By Kim Dunbar

When he was young and asked what he wanted to be when he grew up, Bryan LaHair would always give the same answer: a baseball player. “They would look at me and ask what the second thing I wanted to be was but I never had an answer,” said LaHair. “It was always a baseball player.”

LaHair is now a member of the Seattle Mariners organization. “My parents did a great job keeping me active,” said LaHair, who said it was during his Little League days that he figured out that perhaps his dream wasn’t so farfetched. “I realized that maybe I could do this, play baseball one day.”

The Worcester native’s rising star shined bright at Holy Name High and he was drafted out of St. Petersburg Community College by the Mariners in the 39th round of the 2002 Major League Baseball Draft. LaHair has since worked his way through the Seattle organization, making his MLB debut last July. His first hit, which LaHair considers to be one of his favorite baseball moments, was against Red Sox ace Daisuke Matsuzaka. “It was unbelievable, an incredible feeling,” said LaHair, who was rewarded with a standing ovation.

This year, LaHair started the season with Seattle’s AAA team, the Tacoma Rainiers, but his goal is to get back to the big leagues and to have fun doing it. Although LaHair has played first base for the last six years, the Mariners spent spring training converting him into an outfielder. “It’s an easy adjustment but getting time is a challenge,” said LaHair, an outfielder in high school and college. “I’ll feel more comfortable the more I am out there.”

If all goes well, LaHair will join his childhood idol, Ken Griffey Jr., in the Seattle outfield this season. “Getting to be teammates with Griffey was great,” said LaHair, who admits he was a little star struck when he first met the future Hall of Famer.

LaHair, who considers it a blessing to have made it to the baseball big leagues, is aware that he must now be for his young fans as Griffey was for him. “It is the greatest honor to serve as a role model for kids,” he said. LaHair added that as his career matures, giving back to the fans, especially the kids, is something he will make a priority.

“The fans are my favorite part about this game,” he said. “Playing in front of a crowd of 30-40,000 fans a night is something I have always dreamed of doing. It’s an honor.”

LaHair’s next goal is to play in front of his hometown crowd at Fenway Park. As long as he sticks to his own advice ~ having confidence and believing in oneself ~ this dream may also come true. “I stay focused by setting goals, having fun and living in the moment,” said LaHair. “I take it day by day, and know that if I stay focused everything will fall into play.”

Pun intended.