An Interview with Catcher/DH M.P. Cokinos

Uncle. I give up. I surrender. I have met my match. And his name is M.P. Cokinos. I went back to Lancaster for the sole purpose* of interviewing Cokinos and it was an abject failure. There was an air of mystery surrounding Cokinos, stemming in part from the #DailyDoseOfCoke hashtag he inspired, but mostly due to the fact that he routinely knocks the ball around and gets on base at an alarming rate.

*Absolutely untrue statement, but it makes for a good story.

Cokinos, a 31st round draft pick in 2012, hit .320/.370/.440 in 36 games for Tri-City in his freshman season, but didn't draw as much attention as teammate Tyler Heineman who won the New York-Penn League batting title. In 55 games at Lancaster so far this season, he is hitting .342/.436/.528 (.389/.489/.528 in his last 10 games) with 19 doubles, six home runs and 49 RBI. He leads all players in the Astros minor league system (with roughly 200 at-bats or more) in average and is second in OBP. He leads the California league in average as well and is tied for first in OBP.

When I talked to Lancaster Manager Rodney Linares about Cokinos back in May, he had this to say, "Not Cokinos, Cokiyes. He can hit. Coke can hit. Plays the game extremely hard. Probably one of the best listeners, takes in everything you tell him. [He may not be as talented as some guys], but he plays as hard as they do with what he's got."

M.P. Cokinos - June 2013

Photo by Jayne Hansen

The interview started off fine as I asked M.P. about switching from the University of Houston to St. Mary's after the 2011 season. He told me, "I ended up going to St. Mary's after my sophomore year. Just opportunity-wise, it was better for me. I was recruited by Coach Noble and he actually left after my freshman year and I just had a better opportunity at St. Mary's."

Not a terribly long or detailed answer, but it was something. Then I noted that he had great numbers in his first season at Tri-City but fell somewhat in the shadow of Tyler Heineman who won the New York-Penn League batting title. He responded, "Tyler's a great player and I really enjoyed playing with him and I'm thankful I get to play with him [again] this year and everyone on this team and in the organization itself ... a lot of great players. I'm just glad to be a part of it."

Again, not bad, but nothing that really says much about M.P. himself. Then I asked what he was working on this season, "I'm just trying to work on improving my game and just being an all-around better baseball player. I'm thankful for the opportunity and just trying to make the most of it."

OK, this is not going well. Let's ask about the #DailyDoseOfCoke hashtag. Surely that will loosen him up. Who came up with the hashtag? "I don't even know. I'm sure it was everybody. It just kind of sprang up. Believe it or not, I try not to get too involved even though it's about me."

Well, it's obvious that he's not comfortable talking about himself. How about I get him to talking about some of his teammates? Which Astros pitcher would you least like to face in the batter's box? "I can't name just one."

Oh, boy. Which pitcher do you like catching? "I like to catch them all."

You're killing me here. Is there a pitcher who's easier to catch because of their control or the like? "There's something I can take from every pitcher I've got to catch that I really like."

Details? Anything? Seriously, dude, you're killing me!

We weren't helped when the peanut gallery showed up in the form of four of his teammates who came out of the clubhouse to razz Cokinos while he answered my final two questions.

What would he do if he couldn't play baseball? "I would love to hunt and fish every day if I could."

Is there something most people don't know about him and might be surprised to hear? "I've got three younger brothers and they all play baseball."

OK, that's a wrap. I give. I cajoled, I kidded, I pleaded, I begged, I implored, I beseached, I goaded, I coaxed and I even asked nicely for more detail on the answers, but that's all I got.

So I turned to his teammates. One told me, "I think it's safe to say Cokinos is the heart and soul of the Lancaster JetHawks. Plain and simple." Another said, "Cokey's a great dude. He asks a lot of questions. He's an interesting guy. [REALLY?!?] Cokey overall ... a great guy, a great individual, great teammate. I love him."

Hitting Coach Darryl Robinson said, "I want to adopt that kid. He can come live with me," sentiments that were echoed almost verbatim by Pitching Coach Don Alexander. Linares added, "Somebody raised that kid right!"

So what did we learn about Cokinos?

1. He can flat out hit.
2. He is universally liked by all of his coaches and teammates.
3. He doesn't like to talk about himself.

That's pretty much it.

Michael Paul Cokinos, you have won this battle, but you have not won the war. I will learn more about you if it kills me (pay no attention to that pudgy middle-aged lady with the floppy hat, dark glasses and tape recorder who keeps following you around). Unless, of course, you get a restraining order against me and then all bets are off.

Thanks for your time (and your indulgence), M.P., and best of luck as the season continues to unfold.