Every story written about an Atlantic League player has the same underlying theme: hope. They’re either hoping to recover from injury, hoping to rekindle past glory or hoping to get that first chance.
Scott Patterson was no different. When he came to the Barnstormers in a trade with the Gateway Grizzlies in January of 2005, he was off the radar of big-league scouts. Patterson went undrafted out of West Virginia State and had to pitch three seasons in the independent Frontier League before getting a shot in Lancaster.
Although he struggled as a starter and was traded 
away by the Barnstormers (only to be reacquired two months later), Patterson eventually found his niche in the bullpen. He was signed by the New York Yankees in June and was assigned to the Double-A Trenton Thunder. That’s where Patterson’s story took a different turn than many in the Atlantic League. His hope became opportunity.
Below is a story that appeared in the New Era in March of 2005. It shows how difficult it was for Patterson to get his big break and how much perseverance it takes to survive in professional baseball …
The Unkindest Cut
Scott Patterson may never forget that long plane ride home.
It happened this time last year, right after the Seattle Mariners told him his services were no longer required.
“I was crying the whole way,” the pitcher recalled. “I’d never been cut in my life.”
When the Mariners signed him in March and invited him to minor league spring training, Patterson thought this was going to be his big break.
During his three weeks with the team, he bounced around to all levels, pitching as high as Triple-A. He was throwing well and he was convinced that he’d earned a spot with one of Seattle’s Single-A affiliates. The 6-6, 225-pound righthander was stunned when the Mariners released him.
“They apologized at the end,” said Patterson, who will pitch for the Lancaster Barnstormers this summer. “They said they just brought me in as an arm and they didn’t have any room.”
That’s the way it goes for longshot pitching prospects, whose lives are reduced to a single body part. The Mariners didn’t need Patterson. They needed an arm. And they only needed it temporarily.
This was the second time Patterson felt the sting of big-league rejection. When he was a senior at West Virginia State in 2002, he was told by scouts from the Atlanta Braves and Toronto Blue Jays that he would be selected in the amateur draft that June.
Fifty rounds came and went and Patterson’s name was never called. He never heard from those scouts again.
It hasn’t taken Patterson long to discover that professional baseball is a place where promises often go unfulfilled.
“You learn not to believe anyone about anything until it actually happens,” he said.
After the Mariners released him, Patterson returned to Oakdale — his hometown about 10 miles west of Pittsburgh. He knew where his career was headed next. He was going back to the Gateway Grizzlies of the Frontier League for a third season.
It wasn’t all bad. Patterson enjoyed playing for the Grizzlies, an independent team located near St. Louis. When he was searching for a job after college, that was the only franchise to offer him a contract.
“I called pretty much everyone,” Patterson said. “They told me, ’We looked at your numbers and they’re pretty impressive. We’ll give you a tryout.’”
The Grizzlies signed Patterson after watching him toss only 10 pitches. He made his pro debut the following night.
Patterson was a front-line pitcher in the Frontier League. After appearing in relief as a rookie, he was primarily a starter the past two seasons. He went 19-5 with a 3.61 ERA in 40 games.
Even more revealing, he allowed fewer hits than innings pitched and had a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 4 to 1. Personnel directors have an affinity for power pitchers with control. Patterson fits that description.
“His numbers speak for themselves,” said Barnstormers pitcher Joe Dooley, who was also Patterson’s teammate with the Grizzlies. “He’s been a great pitcher the past two years.”
As the Barnstormers prepare for their inaugural season, they’re building their staff with youth. Patterson, who was acquired in a trade in January, is part of this approach. He’s just 25 and will be among the youngest arms in the independent Atlantic League this season.
Patterson has four pitches at his disposal: a fastball, curve, changeup and a splitter that he’s trying to refine. His fastball typically registers 88-89 mph on the radar gun and he can occasionally touch the low 90s.
After overpowering less experienced hitters the past two years, the switch to the Atlantic League provides Patterson with a greater challenge.
“They say it’s a big step up,” he said. “But if you get the ball where you want it, if you spot it, you can get anybody out. That’s how I look at it.”
Patterson won’t be intimidated by the competition. His experience with the Mariners showed him he could hold his own against good hitters.
This might be his best chance to prove it over an extended period of time. The Atlantic League offers valuable exposure. It sends more players into affiliated baseball than any other independent league.
Patterson knows that if he excels, he can help both the Barnstormers and his career — which he hopes has just begun.
“I want to keep doing this as long as I can,” he said. “No matter what happens, I still have fun. I still have that desire.”
One year after his long flight home, Patterson hasn’t been deterred from his dream.
He still believes his big break will eventually come.
