Star photo by Julie Lewis Schenectady native Casper Wells takes batting practice against Oneonta Tigers coach Basilio Cabrera after rain stopped Monday afternoon at Damaschke Field in Oneonta. Rain abbreviated the O-Tigers first full workout at Damaschke Field on Monday. The O-Tigers open play in the New York-Penn League at 7 tonight at Tri-City, then host the ValleyCats at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

O-TIGERS 2006

Mike Spier

Contributing Writer

ONEONTA — Chris Cody is back where it all began.

Give or take a few miles.

Left-handed pitcher Cody, 22, will start his professional baseball career tonight as a member of the Oneonta Tigers, who open their 2006 New York-Penn League schedule at 7 p.m. on the road against the Tri-City ValleyCats.

[an error occurred while processing this directive]Right-hander Matt O’Brien will start for the O-Tigers tonight, meaning Cody has a decent chance of making his minor league debut about 12 miles away from his roots.

Brewster native Cody, whose parents graduated from Davenport, earned a spot in the six-man rotation for the O-Tigers. After tonight, Oneonta is home at Damaschke Field for four of its next five games.

"I couldn’t be happier with the situation I’m in right now," said Cody, 14 days removed from his eighth-round selection by Detroit in the First-Year Player Draft.

"Growing up, I remember spending weeks at a time at my grandparents’ house in Davenport," Cody continued. "Both my parents grew up in Davenport, and my mother went to SUNY Oneonta."

Cody played his last college baseball game June 2, leading the Manhattan Jaspers to a 4-1 upset of sixth-seeded Nebraska in the first round of the NCAA Division I Lincoln regionals. Cody threw 142 pitches in his ninth complete game of the season, striking out seven and walking one in an eight-hitter.

"I feel like I’m very fortunate to end my college career the way I did," said Cody, whose Jaspers fell, 10-4, to Miami in the June 4 regional final. "We won our conference championship and we had a couple of great wins in the NCAA regionals."

Cody went 12-2 with a 1.42 ERA as a senior for the Jaspers, striking out 105 in 108 innings. Despite the solid stats, Cody said he felt antsy while he and his family sat at a computer and waited for his name to appear among the selections on draft day.

"I knew that Detroit had their short-season farm team here, and when I saw my name next to the Detroit logo on draft day, it was extra special," said Cody, the 232nd pick overall who has several relatives in the Davenport area. "I can’t wait to start my professional career in a comfortable environment where I’m going to be seen by people that I love."

He’s been here before, too.

"I remember coming to the games when they were still the Oneonta Yankees and chasing foul balls," Cody said, recalling his childhood. "I was young at that point, and I actually still have a program from when Jorge Posada was the catcher. I kind of treasure that now that he’s close to the end of his career.

"I didn’t really understand the level (Oneonta) was at, or how far away those guys were from being away from Yankee Stadium, but I didn’t really care," he continued. "It was quality baseball, and it’s amazing that now I’m going to be playing on the field that I was watching when I was a kid."

If he’s still around at the end of the season, Cody will have a chance to touch base with his Brewster relatives as well. The O-Tigers close their 2006 schedule with three games at Hudson Valley, which plays fewer than 30 miles away from Brewster.

"It’s going to be like a home away from home for me," said Cody, whose college buddies might get a chance to say hello when the O-Tigers play at Brooklyn from July 18-20 and at Staten Island from Sept. 2-4. "It’s like a storybook beginning to my career. Hopefully, I can have a good start and see where I go from there."

O-Tigers teammate Casper Wells can probably relate.

Outfielder Wells, who played in the Gulf Coast League last season, is expected to be the designated hitter tonight against the ValleyCats. With Tri-City’s ballpark located in Troy, Wells will make his NY-Penn debut about 15 miles from his hometown of Schenectady.

"It’s great to finally be here," Wells said. "Last year, I didn’t get the chance to come up here. It’s a great opportunity for me to be up here and close to home."

Wells may feel some added pressure tonight, though, as he batted .220 in 45 games for the GCL Tigers last season.

"Actually, it makes me a little nervous," he said. "But I’ll feel better because I’ll have the support of my family here if I have a bad game."

Second-year O-Tigers manager Tom Brookens said having two players with local ties could boost attendance at Damaschke Field, which traditionally is among the lowest in the NY-Penn.

"Any time we can get a few more fans, that’s a plus," Brookens said. "I’m sure it’s nice for them to be fairly close and to have family and friends who can jump in the vehicle and just run down and see the game if they feel like it. I think there’s a plus to that side."

Said O-Tigers owner Sam Nader: "We could certainly use a little more interest for the local fans, and it’s very good to see someone with connections in the area succeeding."

— Daily Star sportswriter P.J. Harmer contributed to this story.