set to begin his second full minor league season when he was sent home from spring training in March. Not only did it delay his baseball career, it delayed a new way of life for him and his fiancee, Elizabeth Fischer.
They were planning to travel together throughout the season in a recreational vehicle. They stuck with that plan this year, as Curry started the year with a brief stint in high class A Fort Wayne before being called up to class AA San Antonio. (The highest minor league class is AAA.)
“We don’t like distance,” Curry said. “We like to be together. Especially with the lifestyle of Minor League Baseball, it’s the perfect situation.”
When Curry went to Pasco, Washington to play for the Tri-City Devils, the Padres short-season A team after being drafted, he realized how quickly fees can add up for minor leaguers. Curry signed with the Padres for $125,000, but minor league baseball players' pay during the season is low.
Even with salary bumps in the offseason after minor league baseball was restructured, the minimum salary for AA is just $600 per week. It was even less during Curry’s first year in short-season ball.
Recreational living
That’s where the RV came in. After a summer of living in an apartment, having to find somewhere for Fischer to stay as well as pay for boarding for their two dogs, Fischer brought up the idea. Curry was against it at first, but came around to the idea.
“My first reaction was no I’m not doing that, I’m not living in a trailer,” Curry said. “A couple weeks went by, I looked into it, I was checking it all out and I texted her and said, you know, what you might be right. This might be something we could look into doing... I wish I would’ve listened to her in the first place.”
In fall 2019, they bought an old 2001C motorhome and renovated the inside. They traded that in for a fifth-wheel RV, which have to be towed rather than have the driving as part of the vehicle like the class C motorhome. Before the season they downsized to a travel trailer for something that was more drivable in case he got promoted, which happened in May.
Staying in an RV park is cheaper than living in an apartment, though Curry said he’s seen other benefits from the arrangement. He and Fischer don’t like to be apart, so this allows them to travel on the road together, since Fischer’s job as a case investigator for the Georgia Department of Health can be done virtually.
Curry said she’s a very good cook, and her chicken piccata is his favorite dish. It also allows him to just enjoy his unique life experience of playing professional baseball while traveling through the Southwest, taking it day by day in the process.
“It’s a fun thing,” Curry said. “Right now I get to live a pretty unique lifestyle, cool lifestyle, so I definitely want to enjoy it while I can and soak it in.”
Moving on up
That process applies on the field, where Curry’s had a bit of a challenging year. Class AA is a significant jump from previous minor league levels.
Players are older, and there’s a chance you can be playing against someone who’s had major league experience every night. Curry is teammates with 44-year-old Joe Beimel, a Major League Baseball reliever from 2001-15 before deciding to make a comeback this year.
Curry’s playing time also varies, as he isn’t a top prospect in the organization. The Padres have invested more money in other prospects, who are given more opportunities. He started his time in AA playing a few games a week, but has gotten in the lineup more often as the season’s gone along.
To get on the field, Curry has had to play multiple positions defensively. This year, he’s played games in right field, left field, catcher and has taken practice repetitions at first base.
“He’s one of those guys where you have to work,” Missions manager Phillip Wellman said. “You have to increase your value by increasing the number of positions you can play. He’s played left, he’s played right, I’ve put him at catcher, I haven’t put him at first base, but he DHs. He has value, and he understands his role right now.”
‘Keeps me sane’
Wellman, who is well known for having one of the most infamous manager meltdowns in baseball history, is a lifer in the sport, having played four years in the minor leagues and coached in a farm system for all but one year since 1988. He has talked with Curry about the business of minor league baseball, and said Curry understands his role.
When he gets his opportunities, he’s aggressive at the plate, though Wellman said he needs to improve his “chase rate,” which is when a batter swings at pitches outside the strike zone. Curry was hitting .246 in 134 at-bats this year as of July 28, but has struck out in just under one-third of his plate appearances.
In a sport like Minor League Baseball that has its up and downs – and you can literally move across the country on quick notice – Curry is just trying to stay in the moment. He tries to control what he can and give his best effort at the park everyday. When he leaves the field, he goes home to his RV and fiancee, who helps him keep in perspective there’s more to life than just baseball.
“She’s helped me grow in the sense of, hey, it’s just a game, leave it at the field,” Curry said. “It’s not life or death, it is what it is. It is nice to have her with me. She keeps me sane, she keeps me humble.”