ZooKeepers’ ‘sparkplug’ one of CPL’s top hitters and a local fan favorite

ASHEBORO — Everybody has a happy place.

For some, it could be the beach. For others, it could be a mountain resort, a shopping mall or a short trip to the front porch swing holding a good book.

For the Asheboro ZooKeepers’ Reggie Sharpe, it’s a baseball field. Any baseball field. And the ZooKeepers are certainly glad he’s chosen McCrary Park as his current happy place.

The former Michigan State Spartan, who is in the process of choosing where his next collegiate happy place will be, has been a steady force for the ZooKeepers as they fight for a Coastal Plain League championship.

“You can’t get him out, he’s an absolute spark plug,” Asheboro manager Jamey May said of the 5-foot-7, 160-pound middle infielder. “He can bunt for a hit, beat out a ground ball, steal second, steal third and takes bases on wild pitches. He’s a leader. He’s cerebral. He knows the game.”

Despite a wealth of success as a youth and in high school, it took two years at Michigan State, where he never saw the field, to realize what part of the game best suits him.

“You see guys up there driving the ball and they are hitting it 500 feet,” Sharpe said. “I wanted to do the same thing. My first year at college, I didn’t get it yet. Then I realized the type of player I am. 

“Big Ten baseball is pretty good. How do the elite players who have my game style, how do they play? Now I’ve been able to get on the field and see it. Get on base and create havoc. Play defense. Pitchers are focusing on me on the basepaths and not concentrating on our big hitters.”

Understanding who he is has helped elevate his game.

“He knows the player he is and he knows what he’s good at,” May said. 

“Bunting for a base hit, running, creating chaos. He knows his game. A lot of guys don’t want to be that guy. He has figured it out and that makes him dangerous.”

Sharpe came to Asheboro this summer after spending last summer under former Asheboro manager Mark Weidemaier in the Northwoods League. 

Weidemier left the ZooKeepers after seven games and May took over.

“Sure, it was a little different, all coaching changes no matter at what level you’re at, the routine changes a bit,” Sharpe said. “At the base of things, it’s still the same game when they say ‘Play ball.’ It’s still the same. This is my happy place, my home.”

Sharpe, who played in and had a walk-off hit for Grosse Pointe Woods in the 2018 Little League World Series, had a great-grandfather who was a two-time Olympic gold medalist at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. Henry Carr won the 200 meters and anchored the 4X400-meter relay team.

Sharpe must have inherited some of that athleticism as he is currently hitting .415, second best in the entire CPL. He has scored 21 times, knocked in 11 and has 10 stolen bases — numbers which indicate a strong first half of the CPL season. But Sharpe said he wants more.

“I can’t say I am satisfied, I don’t think I am ever satisfied,” Sharpe said. “You always want more. I am able to be the spark plug of the team and sit into a leadership role. And guys can feed off that. Momentum is so huge. A constant energy in the dugout and on the field and on the basepaths.”

Despite his small frame, Sharpe said he’s never run into people telling him he couldn’t succeed in baseball. But there have been challenges along the way.

“I can’t say I have run into that directly,” Sharpe said. “I have always been a good player. It’s been more on the quiet side. You’re a small guy and every team you go to there’s a sense of having to prove yourself. It’s more that I dealt with that and it’s been a journey in being confident knowing I can make an impact anywhere.”

Sharpe has also made a positive impact on the Randolph County community.

“He’s a fan favorite, they love him,” May said. “I hear it in the stands when he’s not playing, ‘Put Reggie in.’ Kids love him. He signs the most autographs. People know him by name. I had family come to the game for the first time (last week). They texted me: Good game. We love Reggie.”

Sounds like it could be a new television show: “Everybody Loves Reggie.”

“It’s crazy, I love the kids,” Sharpe said. “I remember when my dad took me to big league games all the time. That’s where I gained the love of the game. They are coming to see us play. We’re their big leaguers. Any kid that comes up, I want to make sure he has the best experience possible.”

That is what is happening off the field after producing in every way possible on the field.