Former SUNY Polytechnic lefty Mike Rose '12 will be competing at the World Physically Challenged Baseball Tournament, taking place this week in Japan.

The team consists of 11 wounded warrior veterans and 4 civilians who are physically challenged, of which Mr. Rose is one. Rose was born without a bone in his right thumb, which led to multiple surgeries on his right hand, one of which was to help straighten his other four fingers.

He nevertheless had a fantastic career for the Wildcats, posting the 11^th lowest ERA in the country during the 2011 season, his sophomore year. In addition to being named to the All-NEAC Third Team that year, Rose was awarded the NEAC Inspirational Award.

The team is coached in part by a familiar face for Rose, that of Gallaudet University Head Coach and former major leaguer Curtis Pride. When contacted, Pride was effusive in his praise for Rose:

"Mike will be our top pitcher, our ace. We are happy to have him on the team. He is going to help us out a lot. Mike has the potential to be our 'X' factor in this tournament. He has the most experience of anybody on the team. He will also help us in the outfield."

Rose, a native of Chatham, N.Y., was thrilled at the opportunity to represent his country. The team recently completed a training trip to Florida – when asked what it was like to wear the red-white-and-blue, Rose was humbled:

"It didn't hit me at first – when I got off the plane in Florida I was still sort of wondering 'okay, what is this gonna be?'". But as soon as we got our first round of gear and I saw it had the 'USA' printed right on the front, that's when I realized 'this is going to happen, it's real.'"

Rose went on to say that he was "honored that they picked me, I know there were a lot of people that had the chance."

Japan, who hosts the tournament, is considered the heavy favorite. The Team USA coaching staff, however, is excited about this year's group. One of the challenges the American team will have to overcome is a change in equipment – most notably, the ball used during the tournament is much different from a traditional baseball. It is made of rubber rather than leather, and the "laces" are bits of rubber molding protruding from the ball's surface, rather than being separately stitched on. An example is pictured below:

Rose, who relied on an excess of movement and deception as a pitcher for the Wildcats, chuckled when asked about the ball.

"It's something out of this world," said Rose, "it's almost like using a racquetball, although obviously it's heavier and more solid."

While Rose insists he has adapted to the ball and has been getting good movement on his pitches, he is also extremely confident in the group of players that will be fielding the unique sphere behind him.

"They're great character guys," said Rose of his new teammates, "even with just the small time I was training with them down in Florida I could tell they're the type of people that are going to play extremely hard behind you: it didn't take us much time at all to come together as a team."

By Rose's estimate, about half the team utilizes some sort of lower-body prosthetic. That didn't slow them down much, though, according to Rose, who said he was "amazed at the range of some of these guys playing with prosthetics."

Being out of the game for more than two years since graduating college doesn't appear to have fazed Rose in the slightest. He has spent much of that time as a counselor for Camp Skylemar, a prestigious 65-year old summer camp for kids located in Maine that teaches sports and life lessons. Rose's days at the camp are often filled with hiking and teaching different sports, which has helped keep him in shape. According to his former college coach Kevin Edick, however, Rose had always been gifted with a "rubber arm" anyway.

"He's the type of kid that can throw the baseball from dusk till dawn and come back just as fresh the next day," says Edick of his former player.

Rose's character has always garnered more attention than his arm. Edick went on to say that Rose "is such a quality person; he worked very hard to accomplish what he did in his collegiate career, and he is a fantastic teammate."

When Team USA was considering Rose for inclusion on this year's team, Edick told them "you can't go wrong with Mike on your team."

As for traveling to Japan for the first time, Rose is looking forward to it:

"I've always been interested in Japan; I'm excited to try the food and to experience the culture."

But if all goes according to plan on the field, Rose might not have much energy left for sightseeing.

"The coaches have already told me that I'm going to be playing as much as I can as long as I'm not injured," he said with a laugh.

Team USA touched down in Japan on Tuesday, October 28^th. They are scheduled to return from the tournament on November 3^rd.

For more information on the team, check out this YouTube video detailing the team's training trip to Florida. For updates on the tournament you can follow the team on Twitter: @TeamUSA_PCBB