Athleticism, intelligence and perseverance.

That’s what drives Redmond native Michael Conforto, according to one of his former baseball coaches Mark Sandquist, who first met up with the now-22-year-old when he was a young ballplayer getting his start in the Redmond North Little League program.

Conforto brought those three crucial qualities to the plate last Friday night during his first Major League Baseball at-bats for the New York Mets. The lefty notched an RBI in his first game, and had a major breakout night on Saturday, going 4-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI and four runs scored to help lead the host Mets to a 15-2 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field in Queens.

The left fielder’s first professional hit was a first-inning infield single during the Mets’ 21-hit barrage on the night.

According to the Mets’ Twitter: “@mconforto8 says the first hit baseball will go to his grandfather who couldn’t make the trip. His dad was here.”

Surrounded by reporters in the locker room after Saturday’s game, Conforto noted in a video posted on the Mets’ Twitter: “Obviously, all the bats were going and we were scoring a lot of runs and I got that first win for myself. That’s pretty cool to be a part of that, be part of a winning effort as a team… and a lot of firsts tonight, so that’s a good thing.” (Conforto was unavailable for a Reporter interview at press time.)

Sandquist, whose son Cameron was at Friday night’s game, said he and other coaches envisioned Conforto playing in the big leagues early on in his career.

“It was a kind of a given from when he was a kid,” said Mark, who was one of the coaches when both Conforto and Cameron were on the Redmond North Little League all-star team that participated in the Little League World Series in 2004.

The Mets called up Conforto from Double-A Binghamton (New York) — the franchise’s minor league team — to replace veteran Michael Cuddyer, who was placed on the disabled list.

Conforto, who was the Redmond Reporter’s male athlete of the year in 2011 and went on to attend Oregon State University, was a first-round, 10th overall selection ($2.97 million) by the Mets in the Major League Baseball draft in June 2014.

The Redmond High graduate, who played both baseball and football as a Mustang, was hitting .312 with five home runs in 45 games for Binghamton, his only experience above Class A ball.

According to a Fangraphs website, people were aware of Conforto’s success in Binghamton and were awaiting his Major League arrival.

AMAZIN’ EXPERIENCE

Conforto’s dad Mike recalled how quickly everything transpired last Friday when his son began his trek up to the big leagues.

“On Friday, he called me and said, ‘I got the call, I’m going up to the Mets. I’m waiting for a car to come pick me up,'” Mike said. Since it all happened in the blink of an eye, Mike or any family members weren’t able to attend Michael’s first game, but the father and a few others made the trip from Seattle to New York for last Saturday and Sunday’s games.

While they streamed Michael’s first game online, family members were thrilled to see the next two games live.

“I was pretty excited. It was a little surreal (watching him) in a professional stadium for the first time. I was just happy for him,” said Mike, who flew back to Redmond on Monday and has fielded copious texts and messages since last Friday’s news hit the Internet.

Injured Mets player David Wright gave Michael his tickets so he could pass them on to his family for the two weekend games. They were sitting right behind home plate and Michael acknowledged their presence.

“He gave us a little wave when he was in the batter’s box and on deck,” Mike said.

Cameron Sandquist, who works for a hedge fund in New York City, sat in the fourth row behind home plate at his longtime friend’s professional debut. Sandquist said Michael received a near-standing ovation from the crowd when he stepped up to the plate for the first time.

“I was hollering,” said Sandquist, who played both baseball and football with Michael. “He got a nice salute from the New York crowd. People are aware of who he was. He’s always dreamt about this. It gives you chills. Seeing someone you grew up with on that kind of a stage — it was nuts.”

On Michael’s Facebook page, one fan wrote, “Welcome to NY,” and another fan added, “Wow! What a debut! So happy for your success!! Can’t wait to see more.” A Redmond North Little League tweet reads, “Way to go Conforto! Redmond’s proud of you!”

Michael comes from a family of strong athletic genes: Mike played inside linebacker at Penn State University and his mother Tracie was a two-time Olympic gold medalist in synchronized swimming.

On Michael’s success from Little League to the big leagues, Mike said that he spent “a lot of hours in the batting cage and had a lot of great coaches all the way up through college.”

“He’s always been coachable and he’s always been athletic,” Mike said.