Mitch Canham is a fierce competitor, caring individual

Published 11:03 pm Wednesday, March 31, 2010

PEORIA, Ariz. — Eight minutes.

That’s how long it takes Mitch Canham to walk from his hotel room to the San Diego Padres minor-league locker room here at spring training.

Eight minutes.

It gives him time to think.

One morning last month, he was thinking about his fiance who had undergone an appendectomy the night before.

Canham’s former baseball coach at Oregon State University, Pat Casey, once told him that he always took a few minutes each morning to think about what he was grateful for.

So Canham on this morning said he was grateful to have Marlis Whitman in his life. He also thought about others who are close to him, his father, Mark, and his buddy Ryan MacBriar.

“I’m very blessed,” Canham said. “Not just to play baseball, but to be here, to have as many friends as I do. I get to go stay in a hotel, don’t have to pay for it, don’t have any worries in the world really. There are a lot of people out there who’ve got it a lot worse than I do. What do I have to complain about? ’Cause I’m not in the big leagues right now? Do I have that to complain about? No. I’m still working on it. I’ve got something that a lot of my friends envy. They’ve got a lot of things I envy.”

One thing his friends might envy is the perspective Mitch Canham brings to life.

His is a life that has known much glory and much sorrow in recent years.

His mother died during his freshman year of college. His younger brother, Dustin, died while serving in the Marines two years ago in Africa. Two months ago, he lost his grandmother and great grandmother.

Each of these people had an impact on his life. Each of them taught him something.

“There’s obviously a long period of pain and sorrow, but you’ve got to find a way to find any positive you can out of it and my positive from my brother was, he was a great man, even at the age of 21,” Canham said softly. “He taught me even though I was teaching him and so I try to be like him because he was about as close to perfect as you can get.”

His brother didn’t like baseball, Canham, a 25-year-old catcher out of Lake Stevens, said. But he inspired Mitch with his honesty and his upbeat attitude. “He helped me get where I’m going.”

Where he hopes to go, of course, is to the major leagues. Three seasons into his professional career after being the 57th overall selection in the 2007 draft, Canham has made steady progress toward that goal.

His numbers have been solid, with a cumulative .275 batting average and a .361 on-base percentage.

His best season, 2008, at Lake Elsinore in the high Class A California League, he batted .285 with eight home runs and 81 runs batted in. Perhaps the most stunning number, though, was the 13 stolen bases he had in 14 attempts.

As his manager last season at Class AA San Antonio, Terry Kennedy, observed, “He’s not just a good runner for a catcher. He’s a good runner.”

And a versatile athlete. That’s why Padres manager Bud Black told Canham to “make sure you bring all your gloves” to camp this spring.

The versatile athlete was about to expand his resume. The Padres are giving him a look at several positions besides catcher: third base, first base and left field. And rather than fight it, as some players might do, Canham was amenable to the idea.

“I’ve never been focused on ‘What about me?’ or ‘Why can’t I do this?’” he said. “I want to do what’s best for the team. And if they need me to run around and play different positions, I’ll do it.”

He’ll still catch, but his value to the organization might be as a “super utility guy,” Kennedy said. “He’s so athletic and so adjustable.”

Catching is the toughest position in baseball. The most demanding, physically and mentally. Canham didn’t take it up until his sophomore year of college. Then he led Oregon State to three consecutive College World Series appearances, the last two ending with championship trophies.

Canham was so confident the Beavers were going to win in 2006 that he and his long-time buddy, MacBriar, wrote a rap song — the “O-State Ballers” — before the tournament ever began, predicting an OSU championship. They wrote another one in 2007 — “Still Ballin’’’ — and again the Beavers prevailed in the championship game.

“I told guys from Day One that that’s what I wanted to do — win a national title,’’ Canham said.

Some scoffed at his boldness. Some took it to heart. All he had to do, he said, was get a couple of guys to buy into it.

“Then it spreads,’’ he said. “You’ve just got to keep pushing that idea and lead by example. It’s not about what you say. It’s about what you do, so that’s kind of the route I was taking.’’

Casey, the OSU coach, was recently looking over some questionnaires he had his players fill out at the end of fall practice during Canham’s sophomore year. While most players wrote that they thought the Beavers could have a good year or challenge for the Pac-10 title, Canham said that he wouldn’t be satisfied with anything but a national title. “Not only did he play the game right,’’ Casey said, “but he got other guys to follow.”

In answer to “Are you satisfied with your performance?’’ in fall practices, Canham replied that, no, he wasn’t satisfied. That he wanted the coaches to keep pushing him.

That was essentially the same answer he gave when recently asked if he was satisfied with the progress he’s made thus far in professional baseball. “No,” he said, “the way I look at it is I want to be a big-league all-star. I’ve always been taught and I’ve always kind of pushed myself to dream for the very best or don’t do it at all. So until I get there, I’m going to keep grinding and when I get there, I’ll be setting my goals even higher.”

This year, he and MacBriar are teaming to write a song for the Padres (they also created one last season). They talk on the phone every day, goading one another to be better at what they do. “I push him when it comes to music,” Canham said, “and he pushes me when it comes to going to the gym, eating right and all that.

“If I’m slipping, he picks me up. If he’s slipping, I pick him up. That’s all about relationships and having those kind of people in your life. That’s why it’s important to be good to other people because they’ll help you when you’re down and you need to turn around and help them.”

Character: Mitch Canham has it in spades.

“He’s a warrior on the field,” Casey said, “and he’s always caring for people off the field.”

Competitive and caring: a pretty nice combination.