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People SearchFind an individual who either played a sport or was a member of a support group. Search by last name by clicking on the first letter of the person's last name.
Mr. Philip Devey
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Home Phone: -- Ex-Cajun ace Devey playing for home nation August 18, 2004 – Pitcher wastes no time accepting Canadian offer August 18, 2004 Last Tuesday, Phil Devey was in his San Antonio apartment, planning to sleep in and prepare for his next start for the Texas League’s San Antonio Missions. Today, he’s in Athens, Greece, and is on one of the two unbeaten teams in the Olympic baseball competition. It’s been a busy week. “The phone rang, they told me to pack my stuff and they had plane tickets waiting for me,” Devey said. “I got here Thursday, and it’s been non-stop since then.” “They” were the Canadian Olympic Committee, which put the former UL Lafayette standout on his home country’s baseball roster as a late replacement one week ago. He left San Antonio Wednesday, arrived in Athens on Thursday and went through Opening Ceremonies Friday while sandwiching in practice sessions and workouts. His Canadian team is 3-0 in the eight-team Olympic tournament, having beaten Chinese Taipei 7-0, Italy 9-3 and The Netherlands 7-0. They’ll play the host Greece team, considered the worst team in the event, today. Devey, who as a lefthanded pitcher came south to hurl the Ragin’ Cajuns to two Sun Belt Conference titles and three NCAA Tournament appearances, hasn’t seen action yet. But his time’s likely coming, with the Canadians getting ready to face the three pre-tournament favorites in Japan, Cuba and Australia. “We’re really deep pitching-wise on this team,” Devey said. “Since I was a late add, I don’t know what my role is going to be. This is a good baseball team. We’ve got two good setup men and a solid closer, and 10 or 11 guys with big league experience.” While waiting for a pitching assignment, he’s making the most of his unexpected Olympic experience. “It’s been awesome,” Devey said. “I got here in time for the Opening Ceremonies, and just to walk into that stadium, with 80,000 people there and all the athletes from all the countries, it was quite an experience. “I got to meet Yao Ming, I got my picture taken with Tim Duncan and Allen Iverson, Martina Navratilova, Rulon Gardner. It was pretty amazing.” His biggest thrill was one he had to find out about on the phone. Canadian Broadcasting did extensive live coverage of the Opening Ceremonies, concentrating on the Canadian team, and Devey was on a cell phone call with his parents while he was being shown on Canadian TV. “For them to see me there, and for me to have the chance to talk to them while I was on,” Devey said. “That’s when it hit home for me. I was at the Olympics.” Baseball coverage on the major Olympic networks was drastically cut after the U.S. team was upset by Mexico 2-1 in a qualifying tournament, eliminating the defending champions from the event. The U.S. upset Cuba in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney to win its first gold medal. That means that local fans will have to do some serious searching to catch some of the Canadian team’s action. Devey was originally drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1999 and had been in that club’s minor league system until this year, when he opened the year with Pensacola in the independent Central League. He was 3-1 in six starts there before the Dodgers sold his contract to the Seattle Mariners. Seattle assigned him to their Class AA club in San Antonio, and Devey has made 11 starts this year with a 1-5 record and a 4.50 ERA. “I’ve been pitching better than those numbers,” said Devey, who had seven shutout innings of two-hit ball with nine strikeouts against Jackson in a June start. “I was pretty down in the off-season when I was playing independent, but it was like I got rejuvenated when Seattle picked me up. And then with all this … “It just shows that you can be at the bottom of the barrel and dig your way out.” Devey was a National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association first-team All-America pick in his senior Cajun season and also made the Collegiate Baseball and Baseball America teams. Twice he was Collegiate Baseball magazine’s National Player of the Week, and was a two-time All-Sun Belt and All-Louisiana pick. He still is the Cajuns’ leader in single-season (165) and career (352) strikeouts, and ranks fourth in history for career victories (24). But the Olympics was something Devey never expected. And now, he’s there. “All of the baseball teams are pretty much together in the Village,” he said. “We’ve got great facilities to eat and train. I was down in the gym yesterday, and I’m not a big guy, and there I am watching all these Olympic athletes in there working out.” When reminded that he was now an Olympic athlete, even over the phone it was obvious there was a big grin on his face. “I guess, when it’s all over and done with,” he said, “I can say that I’m an Olympic athlete. Isn’t that something?” The Lafayette Daily Advertiser
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