‘Trust the process’
Curtis Washington Jr. shares his journey from the Blue Devils to professional baseball
By RALPH HARDIN
ralphhardin@gmail.com
Former West Memphis Blue Devil and Arkansas Razorback turned member of the Seattle Mariners Major League Baseball organization Curtis Washington Jr. is in town for the offseason and is hoping to connect with the local youth to promote the sport he loves.
Washington is hosting what he hopes is the _rst of many “Gotta Believe” Youth Baseball Camps this weekend, Saturday, Oct. 5, at Tilden Rodgers Park, in West Memphis, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The camp is open to players of all skill levels, from ages 7 to 16, and is sponsored by Whey Good. The cost of the camp is $65 per person. There is an opportunity to attend for free, but time is running out.
Make a 15-to-30 second video explaining why you want to attend the baseball camp and play baseball. The video can be sent to West Memphis Athletic Director Mike Dobbins at mdobbins@ wmsd.net. The video must be received by 8 a.m., Thursday, Oct. 3.
Washington took some time Monday afternoon to visit his alma mater and speak to the current crop of West Memphis Blue Devil baseball players.
His baseball philosophy: “Trust the process.”
See WASHINGTON, page A2
Curtis Washington Jr. (back row, center) is back in West Memphis this week ahead of his first-ever youth baseball clinic this weekend. Washington spent some time with the current West Memphis Blue Devil baseball team on Monday.
Photo by Ralph Hardin WASHINGTON
From page A1
“Baseball is a game of failure,” Washington said, explaining how games where you go 0-for-4 or don’t get the playing time you want are just part of the game. Indeed, there’s an old adage that failing to get a hit 70 percent of the time will still get you into the Hall of Fame.
“But if you stick with it,” he said, “and are determined to succeed, you can make it.”
Washington certainly was determined in his playing career, beginning as a member of the West Memphis Blue Devils. He then went on to play for his “dream school,” the University of Arkansas.
With several more experienced players on the Razorback squad, Washington found himself playing a secondary role in Fayetteville.
“I could have gotten frustrated with my playing time,” he said, “but I did my part and did my best every opportunity I was given.”
Eventually, however, Washington decided to try to improve his chances elsewhere, eventually transferring to Wabash Valley College in Mount Carmel, Illinois.
“How many of you know where that is?” Washington asked the team. No one raised their hands.
“That right,” he said, smiling. “It’s about a six-hour drive from there to Fayetteville, but I had the coaches there come and scout me and I was able to go there, where I had a chance to play every day.”
That chance became an even greater opportunity. The additional exposure put Washington on the radar of the Purdue University baseball program.
“Playing at Wabash Valley got me noticed and I was able to go and play for Purdue,” he said.
Washington finished his college playing career as a Boilermaker. Then it was just a matter of seeing if he had caught the eye of any Major League Baseball scouts or management.
“We were watching the draft,” he said. “And it went on and it went on and we didn’t hear my name. It was getting pretty late in the draft and I was thinking, ‘I’m not going to get drafted.’” But then the call came. “I found out during the 18th round that the Seattle Mariners were going to draft me in the 19th round,” he said. “And that’s when it happened.”
Washington reported this past spring to the Mariners’ instructional league in Arizona for Spring Training. He had a minor setback with a strained oblique early in the spring but eventually spent most of the season with the Modesto Nuts, the Mariners Single-A Minor League Baseball team, where he recorded 35 hits, 2 home runs and 12 stolen bases in the 2024 season, which ended in September.
“I’ll be home for a couple of months for the offseason,” he said, “before I go back for the fall and start getting ready for next season.”
Washington, a right-handed hitting, right-handed throwing outfielder, encouraged the Blue Devil players to pursue the opportunities that baseball brings. He is already earning recognition with the Mariners organization. Washington was recently given the Dan Wilson Community Service Award. Named after Mariners’ owner, the Dan Wilson Award is awarded to just one player in the Mariners farm system for a player’s commitment to their community.
“I got to go to my dream school, but it didn’t work out,” he said. “So, I looked for an opportunity elsewhere. You can work hard and make it happen.”
LEFT: Washington shares his journey from West Memphis high school player to professional baseball with the Blue Devil baseball team. CENTER: “Once a Blue Devil, always a Blue Devil.” Curtis Washington Jr. had a long and winding road but was able to fulfill his dreams and become a professional baseball player.
Photos by Ralph Hardin
Washington was the recipient of the 2024 Dan Wilson Award, given to the player in the Mariners farm system who shows the greatest commitment to their community.
Submitted photo
