Emerald's city first By Stephen Babich For The Pittsburgh Press Ben Pierce owes Kevin Saucier. Time will tell if Saucier ever comes to collect. The story is simple. On June 3, Pierce, a 1984 Penn Hills High School graduate, was selected in the 23rd round of major league baseball's free agent draft by the Kansas City Royals. It was then that he decided to forego his senior season at Birmingham-Southern College and join the Class A Eugene Emeralds in Oregon. Flashback to spring, 1985. Saucier, a former major league pitcher for the Phillies and Tigers, saw Pierce in Pensacola, Fla. while working for the Major League Scouting Bureau. At the time, Pierce was playing outfield for Saucier's old team - Pensacola Junior College. Pierce's arm landed him in the outfield but Saucier couldn't help noticing the youngster's lack of foot speed and told pitching coach Frank Slusher to use Pierce on the mound. A skeptical Pierce listened to stop for Penn just one run on two hits and d struck out 13. The next year at Birmingham his fastball was clocked at 90 mph. Pierce finished 2- 1 with a 2.65 ERA and 47 strikeouts in 40 innings. Pierce was playing for the Front Royal Cardinals, a Virginia team in the Shenandoah Summer League, when he was drafted. Nine of his teammates were also selected. "I had arthroscopic knee surgery this past April," Pierce said, "I had a lot of time to think about what I'd do if I was drafted. I wanted to grab it when I had a shot." The Eugene team is made up primarily of either draftees or second- to third-year players who have been injured in the past. A member of the Northwest League, the Emeralds' season is only 75 games long. The Royals top Class A team plays in Fort Myers, Florida - the season there lasts 144 games. "I'd like to be in Fort Myers by the beginning of next year," Pierce said, "And playing double-A ball in Memphis by the end of that year, depending on how well I do. By 1990, I'd like to be in Omaha playing Triple-A ball. Slusher, and reluctantly made the switch. Today, he has no regrets. "I wasn't sure about it at first," said Pierce, 21, who will be used in relief for Eugene. "I wanted to keep hitting but I also wanted to play pro ball. So I did what I had to.' Pierce, 6-0 and 185 pounds, was quite a slugger in high school, batting .421 with five home runs his senior season. He played first base and worked as a spot starter on the mound, where he went 3-1 with a 2.30 earned run average and 47 strikeouts in about 30 innings. He didn't pitch at all during the fall season at Pensacola. Nor did he throw in his first 10 games of the spring schedule. He did throw the remainder of the season in his reliefspot starter role and went 2-5. The following spring, Pierce did well enough to be recognized as one of Pensacola's top pitchers. He had a 3-1 record before straining the rotator cuff in his left shoulder, which sidelined him for nearly four weeks. He made it back in time to pitch seven innings in Pensacola's final two games of the season and gave up Hills grad I think I can be in the big leagues in 3 ½ years." Royals scout Ken Gonzales was responsible for signing Pierce. Gonzales' scouting area stretches from the Florida panhandle to Louisiana, and includes Arkansas and Tennessee to the north. "He's got a good delivery, balance and coordination," Gonzales said. "Like all young pitchers in pro ball, he has to tune up that delivery. He also needs to get command of his breaking stuff.' Pierce, who will pitch two-to-four innings every third day, has a good teacher at Eugene in pitching coach Guy Hansen. Hansen had a hand in developing Royals ace Bret Saberhagen. Eugene's home opener was last Tuesday evening. The Emeralds beat the Angels of Salem, Ore., 1-0. "We had over 7,000 people watching us," Pierce said. "It's exciting. Kids look up to us and the people are real supportive. My teammates all have the potential to play major league baseball. I've never been around so many quality players."