Taking a Baseball Life Day-by-Day By John Kocsis Jr.
For a lot of draft picks, signing day is typically the first time you step onto the field of the big league team that drafts you. For Stone Russell, he was revisiting Kauffman Stadium for the first time in nine years. Russell was born in Pittsburgh, because his Dad, John Russell, was managing the Pirates at the time, but Stone grew up in Bradenton,
and a two-time All-Star selection over his 12-year career. He spent the last seven years of his career with the Orioles and the younger Russell got a front row seat to see the star play. Stone says, “He was always amazing to me. I would take ground balls with him from time-to-time. Just by watching him you could learn so much. One thing I still take with me to this day was how he had intent with what he would do before the game to prepare for 7 o’clock.” Someone can set out for a career in baseball-but the realities of the game come to you pretty quickly once you make it. A career in baseball is a grind and most players have rituals that help guide them through the marathon of baseball season. The Fireflies play six games a week and players often show up early in the afternoon to take practice in the field, get a lift in and hit prior to the game. Stone will tell you that he’s not superstitious, but he has his daily routine. He’s a country music fan that prefers a good mix of the genre— although he admits that he enjoys listening to Riley Green while he’s preparing for a game. Most of Russell’s actions pre-game keep him calm and attentive for the game ahead. “It’s more about getting into a routine for me. That was something that was stressed early on coming to the Royals organization. Just figuring out what works for you to get prepared for 7 o’clock.” Russell said. In all that seriousness, sometimes, you need to smile and laugh through it. Columbia’s infielder is all business during a baseball game. To shake things up, before the second game of the year in Augusta, Fireflies Digital Media Intern, Chelsea Beeler, told him he has to take a picture in the dugout with a smile on his face. “I ended up doing it and we’ve been playing well to start the year. We’ve been winning a decent amount,” Russell admits. “I’m not superstitious, but if it’s working, it’s working. It’s been a fun start to the year and we’ve been playing well as a team.” The Fireflies enter this week in sole possession of first-place in the South Division in the Carolina League. They’re a game in front of the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers and Russell has been a massive part of that success. Russell started the season with a five-game multi-hit streak, which is tied for the second-longest mark in franchise history. It trailed Shervyen Newton, who had multiple hits in six-consecutive games during the 2019 season. Today, Russell has a .283 average to pair with 15 RBI. The average is the second- highest amongst Fireflies bats and his 15 RBI are good for fifth-most on the team through their first 33 games. Russell has had a strong start to full-season baseball. Now Columbia’s infielder will continue to take things day-by-day like his father has for over 40 years in the pros. The Fireflies are at the quarter pole in the 2025 season, but tomorrow is a new day. And Stone will be ready to take its challenges.
Florida—closer to the Spring Training facility of the Pirates. John Russell is a baseball lifer. The utility man played 10 years in the Majors with Philidelphia, Atlanta and Texas. He managed the Pirates from 2008-2010 and served as the Orioles Bench Coach from 2011-2018 and is currently the manager of the Tacoma Rainers—the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. The last time Stone was at Kauffman Stadium was during the 2014 ALCS, when Kansas City swept the Baltimore Orioles. At the time, he was cheering on his dad’s Orioles. In 2023, he was a newly drafted Royal. The full-circle moment represented the transition from being a kid at the ballpark to becoming a professional player. Something he had been preparing for forever. Stone will tell you that his dad has always had a big influence on how he attacks baseball. “My dad taught me so much about the game and how to go about it,” Stone says. “I think the biggest thing for me was getting to be around a Major League clubhouse on a daily basis. It shows you how to be a professional, but it also shows you how these guys prepare.” When John Russell talks about it, he says that Stone has always been a sponge, absorbing everything he has watched at a ballpark. He knew early on—when Stone was just eight or nine years old that he would eventually be a professional player. One moment that encapsulated it was when Stone was only 10. He won the Cal Ripken 10U Championship with the Florida Manatees, but it came with a learning experience. “He was down a bit in a game and his coach talked to him and gave him some encouragement,” John Russell remembers. “The next game he just had a banger game. He was great on defense. He and his teammates turned some double plays that were super special for 10-year-olds. During that moment in his baseball journey I think that’s where I noticed he has that edge to him and he loves to compete. And being able to compete at that level I think showed him a lot and I think it also showed me a lot.”
Now an infielder at the professional level, Stone had a pretty cool mentor to watch while he was growing up. J.J Hardy was a three-time Gold Glove winner
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