Stephen Gostkowski makes his living kicking a football, but his true passion is baseball. The place kicker for the New England Patriots, Gostkowski played both football and baseball at the University of Memphis before beginning his NFL career two years ago. One of the best kickers in the game, Gostkowski has made 41 out of 50 field goals and 117 out of 118 extra points for the Patriots since being drafted in 2006. A right-handed pitcher at Memphis, the native of Madison, Mississippi led his team in innings pitched and strikeouts as a junior before trading his baseball aspirations for a career on the gridiron.
David Laurila: What is your history with the game of baseball?
Stephen Gostkowski: I grew up playing baseball; it was the first sport I ever played, starting at about age four. It was the sport I was into my whole life. Growing up, I played Little League, All-Stars, traveling baseball; I played in high school. I actually signed a scholarship to play baseball at Memphis, and walked on to the football team. If it wasn’t for baseball, I wouldn’t be where I’m at today, because I didn’t get any scholarship offers for football. Without being decent enough to earn a college scholarship in baseball, I wouldn’t be in the NFL right now.
DL: At which point did you know that it would be football, rather than baseball, for a career?
SG: I’d always thought it was going to be baseball, and in high school I had looks from scouts. I got calls from a couple of scouts saying maybe around the 13th round, and they wanted me to go to a junior college and be a draft-and-follow. But I wanted a good education and to pursue both sports as options, and it turned out that I started to get a lot better in football at college. The competition also started to catch up to me in baseball, so about my sophomore and junior years of college, football started showing out a little more than the baseball.
DL: You pitched at the University of Memphis. What kind of pitcher were you?
SG: In high school I was a power pitcher, but everybody threw decently hard in college, so I turned into a groundball-outs pitcher. I had a good sinker and a really good changeup, but I just didn’t have a good curveball to match them. I’d have to jam somebody or get a bunch of groundball outs. I didn’t walk many people; I was a contact pitcher and tried to get them to make bad contact.
DL: How different are baseball and football from a mental standpoint?
SG: As a game, football is different because you only get to play once a week, so your percentages have to be a lot higher. In baseball, if you get one hit out of every three at-bats you’re doing pretty good, but as a field goal kicker it’s kind of like being a starting pitcher – you only get to pitch once a week, just like you only get to kick once a week. You only get certain opportunities to show what you can do, so you have to take advantage of the times you’re out there. You’re not out there playing every play, or getting to play every day like in baseball, so when your name and number is called you need to do a good job.
DL: Is the mental preparation similar for kickers and for pitchers?
SG: It is. You’re devoting all of your practice, all of your time, and all of your energy to one day and sometimes one play. You want to be at your best on that one day, and sometimes it’s tough and you have to find a way to get past it mentally if you’re not feeling it that day. Maybe you have a bad inning, or a bad kick, and it’s about how you bounce back. You can’t let it get to you and affect the rest of the game. So it’s a tough position mentally, because you have to be on top of your game at all times. Being a pitcher in baseball has definitely helped me in that regard.
DL: How different are the two games, culturally, within the clubhouse?
SG: Baseball is a lot more laid back. Those guys are around each other a lot longer and play a lot more games. Football guys have offense, defense, and special teams, and football is a lot more high pressure and fast paced. It’s more get-it-done-right-now, while in baseball you’re out there all day taking some BP and getting ready for the game. If you don’t win today, it’s “we’ll get them tomorrow,” while in football, if you lose the game the whole week is ruined.
DL: How important were your legs to you as a pitcher?
SG: In pitching, you have to have a very strong lower body, and that complemented me as a kicker because I would work out my legs hard and run a lot. You need a strong lower body in both sports, so it definitely carried over.
DL: Conversely, does your upper body play much of a role as a kicker?
SG: More for balance. You obviously want to be as strong as you can be as an athlete, but it’s more your core muscles like your abs and your groin; those kind of things. If I could bench press 500 pounds, it’s not going to make me kick a field goal any farther or any straighter.
DL: Of your Patriots teammates, which could step onto a baseball diamond and have success?
SG: There are a bunch of guys on our team who are athletic enough. Kelly Washington, who is a receiver, played in the minor leagues for awhile. Matt Cassell, our backup quarterback, pitched at USC. Tom Brady was drafted out of high school. There are a bunch of guys who have baseball in their backgrounds who I’m sure could have had a shot had they pursued it more than football. But it’s a long road to make it in baseball, and in the NFL, if you get a shot you’re there.
DL: In your fantasy world, where would you be if you were playing baseball instead of football?
SG: I’d definitely be playing for the Red Sox at Fenway Park, where they have the good fans. I’d love to be pitching in the World Series; that’s always been a dream of mine. I always wanted to be a professional baseball player. It just didn’t work out, but I’m glad I got an opportunity to do something else, and who knows — maybe the dream could still be alive. Maybe one day I’ll try to make it come true.
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