DES MOINES, Iowa | Shortly after his promotion to Triple-A, the Iowa Cubs pulled a fast one on pitcher and Valparaiso High School grad Jeff Samardzija.

The I-Cubs hung a makeshift No. 83 jersey in Samardzija's locker, hazing the new guy the only way they knew how. Though Samardzija had long traded in the navy and gold of Notre Dame football for blue pinstripes, even he had to laugh.

Samardzija knows that until he proves otherwise, he'll always be that floppy-haired wide receiver who chose baseball over the NFL.

Samardzija, who signed a 5-year, $10-million contract with the Cubs in 2007 despite speculation that he could have been a first-round pick in the NFL draft, made his debut for Iowa on June 24.

Samardzija is 1-1 with 3.00 earned run average in two Triple-A starts.

"They saw me playing every Saturday, but they didn't see me playing every Friday, Saturday and Sunday in baseball. Obviously nowadays, you believe what you see, believe what you read in the paper or what you see on TV," said Samardzija. "I don't blame them for it. My job is to go out and show them that I can play baseball, too."

For more on this story, read Thursday's edition of The Times.