A pitcher’s mound is actually quite similar to a church altar.

Both are elevated compared to the rest of the setting, and both are the center of everyone’s attention – either during a baseball game or during Mass.

It’s no surprise then that Msgr. Peter Kain, pastor of St. Ephrem’s Church, Dyker Heights, has excelled on both the altar and the mound.

It may have been a while ago, but Msgr. Kain still has plenty of fond memories from his days on the baseball diamond.

Like most youngsters, his playing days started with Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) baseball for St. Andrew Avellino, Flushing. In addition to being an altar boy at the parish, he was the team’s star pitcher and even recalls throwing a no-hitter in 1956.

From there, Msgr. Kain pitched for Power Memorial H.S., Manhattan. At that time, the talented right-hander could reach over 90 mph with his fastball and had a decent change-up.

He drew some interest from two Baltimore Orioles scouts, but Msgr. Kain had another calling in life: to serve God as a priest.

“I grew up in a parish where we had some of the greatest priests in the world,” he said. “They were such great role models for us. The parish was so important then; it was everything.”

After high school, Msgr. Kain spent two years at Cathedral College, Brooklyn, and then six at the Immaculate Conception Seminary, Huntington, L.I. However, just because he chose a life of religious service did not mean his baseball playing days were over.

Baseball Always in His Blood

At Huntington, each of the six grade levels fielded its own baseball team, and there were games every Tuesday and Thursday.

“Sports was so much part of our lives then,” Msgr. Kain said. “It was a real interest; it was part of your life, and it was part of your blood. It was competitive too. Guys took it seriously. Sports out there in my day were fierce.”

The ball games were at first just played within the seminary, but competitions with other local seminaries soon became the norm. The team from Huntington would play Maryknoll Seminary, Ossining, N.Y.; the Seminary at Darlington, South Orange, N.J.; and St. Joseph’s Seminary, Dunwoodie, N.Y. While at Huntington, Msgr. Kain added a curveball to his pitching repertoire, so he was able to consistently baffle opposing hitters.

On May 29, 1965 at St. James Cathedral, Downtown Brooklyn, Msgr. Kain was ordained a priest. His first stop was St. Catherine of Siena parish, St. Albans, where he’d occasionally hold pitching clinics for the CYO kids.

After 16 years as a campus minister at the Newman Centers of Kingsborough and Queensborough Community Colleges, he accepted an assignment as pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes, Queens Village. Even with all the responsibilities that came with becoming pastor, he found the time to pitch batting practice to the parish’s CYO baseball team whenever he could during his 12 years there.

For the past 17 years, Msgr. Kain has been pastor at St. Ephrem’s. Though he may not be throwing batting practice these days, he’s a regular at parish CYO games, and he’s even had the honor of throwing out the ceremonial first pitch.

Lessons from Baseball

In his years as a priest, Msgr. Kain has incorporated the lessons he learned from baseball – specifically teamwork – into his ministry.

As pastor, it’s his job to recognize the different talents of his parishioners in order to accomplish a common goal. In baseball, players of different skill levels also work toward a common goal – winning games.

Though it’s 25 players working together in baseball compared to sometimes thousands working together in a parish, the end result is always geared toward the good of the team.

Msgr. Kain also said that being pastor mirrors baseball in that there can be moments of winning and losing.

“You can be with people in the best of times like weddings and celebrations, and you can be with people in the worst of times like sickness or death,” he said.

Only God knows what would have become of Msgr. Kain’s baseball career had he pursued that path. But even so, the once flame-throwing pastor has no regrets whatsoever.

“I have enough belief to say that over the years it’s proven out to be something that I felt God really wanted me to do,” he said. “I believe that firmly as I get towards 49 years of doing it.”

With Opening Day approaching, Msgr. Kain is eager to watch his beloved New York Yankees. Though he may no longer be able to offer the team his services as a pitcher, he’ll certainly be praying for their success.