“Should we be looking at taking classes, or going to summer school?” she said. “It was a ‘What do we do with our day?’ kind of thing. But I don’t think Jamie thought about anything other than baseball. He always believed in himself.”

Even at St. Joseph’s University, the left-handed Moyer did not throw a fastball at 90 miles an hour. He has evidence to prove it. In a zippered compartment of his shaving kit, Moyer keeps a copy of his original Cubs scouting report. Dated March 7, 1984, it notes his tepid fastball — 81 to 84 miles an hour — and his tendency to push the ball.

Yet the report also praises Moyer for pitching “with heart, guts and head,” and marks him excellent in the categories of work habits and dedication. The Cubs drafted him in the sixth round and signed him for $13,000.

Moyer reached the majors at 23, but struggled to compete without throwing hard. Before his 30th birthday, he had pitched for four organizations, and his record was 20 games below .500, at 34-54. He said he felt as if he were pitching for his career from start to start.

Moyer did find work after his release from the Cubs, logging a season with the Class AAA Toledo Mud Hens in 1992. He surfaced with Baltimore the next season, and a 1996 trade to the Seattle Mariners, a team that always seemed to lack pitching depth, became his big break.

“He learned to master slow-slower-slowest,” said Charles Nagy, a top starter for the powerful Cleveland Indians teams of that era. “It’s frustrating to hitters, and once he figured that out, his career took off. I remember our hitters would swing at it and swing at it and swing at it, and they just couldn’t hit it.”