Baseball is truly a family affair for Jos¨¦ Contreras and son

This story was excerpted from Scott Merkin¡¯s White Sox Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- There were 75 occasions when Jos¨¦ Contreras took the mound at what is now known as Rate Field, with 73 coming as a starter.

Contreras pitched in the 2005 American League Division Series, AL Championship Series and World Series for the champion White Sox in front of euphoric sold-out crowds. He was dominant at times in regular-season contests and won more games than he lost.

But nothing compared to what took place on the Rate Field mound during a contest last season on July 24, when Contreras¡¯ son, Joseph, pitched for the East All-Stars as part of the annual Double Duty Classic.

¡°He came in from the bullpen, and I cried like a baby,¡± Jos¨¦ said at SoxFest Live. ¡°After that, he pitched two innings very good. That feeling was like ¡®Oh, my God, he¡¯s on the same mound I pitched for a long time.¡¯¡±

¡°It was incredible, actually,¡± added Joseph, as he stood next to his father at the Ramova Theatre in Chicago. ¡°I got on the mound and started looking around, and I was like, ¡®Wow, I¡¯m on the same mound my dad pitched on.¡¯ That¡¯s really cool. I thought of the history, and it was just amazing. I can¡¯t even put it into words, honestly.¡±

Joseph is 16 years old and pitches as a junior at Blessed Trinity Catholic High School in Roswell, Ga., with Jos¨¦ serving as an assistant coach. He already is as tall as his father, who stands at a sturdy 6-foot-4 and may be able to claim a little bit taller.

His fastball velocity has topped out at 95 mph in the bullpen, although Joseph usually works in the 90-93 mph area. He listed off a four-seam, two-seam, curve and changeup as part of his repertoire, along with a forkball, with his dad using a form of that pitch to produce a successful 11-year career in the Majors and nine more in Cuba.

¡°Yeah, he showed me,¡± Joseph said of the forkball. ¡°That was the first pitch I learned to throw. Spread the fingers, grab it and throw it.¡±

¡°When he was little, like 3 or 4 years old, he always got the ball and put it in his hand and watched me on TV doing that,¡± Jos¨¦ said. ¡°He started throwing the forkball at 9 or 10 years old.¡±

By Jos¨¦¡¯s recollection, his son has been attached to baseball since he was 1 or 2 years old. Joseph remembers a video of when he was 1 1/2, where his dad would underhand him pitches, as he was coming back from Tommy John surgery, and he hit the ball.

But Joseph truly recalls Father¡¯s Day activities when Jos¨¦ was with Philadelphia from 2010-12, where he got to play on the field with other kids and hang out with his dad. He not only wants to reach his dad¡¯s Major League prowess, but really wants to surpass it.

¡°I want to be a Hall of Famer,¡± Joseph said with a confident smile.

Upon hearing his son¡¯s comments, Jos¨¦ laughed with a look of slight shock. He quickly added a father¡¯s voice of reason.

¡°Oh my God, it¡¯s easy to say, but there¡¯s a lot of work to do,¡± Jos¨¦ said. ¡°I would say to him you have to focus on education. I teach him and his brother the values my dad teach to me. You have to be a good man and do a lot of things in the community. Education is for life.

¡°A lot of people don¡¯t understand it¡¯s a process. I told him, 'You can¡¯t go to 10th grade when you have to start with kindergarten, first grade.' At the beginning, sometimes you don¡¯t have a good game, it happens. Now he understands the process.

¡°Sometimes it¡¯s a little bit longer. Sometimes it¡¯s a little bit shorter,¡± Jos¨¦ added. ¡°But it¡¯s about day to day. It¡¯s the biggest thing I try to teach him: 'Be the same guy every day. Don¡¯t ever change your personality. Don¡¯t ever change your routine.' Now he understands a little bit more.¡±

Father and son work together frequently to help refine Joseph¡¯s craft. Learning how to pitch and to prioritize pitch location are points stressed by Jos¨¦, pointing to Greg Maddux as a prime example of top results, and adding velocity will come as his son gets older. Joseph sees his game making noticeable improvements, after gaining 20 pounds this past offseason.

¡°I¡¯ve become more mature thanks to my mental strength coach,¡± Joseph said. ¡°I¡¯ve also become a better baseball player in general thanks to my coaches and the support my family and friends have given me. They have been there for me and made the journey a lot easier.¡±