OAKLAND -- Jurickson Profar prefers to get a little extra sleep when the A’s play a night game, but he had a special reason to set the alarm clock for Thursday morning.
The A’s second baseman immediately turned on his television upon waking up and flipped to ESPN in time for Opening Day of the Little League World Series, which featured his native country of Curacao taking on Australia in the opening game at 10 a.m. PT from Williamsport, Pa.
Profar was a member of the 2004 and ’05 Curacao LLWS clubs, which made the championship game both years and won it all in ’04. He always enjoys watching his home country play, but the excitement is ramped up this year -- his brother Jurdrick is playing on this year’s team.
“I felt very proud of him,” Jurickson said of his younger brother. “He did a good job today and the team played great. I’m very happy for him because it’s something fun that I went through and now he gets to enjoy it, as well.”
Curacao defeated Australia 11-0, with Jurdrick catching a four-inning no-hitter from Shendrion Martinus while also going 1-for-2 with a walk at the plate, scoring two runs and swiping the lone stolen base of the game.
In participating in this year’s LLWS, Jurdrick became the third Profar brother to have appeared in the event. Juremi, who is currently playing in the Rangers Minor League system, represented Curacao in 2007 and 2008.
According to littleleague.org, the Profars are the second trio of brothers to play in the tournament since its inception in 1947.
“My parents are proud of us,” Jurickson said. “That doesn’t happen often. We’re all proud of that.”
Curacao will next play Sunday morning against the winner of Asia-Pacific vs. Latin America. The A’s play a 1 p.m. PT game against the Astros that day, but Jurickson said he will find a way to catch the game before taking the field.
There certainly is a lot more attention surrounding the tournament these days compared with when Jurickson participated. Asked if he had any advice on how to handle all that, he kept it simple.
“Just have fun and enjoy everything,” Jurickson said. “From staying in the nice hotels to the atmosphere. Enjoy the games and always try to win.”