Like the signature he burns into the handles of the hunting knives he makes as a hobby, Cody Strait gets “STR 8” to the point for one reason — he plays professional baseball.
“I try to be a trailblazer with my teammates and the places that I go. I want to help them grow in the Lord and do something to try to set a good example. I want to be a spiritual role model,” said Strait, an outfielder with the Montgomery Biscuits during part of the 2009 and 2010 seasons.
And oh, the places he has gone. During his seven-year career in minor league baseball, the 27-year-old has been on the roster of nine teams.
“That is pretty much the story of a minor leaguer. I have never started on one team and finished on the (same) team in the seven years I have played baseball. You’ve got to be flexible,” said Strait, a .253 career hitter.
Where he will play in 2011 is undecided. “We’ll see which way God wants us to go.”
Strait made the Texas League all-star team in 2009 as a member of the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. While at the University of Evansville in Indiana, he was the 2004 Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Newcomer of the Year and a MVC all-star. He was drafted in the 12th round of the First-Year Player Draft in 2004 by the Cincinnati Reds.
His vagabond career has included stops in Wilmington, Del.; Chattanooga, Tenn.; and Lake County, Ill., in 2010 after he was released by Montgomery, a Double-A Tampa Bay Rays affiliate in the Southern League. In his last at-bat for Lake County, Strait had the game-winning hit with two outs in the bottom of the 11th inning.
Staying on the straight and narrow path in the world of professional baseball requires discipline that he finds in the Bible, prayer and encouragement from his wife, Melissa.
In December 2008, Strait found another way: becoming a parent. Son Asher was born Dec. 5.
“Since I became a father, I understand now the type of love God had for His Son. For Him to give up His Son on the cross, that is a whole other level of love for me. I put myself in God’s shoes, and wow, how would I ever give up my son? It’s a new level of appreciation for what God did.”
Strait has appreciated the father-son bond ever since his father, B.D. Strait, of Sour Lake, Texas, put a bat in his hand in the backyard.
Strait’s ability has taken him to the brink of the major leagues.
“To get to the big leagues, you have to be a complete player. Some things get you in the door. You have to know the game and know the situation,” Strait said.
The game’s most important, yet hardest, aspect is hitting.
“How I’m playing is pretty much based on how I think I’m playing. If I think I’m hitting good, chances are I am that day. The mind is a powerful thing. In spring training, I get to rub shoulders with superstars like Ken Griffey Jr. The surprising thing is they don’t have any more tools than I do; they have been able to perform on a more consistent basis than I have,” Strait said.
There was a time when he thought he was inconsistent in his spiritual life and realized he had to step up to the plate.
While at Ranger College in Texas, Strait said pitcher Kelsey Cates showed him how a Christian should act. Strait grew up in Pinewood Baptist Church, Sour Lake.
“I played the good-guy role. I went to church but I didn’t really live like a Christian. Life revolved around me. The decisions I made were based on my own desires. Although I seemed happy with the way my life was going, I knew something was missing. I had a choice to make. Was I going to continue to live for myself, or would I start living the life God intended for me? When you claim to be a Christian, everybody looks at you that much closer; they are trying to find faults with you,” he said.
His coach at Ranger, Brent Leffingwell, began to notice a difference in him not only in his game but also in his spiritual life.
Strait became, well, straightforward. He spoke about his faith. “He lived up to his end of being a Christian. He lived by example. He’s a true Christian. He’s a firm believer. Not many people can live it. People can say it but not live it. Cody never worried about anything on the field or in his life because he knew there was Someone looking over him,” said Leffingwell, who no longer coaches the team.
Strait’s strong leadership, strong will to win and focus sparked success.
“He was scared of nothing and would face any challenge,” Leffingwell said.
Strait put a cap on his faith challenges. Former Chattanooga teammate Justin Turner pointed to Strait’s baseball cap when asked about Strait’s faith. Written inside is “Number 7 To God Be The Glory.”
Armed with a Bible in his pocket, Strait hands out baseball cards at games with Luke 9:24 printed on them: “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.”
In Montgomery, he works with youth at Christ Community Church and manages the apartment complex where members of the Biscuits team live during the season. During the off-season in 2009, Strait was youth minister at First Assembly of God, Marble Falls, Texas.
If he makes his mark in the majors, then it will be because of God, he said. “God is making sure I’m not putting that before Him. God wants to be more important than baseball.”
Strait’s attitude remains positive.
“My strength comes from the Lord. At the end of the day, no matter how I did or if everything is falling apart in my life, it’s going to be great because I always have the Lord. He is there with me, blessing me and enjoying it with me,” he said.
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