At home in center field

Dane Yelovich beats the odds with each game

MOSES LAKE - Thousands of miles and several states away from his family, Dane Yelovich has grown accustomed to the separation.

He is pursuing a dream. One that makes his home on a baseball diamond, playing center field for the Moses Lake Pirates baseball team.

Since his childhood Yelovich has dreamed of the "big leagues."

"I started playing baseball when I was 4 years old," smiles Yelovich. "Whatever age you were first allowed to play."

He has come a long way since his days of T-ball, but not without his fair share of obstacles.

As a sophomore in high school Yelovich was diagnosed with Graves' disease, an immune disease that attacks the thyroid gland causing overproduction of thyroid hormone.

The disease stunted Yelovich's growth, and caused problems with his eyesight.

"It made everything harder for me, because I was smaller, but I learned not to get intimidated by bigger people," laughed Yelovich, glancing in the direction of his 6-foot-8-inch host parent Ryan Raymond.

Battling Graves' disease didn't daunt Yelovich's determination to play collegiate baseball after high school.

"My dream had always been to play division one baseball, and so I had to find a way to do that on my own," said Yelovich.

After graduation he threw himself into finding a school interested in his talents. After two years of playing at lower division schools, Yelovich's dream came true.

The call came from Kansas State University, a member of the Big 12 Conference, where Yelovich was offered a walk-on position.

During his first year at KSU, he was awarded the "most improved" and "best hustle" awards by piers.

After finishing up a solid year at KSU, Yelovich's college coach placed him in Washington to play summer ball for the Pirates.

"So far it's been a blast," he said about the season.

Yelovich "knew of" some of his teammates prior to coming to Moses Lake and said that they are having fun getting to know each other. One surprise was when he found out that the Pirates head coach Trevor Brown, is also a coach for KSU's biggest rival.

"He's going to have an advantage with me next year," smiled Yelovich.

When asked about the season Yelovich is optimistic.

"We have the talent to make it into the playoffs, and make it into the championship," he said. "We just have to play consistent."

Playing for the Pirates gives Yelovich a chance to fine-tune his skills and hopefully catch the eyes of a few pro scouts.

"A goal of mine is to keep playing as far as I can," he said with a smile.

If Yelovich continues to reach his goals, maybe someday his name will be in lights over center field.

Schedule for ML Pirates at www.mlpirates.com