A Star in the Making?
4/22/2017: Reno, NV: 
Ask anyone in the Reno Zephyrs front office and they will tell you that Ramón Leach is the most exciting player the organization has at any level. The twenty-five year old right-hand hitting infielder came over via trade from the Kentucky Thoroughbreds at the end of the 2015 season along with fellow infielder Kurt Keller. Reno sent their 1st, 2nd and 3rd round picks in the 2016 amateur draft to Kentucky in exchange for the two infielders and Kentucky’s 4th round pick.
The Zephyrs wasted no time in adding Leach and Keller to their 25-man roster and Leach has been on fire almost from the second he stepped foot on a PEBA field. The young slugger managed to nab the SL Wunderkind Award in 2016 and has gotten off to a white hot start in 2017; posting an impressive 1.063 OPS in 17 games.
In addition to his outstanding on-field performance, Leach has also made a significant impact on the Reno community in a short period of time. In just over 17 months with the organization, Leach has established the Sierra Nevada Burned Children’s Foundation and raised more than ten million dollars for the charity. The organization provides financial resources to meet the physical, psychological, social and other special needs of children who have experienced burn injuries of any type. The foundation also helps to educate, children, families, care givers and emergency providers in burn prevention and treatment.
Leach was born in New York and his father was a New York City firefighter for more than 33 years before retiring to spend his golden years following his son’s baseball career. The younger Leach credits his parents for his altruistic nature. “My mother and father are an inspiration to me. A lot of kids idolize athletes for our abilities but, we really can’t hold a candle to those that help others for a living. I measure my success on the field by my stats but, I measure my success in life by what I do to help others,” said the humble Reno slugger. Regardless of what he does on the field, Leach looks and acts like a winner. The Reno Gazette-Journal decided to sit down with this young, up-and-coming player for a quick, question and answer session, to get his take on life and baseball:
It is great to speak with you. Thanks for agreeing to this interview. We hope that PEBA fans all around the globe will know you a little better at the completion of this interview. With that said, let’s get down to it.
Gazette-Journal: If you weren’t a pro ballplayer, what career do you think you’d have?
Ramon Leach: Most likely I would be a beggar on the street. I have no work ethic. That is why I am a baseball player. I wake up at the crack of noon and drag my sorry but to the ballpark just in time to take batting practice. It is good not to have a real job. Do you realize that we get a full spread of food provided to us before and after the game and then the powers-at-be, give us meal money for when we leave the park. Of course, most of the players spend that money on strippers and booze because we already ate our weight in gourmet meals in the clubhouse.
G-J: What do you remember about your first car?
Leach: It was a 1994 Honda Accord. It was a piece of junk. As a teenager I used to always slip the car into neutral and drive with my arm through the window – while lying on the vehicle’s hood. On occasion, I would get up and dance on the hood while cruising down the highway. Maybe that is why no one wanted to ride with me.
G-J: Who was the biggest influence on your life, outside of your parents?
Leach: Gregory Arnold. When I was 16, he hit 43 home runs and 47 doubles for Kalamazoo. I got a chance to meet him at the PEBA Championship series in 2015. He was a player with Gloucester and I was a spectator. He was very gracious when I explained how I have been a fan since I was a kid. He calls me from time to time to offer advice and just listen to my issues and concerns about adjusting to the game. Greg has been a big influence on my baseball life.
G-J: Which would you rather win and why — the World Series of Poker, Wimbledon, a MMA title belt, a Pulitzer Prize or an Olympic gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling?
Leach: The World Series of Poker. I have mad skills when it comes to poker. Most casinos in the US and Canada won’t even let me in the door because of my abilities.
G-J: Is there a hobby you’ve never taken up but hope to someday?
Leach: I always wanted to try Phenorkling.
G-J: Phenorkling?
Leach: Yes, Krazy Gluing small furry animals to the wall and watching them wriggle. It’s a relaxing way to pass the time I hear. It is better than dropping acid and listening to Pink Floyd records.
G-J: Do you ever get any random thoughts popping into your head while you’re on the field?
Leach: Once in a while, I’ll get a song stuck in my head. And sometimes that’s good, if the game’s going so well and that song keeps you going but, most of the time I have no idea where it comes from. They’re always kind of off-the-wall songs that I have no idea how they got in my head.
G-J: Do you have any bad habits you’ve tried to correct but haven’t been able to?
Leach: I have been struggling with my ice chewing addiction for quite some time now. It is a lost cause. The practice of compulsively chewing and consuming excessive amounts of ice is called pagophagia. Pagophagia is a form of pica, a condition where people crave and eat nonfood items that have no nutritional value. That is why you will always see me in the dugout with a cup of ice, chewing away. Some of my team-mates hate the sound of my ice crunching so much that they ask me to sit at the far end of the dugout.
G-J: If you could have dinner with any celebrity, who would it be and why?
Leach: California Governor Angelina Jolie. I think she is the best politician this country has ever seen. And, not too bad looking either.
G-J: Thanks for your time and good luck in keeping the Reno Zephyrs relevant this season.
Leach: You’re welcome. The pleasure was all mine.