West Orange HS alum Alex Gouin’s faith rewarded as he gets a chance in Arizona Diamondbacks minor league system

WEST ORANGE – For Alex Gouin, it was all about keeping the faith.

A top-notch pitcher, Gouin appeared on his way to getting drafted by a Major League Baseball team out of the University of Hartford.

But that path was derailed after he suffered a foot injury. Gouin then had a setback with the same injury. There was some workouts in front of a few MLB scouts, but Gouin was left without a contract.

Gouin, though, persevered. The former West Orange High School standout hooked up with the independent Rockland Boulders in Rockland, N.Y., getting his first taste of professional ball.

A healthy Gouin was back in form.

This season, in the middle of his second year with the team, he got the call. On July 3, the Arizona Diamondbacks bought his contract from the Boulders.

Gouin was in the locker room, after throwing a bullpen session –  he scheduled to start against Quebec on Wednesday, July 7 – when  Boulders manager Jamie Keefe called him into his office.

In Gouin’s mind, these kind of meetings could go either way. It could mean that you are either traded or released, or that you will be going to an affiliated minor league team.

Gouin recalled seeing Keefe’s poker face. All of the coaches were in the office.

Then came the good news.

Gouin, as his demeanor, admits he doesn’t get too high or too low about things. But inside, he said he was simply overjoyed and in disbelief, all at once, when he was informed about his new opportunity.

Gouin immediately thought about his family. He would have to leave behind his family and girlfriend after joining the Diamondbacks’ Single A affiliate in Hillsboro, Ore. in the Northwest League. But he knew that they would be so supportive and thrilled for him.

Gouin also thought about all his hard work and faith.

“It makes things much sweeter,” said the 24-year-old right-hander in a July 12 telephone interview from Oregon. “Instead of having a chance to get drafted right out of college, I kind of had to go through a few workouts and heal my foot two times. That hard work (I) put in, it made it a lot sweeter.”

When Gouin arrived in Oregon, he had to get used to the time-zone change. There also was a ton of paperwork to complete, and new faces.

But he was anxious to get on the mound.

Gouin’s debut with the Hillsboro Hops was a success. He started and got the win, pitching seven innings and allowing just two runs on five hits and two walks, striking out 11, in the 10-2 victory over Eugene, Ore. on Sunday, July 10.   

“Once you take part in a game, you feel like a part of the team,” said Gouin about his debut. “I was just waiting for that moment. I was anxious to get that first outing out of the way. Leading up to the game, I was anxious. I was ready to go. I really didn’t think too much of it. I didn’t put too much of a burden on my shoulders. I just kind of wanted to go and see what I got and be able to compete. I felt really good from the beginning.”

The Hops are managed by former New York Yankee Shelley Duncan.

Gouin’s stay with Hillsboro, though, didn’t last long. The Diamondbacks immediately sent him to the Missoula Osprey in Montana, their other Single A team, in the Pioneer League. Gouin made his debut with the Osprey on Saturday, July 16. Unfortunately, he took the loss against the Ogden Raptors, 5-2.

Though he is now in the Diamondbacks’ minor league system, Gouin still checks up on his old team, the Boulders.

Gouin said playing for the Boulders “was one of the coolest experiences I have ever had.” Though most of his teammates weren’t from the area and lived in local dorms, Gouin conventionally was able to drive just about 40 minutes to the ballpark from his hometown of West Orange.

Gouin particularly was grateful for the guidance from his manager and coaches.

“The coaching staff is unbelievable,” he said. “I couldn’t have asked for a better manager in Jamie Keefe. He was awesome; really just a player’s coach. He really cares about you and your well-being. He pushes for you. He will go to any extremity to help you out.”

Gouin also valued the lessons he learned from the older veterans on the team, guys who played in Triple-A and in the Majors.

“I was able to learn a lot,” Gouin said. “I was able to polish some pitches. Sometimes you learn the best from players. You’re doing the same things and you share the same interests. You just learn better…”

Gouin’s pitching repertoire consists of a four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, change-up, curve ball, cutter and splitter.

Gouin, who came to the United States from Cuba at the age of 9, will always cherish his roots in West Orange.

Incidentally, WOHS head coach Stephan Zichella first saw Gouin when Gouin played for the Roosevelt Middle School baseball team. Zichella, at the time, was the baseball coach at Liberty Middle School, so he coached against Gouin.

The next year, Zichella made his debut as the WOHS head coach. That same year, Gouin was a freshman for the Mountaineers.

Gouin was still developing physically, but Zichella knew he had a phenom in the making. In his freshman year, Gouin was the No. 2 pitcher on the team.

“To see him immediately come in and make an impact on our varsity program was great to watch and see him develop,” said Zichella, who completed his 10th year as the Mountaineers head coach this past spring. “Every year he had a great season. He did have a major setback in his junior year. He tore his ACL and lost 75 percent of his junior year. To even come back and battle his way back and get back to the field as a senior was a challenge in itself, and he really impressed.”

Gouin, in fact, was named the Worrall Community Newspapers All-Area Baseball Player of the Year in his senior year in 2010.

Gouin received a near full scholarship to Hartford. In his senior year at Hartford, he set the school single-season record for saves. But halfway through that year, he suffered a foot injury. He injured it again. Gouin was at a crossroads. However, he knew things would work out.

To Zichella, it’s not surprising to see Gouin recover and get back on his road to achieving his Major League dream one day.

But more important, Gouin was the consummate teammate.

“He has really overcome a lot of challenges to become the player that he is,” Zichella said. “For us, he was one of the high character individuals that I have coached. He always cared. He was a fantastic teammate to the players that played alongside of him. He always saw the good in everything, but certainly his team, and the coaches and program. He really helped us become among the most competitive teams that we’ve had.”

While he was pitching for the Boulders, Gouin would always visit WOHS where he would train with his former teammate, AJ Flores.

Gouin, indeed, became an inspiration to the current WOHS players.

“All of our players, even today, knew who Alex is, and he comes by, and talks to the kids,” said Zichella. “Six years after he graduated, all of our players follow him. He’s still a link to our program. It means a lot to us.”

Zichella and WOHS assistant baseball coach Jay Tiseo also mean a lot to Gouin.

“Those two made baseball very fun,” said Gouin of Zichella and Tiseo. After leaving WOHS to coach at Glen Ridge HS for a few years, Tiseo came back to WOHS as Zichella’s assistant this past spring. “They’re great people,” Gouin added. “They really care about not just developing baseball players, but developing good men of character. That was very big.”

Gouin eventually hopes to move up the ladder in the minor league system, going to Double A. But for now, Gouin wants to keep getting better.

“In the short term, I want to keep proving myself; show the organization that I am capable of competing and doing what I’m supposed to do and doing a good job. I am confident in the ability that I have to do,” he said.

In the offseason, Gouin plans on returning to West Orange and is thinking about getting a job in his field of study. He studied economics and finance at Hartford and previously worked for a mortgage loan company.

But make no mistake, he will always remember that it was his faith and optimism that helped him to get to where he is today.

“My secret weapon is my confidence in God and (my ability to) overcome those obstacles,” he said.