Orioles starting pitcher Shane Baz recently chatted with PressBox about what he’d be if he weren’t a ballplayer, a bucket-list place he’s never been and more. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound right-hander is 4-13 with a 4.02 ERA and has struck out 132 batters in 145.2 innings this year. A native of Houston, Baz was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first round of the 2017 MLB Draft. The 27-year-old was traded to Baltimore by the Tampa Bay Rays last offseason.
PressBox: Who was your favorite sports star when you were a kid?
Shane Baz: I loved Roy Oswalt. I liked Morgan Ensberg a lot. I got to actually play for [Ensberg] with Tampa in the minor leagues.
PB: What would you be if you weren’t a ballplayer?
SB: I’d be doing something with landscaping. That was always the backup plan. My dad’s been a landscaper my whole life, so maybe running a nursery or trying to start my own landscaping company or something like that.
PB: What’s your favorite thing to do on a day off?
SB: Play with my dog and … and eat dinner somewhere.
PB: What’s your favorite movie or TV show of all time?
SB: “Eastbound & Down”
PB: Is there an exercise you hate doing?
SB: Long distance running
PB: What book are you currently reading or what is last book you read?
SB: “The Hidden Messages in Water”
PB: What’s a bucket-list place you’ve never been?
SB: Costa Rica. I’m supposed to go this offseason, so I’m looking forward to that.
PB: What’s your favorite thing about Baltimore?
SB: I honestly love my little commute to work. I like being by the water. You know, the people have been awesome. The ballpark’s amazing. The food’s been surprising.
PB: What’s your favorite “guilty” food?
SB: Chicken-fried steak. I could eat it probably every day, but I try not to.
PB: What’s a habit you have that you wish you didn’t?
SB: Staying up a little too late. It’s hard to get to bed before midnight just with the sleep schedule and changing time zones.
Photo Credit: Colin Murphy/PressBox