More on Mancini

When Orioles manager Buck Showalter posts his lineup for Tuesday night's game against the Tigers in Detroit, Trey Mancini won't be the first name listed. His leadoff days are, at the least, put on hold.

Mancini hadn't hit first at any stage of his life, from Little League to professional ball, until April 19 in Cincinnati. No designated hitter in a National League ballpark, limited options for the manager. Mancini joked that if people saw photos of him as a kid, they wouldn't ask whether he had past experience atop the order.

"I was a pretty hefty youngster there," he said, drawing laughter from reporters who sought his reaction and a backstory.

Mancini isn't just sharing his self-deprecating humor. His former hitting instructor, dating back to age 12 in Winter Haven, Fla., referred to him as "a pudgy little dude."

"And then all of a sudden like a lot of us at that age at 12 and 13, he started shooting up and you could start seeing now not only the strength but the athleticism," said Blake Doyle, who later served as the Rockies' hitting coach from 2013-2016.

"The great thing about Trey right now is that he's not letting the game speed up on him. He's taking his time. The reason he hit leadoff, and I can look into Buck's thoughts, at the time he was leading the team in on-base percentage. You have so many bangers and all of a sudden you get another good bat. That's a hitter that was hot and it was a National League game, of course. That's not an unusual move.

"But what Trey's doing right now, if you go back and look, he doesn't have any empty at-bats. He grinds every at-bat. He'll go deep a lot of times. There's rarely a full give up swing. And he knows what his role is and what his job is."

Doyle, who's paying close attention to his former pupil, uses as exhibit A an at-bat on May 6 against the White Sox at Camden Yards.

"With Trumbo on second base and nobody out, he was taking a shot at the big part of the field, not to give himself up and just to get Trumbo over to third base, but also to drive him in using the big part of the field," Doyle said. "He took a couple shots that way and it didn't work, so he reacted to an inside pitch, that ball was off the plate inside, and hit a home run.

"He's letting the game come to him now and it's a difficult situation right now. You've got a young man and he's recognized his role that has never sat, you know? This is the first time in his life that he has sat three games and played one, sat two games and played two. That's a difficult situation in the highest league, and he's taken on a role and obviously he's adjusting very well to it."

Mancini's support system has room for hitting coaches and a large family that's cheered him from the stands as he slugged eight home runs in his first 17 major league games to join exclusive company.

"Yeah, it's great," he said. "My parents and two sisters, one older and one younger, who have been there for me. To be able to kind of pay them back for all their sacrifices over the years with making it and living out my dream probably makes me happier than anything."

Mancini is the latest Notre Dame alum to reach the majors, the roll call including current Brewers manager Craig Counsell, Jeff Samardzija, John Axford, A.J. Pollock, David Phelps and Jeff Manship, who's now pitching in Korea.

The Orioles would love for pitcher Pat Connaughton, their fourth-round pick in 2014 who received a $428,000 signing bonus, to join the list. His rookie deal with the NBA's Portland Trailblazers has expired, one year after he threw for the Orioles at extended spring training.

"Once in a while they ask if I've talked to him, and I have," Mancini said. "I don't know what his deal is right now. His rookie contract is up, so I can see him taking his career either way. I wouldn't be surprised. I'm sure he'll probably explore the basketball market and see what's available, but I really do firmly believe that he'll be back playing baseball at some point.

"He's extremely talented. Just raw talent. Played with him for two years in college. He's got some really good stuff. He was playing two sports in college and fully committed to basketball and baseball. It's a lot of work and talent-wise he was one of the best pitchers I've seen, just pure stuff. If he focuses on that, I think the sky's the limit for him. He still works at it pretty hard."