Sports

AFTER LONG JOURNEY, N.J. NATIVE CUST FINDS HOME WITH ATHLETICS

THIS was back in 1997. Jack Cust, a high school senior, was invited to a workout at Yankee Stadium. He was so impressive that George Steinbrenner flew Cust and his father to Tampa, Fla., for another workout to hit against Yankees minor league pitchers.

The first two batters struck out. Cust walked and was feeling pretty good. Then they told him he was not there to walk.

Cust crushed the next pitch far over the right-field fence. That’s when a club official told Jack Cust Sr. that his son was going to be taken in the first round by the Yankees.

Cust’s baseball dreams were about to come true. “I thought I was going to the Yankees,” said Cust, who grew up in Flemington, N.J.

The draft came, but the Yankees selected outfielder Tyrell Godwin with their top pick, 24th overall. They offered Godwin $1.9 million. He never signed. Godwin went to the University of North Carolina to play baseball and football.

Six picks later Cust went to the Diamondbacks. He still thought he was on his way to the majors, with a different club.

Jack Sr. had taught his son how to hit to all fields with power. “My dad can teach anybody to hit,” Jack said.

That power, combined with a remarkable eye, seemed like a combination the Diamondbacks could use. But Jack Cust didn’t become an instant major league success story. The journey took 11 minor league seasons, five organizations, 1,114 games, 200 home runs and 1,233 strikeouts before Cust got his first real shot at the majors during his second trip to the A’s.

What kept him going? “Just a love of the game,” he said. He smiled and added, “Honestly, there’s nothing else that I’m that good at.”

Cust, 30, has a great sense of humor and a great message: Never give up.

For the first time in his career, Cust has a real baseball home. The A’s acquired him from the Padres in May 2007. Cust, a left fielder and designated hitter, has since hit 59 home runs in 876 at-bats. He has 216 walks and 361 strikeouts, too. From the time he was drafted until that trade to the A’s, 10 long years, Cust accumulated just 144 major league at-bats – none in a 2004 stint in the Oakland organization.

He signed a one-year, $2.8 million contract with Oakland last month. His ship came in because he belted 33 home runs in 2008, sixth-best in the AL and one more than Jason Giambi and Home Run Derby champ Josh Hamilton.

“I knew I could play at the major league level if I just got the opportunity,” Cust said. “I always had success. I felt I needed to get in the right spot at the right time. It’s funny, when I was in San Diego, my dad said to me, ‘You’ve got to get back to Oakland, that’s the spot for you.’ ”

The A’s, if they get any pitching, could be interesting. They added sluggers Matt Holiday and back-to-the-future free agent Giambi.

“Eric Chavez played with Jason the first time around and he loves him,” Cust said. “Chavey still has a picture of him with Jason in his locker and he doesn’t have many pictures.

“I try to keep it loose in the clubhouse and I’m pretty loud, but we didn’t have that veteran vocal leader,” Cust added. “Now we do.”

kevin.kernan@nypost.com