CLEVELAND — Perhaps the home fans at Progressive Field had not heard of tiny Fort Loramie, Ohio, before Monday night.
But they — along with the rest of metro Cleveland — certainly heard Fort Loramie loudly and clearly with the Texas Rangers in town. Jared Hoying, a former University of Toledo player from Fort Loramie whom the Rangers selected with a 10th round pick in 2010, was called up to the major leagues for the first time on May 23.
Coincidentally, his first road game happened to be in Ohio — and his hometown made sure it was a happy homecoming. Fort Loramie, a town of roughly 1,500 about 45 miles north of Dayton, had three pockets of fans at Progressive Field, one in left field and along each baseline.
Following the game, Rangers manager Jeff Banister quipped “They might shut down the town to come see him.”
Hoying’s fans cheered when he stepped onto the field for warmups. They screamed when he hit a home run in batting practice. They were ecstatic when the scoreboard showed he would be pinch-hitting for Prince Fielder in the ninth inning, and downright giddy when he drew a walk.
“I was sitting with people who were sitting in the stands for our high school games 10 years ago, and they were cheering for us just like they were cheering [Monday] night,” said Kyler Ludlow, Hoying’s close friend and former teammate at Fort Loramie High School. “It was kind of surreal.”
Hoying — and everyone else with functioning hearing — noticed the cheering sections for No. 36.
“Shoot, I bet there were 200, 300 people from back home in the stands tonight,” Hoying said after the Rangers’ 9-2 win against the Indians on Monday. “There was a bunch. I made sure I said hi to all of them afterward, which was a pretty daunting task. It was well worth it.”
Hoying had his best game yet Tuesday night while playing left field, going 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored in a 7-3 Texas win.
It has been a wild but special 10 days for the former Rocket, who was having a resurgent season for Triple-A Round Rock (Texas). In 41 games for Round Rock, Hoying hit .319 with a .959 OPS, and ranked in the Pacific Coast League’s top five in hits, runs batted in, and total bases.
As his statistics looked better and better as the season progressed, Hoying’s hometown waited for good news.
“We kind of figured he would make it [to the majors],” said Bill Sturwold, Fort Loramie High School's baseball coach. “It was just a matter of when.”
It just so happened the Rangers needed outfield help. Josh Hamilton is out for the season with a knee injury, and the Rangers lost Shin-Soo Choo to a hamstring ailment.
When Texas placed Choo on the 15-day disabled list on May 23, one of the corresponding moves was to bring Hoying to the big club.
While Hoying was enjoying his best minor league season in six years, the promotion itself was frantic. Hoying and his Round Rock teammates took an early morning flight from a series in El Paso and arrived home around 10 a.m.
Hoying took a brief nap followed by a shower, then returned to his phone to find half a dozen frantic voice mails from his team trainer.
“He called me and I said, ‘I just got out of the shower, what’s up?’ ” Hoying said. “He said to get to the ballpark now and get your stuff, because you’re going up to Arlington. I was like, ‘Oh my God.’ ”
He arrived to Globe Life Park at 6 p.m. and was in the starting lineup that night. A few hours later, he was standing on first base next to Los Angeles Angels first baseman Albert Pujols.
Admittedly, the first big-league game was sensory overload at first for Hoying.
“After my first at-bat and first fly ball, I kind of calmed down and it was just playing baseball,” he said. “It was a dream come true, not only for me but for a lot of people back home. It’s been a lot of work and a lot hard work, a lot of ups and downs, but it’s all worth it now.”
Fort Loramie is the same as it ever was — with one twist.
If one plans to catch a youth ballgame or stop for a beer at Brucken’s, there is a good chance of spotting Rangers gear in the heart of Reds country.
“Almost every little kid now has a Rangers hat of some sort,” Ludlow said. “It’s definitely funny to see this little town that’s mostly Reds fans and a couple Indians fans now has a lot of Rangers fans.”
The same goes for the UT coaching staff, which moved Hoying from shortstop to outfield as a junior to help his pro prospects. Hoying took to the new position quickly, but his bat didn’t need much help.
UT coach Cory Mee laughed at the retelling of Hoying’s pro day, which was so good it was comical: With scouts on hand, Hoying belted three home runs in his limited chances.
Ever since the Rangers selected him, Mee said everyone who knew the genial Hoying has been rooting for him.
“When you see all those people in the stands [at Progressive Field],” Mee said, “that gives an indication of what type of person he is.”
Hoying’s first road trip has been more of a reunion, which Banister said is one of the most special moments of being a big leaguer. That hasn’t been lost on Hoying.
“Coming home to Ohio — of all places — for the first road trip, where a lot of people can come and watch, it’s pretty emotional. I get choked up just thinking about it,” Hoying said. “I mean, I know everybody by their first name, last name, where they live, shoe size — you name it.
“Those were all my best friends up in the stands. Coming from such a small town, it’s pretty sweet to have that support.”
Choo is eligible to come off the disabled list June 5, at which point Hoying’s standing could change again.
But for now, Hoying is savoring each moment as he makes his case to be a full-time major leaguer.
No matter where he goes and how long he stays, Hoying always will have 1,500 of the rowdiest fans in baseball cheering his every move.
Contact Nicholas Piotrowicz at: npiotrowicz@theblade.com, 724-6110, or on Twitter @NickPiotrowicz
First Published June 1, 2016, 4:34 a.m.
