Thanksgiving dinner is likely to seem especially tasty for onetime American Association hurler Bo Schultz since news arrived Wednesday that he had been added to the Arizona Diamondbacks’ 40-man roster after a strong showing in the Arizona Fall League. The 28-year-old righty and Northwestern journalism grad, who was mostly a bullpen contributor (4-3, 4.13 in 37 appearances) while helping Grand Prairie, TX win the Association title in 2011, went 3-0 with a 3.09 earned run average in seven starts in the AFL after both starting and relieving for the D-Backs’ top two farm clubs this summer.
The one time Oakland Athletics farmhand Bo Schultz is a long shot at best to make the parent club. The one time Kane County Cougars hurler went undrafted after a senior season at Northwestern in which he went 3-8 with a 9.23 ERA. His junior year wasn’t much better, as he produced a line reading 0-2 with a 8.82 ERA in 17 appearances.
However, one Wednesday night in 2010, as he got to pitch in a big league park, as part of the “Road to Wrigley,” an annual Minor League game pitting the Cougars against the Cubs’ affiliate, the Peoria Chiefs.
“Luckily, I got a chance to get out there and it was pretty cool. I’ve been at a loss for words the entire day,” Schultz said of the experience.
During his time at Northwestern, Schultz became a Chicago Cubs die-hard. “It’s one of those things where you just jump into the culture, just being a short L ride away definitely pretty easy to facilitate,” he stated.
Schultz is originally from Texas, but his mom is from the North Shore. Chicago is definitely home to him these days, and Northwestern football is truly in his heart. Bo Schultz said in 2010:
“The team is on the up and up and getting better and better recruiting classes. Coach Fitz is doing a great job with the team. Every year people try to spit on Northwestern, put them at the bottom of the Big Ten, but every year they have one or two big upsets,” Bo Schultz said.
(This is an excerpt from the column Bob Wirz writes year round on Independent Baseball. Forty columns are planned during 2013. Fans may subscribe at reduced rates atWirzandAssociates.com, enjoy added stories on the blog IndyBaseballChatter.com, or comment to RWirz@aol.com. The author has 16 years of major league baseball public relations experience with Kansas City and as spokesman for two Commissioners and lives in Stratford, CT.)
Paul M. Banks is the owner of The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports. He’s also an analyst for multiple news talk radio stations across the country; with regular weekly segments on NBC and Fox Sports Radio. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks) and RSS Catch him Tuesdays talking Illini and Northwestern for KOZN 1620 The Zone, Fridays talking Chicago Bears for WAOR 95.7 The Fan