Star impressions

For the most part, the focus of minor league baseball is to develop young players so they can reach their full potential, and ultimately, the majors.

But once in a while, pros spend time with their club’s affiliated organizations to rehab from injuries.

Such was the case of the Detroit Tigers star Curtis Granderson, who spent the early portion of this season recovering from a finger injury.

He kicked off his road to recovery with the West Michigan Whitecaps, Detroit’s single A affiliate located near Grand Rapids, in Comstock Park.

Granderson went 4-for-11 in three games with the Whitecaps, including a pair of triples while also turning in some solid defense.

But Whitecaps manager Joe DePastino was more impressed with his off-the-field performance. After sitting down with DePastino to talk about the Whitecaps for my summer series, he told me a quick story about Granderson’s stint with the team.

Apparently, the center fielder’s charm, which has made him one of the Detroit’s most popular athletes, isn’t reserved just for fans but for his teammates as well, regardless of what team he’s on.

“He was great, a great person,” DePastino said. “He came in here and he said to me, ‘I’m doing whatever you guys do here.'"

“He was one of the team,” DePastino continued. “When he first walked into the clubhouse, instead of going to his locker and sitting there, he walked in, put his stuff down and started talking to everybody, introduced himself.

“That right there was the first sign you know he’s a great guy.”