February 10th, a day normally reserved for a long sleeve shirt underneath several layers including a sweatshirt and winter jacket. A winter hat, insulated gloves, and thermal socks were also part of my typical attire for a February 10th outdoor adventure. I would make a pot of coffee at 7am and another at 10am before venturing out into the frigid cold air of the 6th week of winter. Halfway to Spring on the calendar, yet seemingly months away from any kind of Spring-like temperatures. That was then, and yesterday is now.
Reaching nearly 75 degrees here in Virginia Beach, I took full advantage of the weather to break out one of my favorite T-shirts (Avett Brothers concert shirt), comfortable jeans, tennis socks, and my trusted red Sketchers I got in Portland, Maine that I affectionately call my “Red Sox Shoes.” No winter jacket, no hat other than my Island Baseball League hat, sunglasses, and loving every minute of it. February 10th, 2024 I think I actually got a sunburn. Sorry family and friends back home, I know its still Winter up there.
I have been meaning to check out Great Bridge High School for some time now. I have mentioned this before but it bears repeating. When I was playing Amateur Baseball down in Virginia back in the late 1990s, two players from the same high school got drafted in the first round of the 1997 Major League Baseball Draft. Two players from the same team being scouted and eventually drafted, a pitcher and a position player, is something. The first round of the Major League Baseball draft, same high school, that is remarkable. The players, Michael Cuddyer and John Curtice, went 9th and 15th respectively in that round. Curtice played 4 minor league seasons (1997-2000) in the Boston Red Sox organization. Cuddyer went on to play 15 seasons in the Major Leagues, won a batting title, a Silver Slugger award, and was a consistently above average player for teams like Minnesota, Colorado, and the NY Mets. That high school, by the way, was Chesapeake’s Great Bridge High School. Yesterday, I took the drive out to check it out.
After finding parking right behind the baseball field, I saw that the baseball field area was open and that there were no practices going on. So, I took a walk past a flower bed with the American flag waving at me over to the dugout area. There was a man repainting a shelf, looked like for helmets or dugout storage. He stopped for a moment and I introduced myself. I mentioned Cuddyer and Curtice and he knew exactly who they were. He also mentioned Cuddyer had a son on the current Great Bridge team and that his son was an up and coming star himself. Interesting fact, I will have to be back to check out a game, I thought. Nice man, he was an empty nester who helped the team out. I get the impression his son played for Great Bridge or at the least attended there recently. I told him I would stay out of his way and he laughed and went back to his painting. Green shelves, guess that matched the green in the Great Bridge school colors.
Nice field, set up right in front of a wooden backdrop with a creek hanging around just outside the outfield fence area. I walked around and spotted some green grass trying to poke through. Tarps were on the mound and home plate. And like most of the fields I have visited so far, the baselines are grass, not dirt. I have to say, I kind of like the grass baselines. Seems like less maintenance overall for a grounds keeping crew.
I walked around the two dugouts and behind the press box, passed the pitching bullpen area and into right field. I spotted some signage around the scoreboard and some numbers on the outfield wall. I felt a few rain drops so I hustled around the outfield fence to get a closer look at the numbers and the signage.
I recognized one name right away. ”Upton 2″ which was in a row also featuring “Lee 11” and “Cuddyer 24.” Upton, now would that be BJ Upton or Justin Upton? I made a mental note to look into that when I got home. Lee 11, not ringing any bells, but that was another one to research. As for the signage, Great Bridge had a ton of regional and state championship banner/signs up. State Championships in 2003 “We Made History” and 2011 “Giant Killers” in the Virginia AAA Division. Add to that, Eastern Regional Champions 1997, 2000, 2003, 2004, and 2011. I loved the scoreboard as well. Great looking outfield fence area there at Great Bridge.
It was a great visit to Great Bridge High School and the Wildcats Baseball Field. Some big time players have come out of this program, notably Michael Cuddyer, and from my research at home, both Upton brothers who played in Major League Baseball. The number 2 on the wall is for Justin Upton. The Lee 11 is for Coach Wiley Lee, who coached at Great Bridge from 1998-2011. You can see all three in this link from Great Bridge High School’s Hall of Fame page. And from what the man I met was saying about the next generation of talent, it looks like Great Bridge may have to add some space in the outfield for some additional championship signage.
On a personal note, I am happy to be healthy and writing and feeling pretty darn good here on my birthday, February 11th. Not too shabby for 52. Have a great day everyone.
The Rhiter 
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