Even Nick Capra doesn’t quite know why he became such a baseball junkie.
Looking back on his playing career that ended in 1995, he wonders why he played for 17 years, almost all of them in the minor leagues.
“I might have been stupid to play that long,” Capra said from his manager’s chair at Kannapolis, N.C., the Single-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox in the South Atlantic League. “My body tells me I might have done it too long because of two shoulder surgeries. But I enjoyed just being involved in the game. I always kept my desire to be in the big leagues, and I did get a little bit of time.”
After playing at Denver’s Lincoln High School, Lamar Junior College and the University of Oklahoma, Capra entered pro baseball in 1979 as a draft choice of the Texas Rangers. For 15 of his 17 professional years, he played in Triple-A, including a stop with the Denver Bears in 1982.
“I signed as a second baseman, but I played every infield position except catcher,” Capra said. “I even got a pitching victory when I was in the Cincinnati organization.”
Capra’s major-league memories aren’t extensive, although he did get off to a fast start. His first major-league hit was a home run in 1982 after he was called up to the Rangers.
That was his only big-league home run and only RBI in 45 big-league games with the Rangers and Kansas City Royals.
Capra doesn’t dwell on what might have been, nor does he think his 5-foot-8, 165-pound frame was a drawback in the big leagues. He appreciates what he was able to do.
“I’m probably close to some minor-league records,” Capra said. “I know I had close to 2,000 hits.”
As a minor-league manager, Capra is well-traveled, too. He has moved through the White Sox system from Bristol, Va., for Rookie League ball, to Triple-A Charlotte and back to Kannapolis.
“I think our younger players trust him because they know he has a lot of experience in baseball,” said Randy Long, associate general manager at Kannapolis. “They know he has been where they are and can help them get through a long season. They probably listen to him a little more because he was in Triple-A last year.”
When Capra looks back on his life in baseball, he feels blessed he was at the right place at the right time. It started in 1976 when his play in a high school all-star game sponsored by The Denver Post drew the attention of major-league scouts in attendance.
“After the all-star game I started to hear talk about being drafted,” he said. “I thought they were talking about the military.”
The attention came from the Montreal Expos.Capra went off to college and didn’t sign a pro contract for another three years. But once his name was on the dotted line, he became a baseball lifer.
