Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel, who grew up playing cricket in India and had never held a baseball until April, have signed a landmark deal with Major League Baseball's Pittsburgh Pirates.
Singh, 20, and Patel, 19, inked free agent contracts Monday to become the first two players from India to sign a deal with a major US sport organization, potentially opening a door for US clubs to a vast pool of untapped talent.
"This is very intriguing for us," Pirates general manager Neal Huntington said. "They have a cultural passion for cricket. We want to see how that translates to baseball."
While far from assuring them a place on the Pirates roster, it does put them in the team's developmental organization where they will have a chance to learn the sport and test their skills.
"It's a dream come true," Patel said.
The two pitchers were found in India by a promoter who staged a "Million-Dollar Arm" contest in India looking for talented cricketers who could possibly become groundbreaking India talents for the American pastime.
More than 37,000 people tried out. Left-hander Singh won the contest but Patel's fastball velocity, clocked at 93 mph in a workout last week, also made him attractive to scouts.
The two trained in Southern California with former major league players and their talents were displayed before Major League Baseball scouts earlier this month, setting up the call from the Pirates last week.
"We're very happy that we get to stay together," Singh said.
Patel and Singh soon will return home to India for 10 days before reporting to the Pirates' pre-season training camp facility in Bradenton, Florida, in mid- to late-January to start monitored throwing and exercise programs.
Copyright 2008 AFP South Asian Edition
