(EDITOR’S NOTE: Since May of 1999, the Times News Sports Department has featured an On This Date practically every day, highlighting an event that happened in the past. With the coronavirus putting a halt to sports locally and nationally, the On This Dates have been expanded to the stories that actually ran in the newspaper. Today’s On This Date story is from June 9, 1998).

By Bill Hronis

TIMES NEWS Correspondent

Youngsters always have dreams of becoming famous people in life - whether it be an engineer, doctor or actor.

During his youth, recent Northwestern graduate Josh Perich had similar career goals in mind. Unlike the goals of his peers, his was to play professional baseball.

His wish is a dream come true.

One week after getting drafted by the New York Mets in the 11th round of the Major League Baseball Amateur Draft, Perich inked a seven-year contract Tuesday with the Mets’ organization in a private signing at Shea Stadium in Flushing, N.Y.

Perich’s road to the major leagues will begin Thursday when he leaves for Port St. Lucie, Fla. - home of the Mets’ Class A rookie league team in the Gulf Coast League. The team opens its 142-game season June 19.

“It’s my choice that I leave early,” said Perich, who will likely play every day except for Sundays. “I didn’t have to be down there for a week or two. But I decided to get down there as soon as possible. It’s sudden, and it’s really hitting me now. But it’s really what I want to do.”

While Perich, who was already an avid Mets fan before getting picked, was unsure of the specific details of the contract, he did say that he’ll make $850 a month.

Perich also said that the organization will pay for his schooling if and when he decides to hang up the cleats in pursuit of an engineering degree. But it won’t be at Davidson College, which was ready to accept Perich on a full baseball scholarship had he not been drafted. He said Lehigh would be a possible alternate college choice.

But getting a shot at the big leagues is something Perich, an honor roll student, wants to tackle right away.

“Others thought for sure that I was going to college,” said Perich, whose parents and older brother are schoolteachers. “I informed the Mets that I would go if they would pay for my college.”

As part of his visit to New York, Perich and his family - along with close friend and graduated senior Mike Galdieri - stayed to watch the Mets face the American League’s Tampa Bay Devil Rays in an interleague encounter. He was supposed to take batting practice with the team prior to the game, but that plan was scrapped after learning that the field was already booked for a charity softball game.

That would not have been the first time Perich swung a stick in Shea. He was there on two previous occasions for tryouts - once last fall and again this spring.

Perich hopes that someday he will take his cuts in Shea as a member of the Mets or another Major League team should he be dealt as part of a trade.

“My obligation is to them,” Perich said. “They (the Mets) can drop me at any time, but I can’t drop them.”

With all the events that have transpired in the last two weeks, Perich hasn’t had much time to himself to collect his thoughts. Through it all, he has learned one valuable fact about life.

“Anything can happen,” Perich said. “It’s still a shock when one of your goals comes true. All my life, there’s one thing I wanted to do, and that’s play baseball. That’s what made my decision.”