^{An Andrew Good autographed 2000 Bowman Chrome card.}

Long ago when I was a relatively youthful sports writer for The Oakland (MI) Press, my primary beat for a two years was covering local sports in the Oakland County communities of Rochester and Troy.

I was blessed during my time on the beat to have a plethora of top-notch student athletes (and coaches) to cover. Among them was a young pitcher for Rochester High School named Andrew Good.

He was playing for the Falcons’ varsity as a freshman and baffling the opposition with a mix of an upper 80 mph fastball and a curve ball that made even some of the best hitters look silly at times. He continued to develop as a sophomore and by his junior season was the unquestioned ace of the staff that wound up winning the Michigan Class A State Championship.

By the time he was a senior I was back in school studying to become a teacher, but I kept an eye on what he was doing and was aware he’d accepted a scholarship offer to Arizona State University, a top-end college program that finished runner up in the 1998 Men’s College World Series and was coached at the time by current Milwaukee Brewers‘ manager Pat Murphy. He became an eighth-round selection in the 1998 MLB Entry Draft by the expansion Arizona Diamondbacks and decided to forego his college eligibility to sign a professional contract.

The Internet not being what it is today, I sort of lost track of him, but was aware he’d made it to the Big Leagues and event pitched in a couple of games for his hometown Detroit Tigers.

Flash forward several years and I’m a teacher and union leader in the very same school district (Rochester) that Andrew graduated from. Imagine my surprise when I saw the rolls of new hires and spotted his name on the list, teaching fifth grade at an elementary school.

Suffice to say it was a fun small world moment the first time we were in a professional development together. That he’s now teaching middle school social studies at the building I first taught at is pretty cool.

I was intentional in not discussing Andrew’s former life as professional baseball player while we were school district colleagues. This Conversation is the first he and I have discussed his baseball life. I hope you find it as fascinating as I did.