By Krystina Lucido

Max Ferdinand (Sabina Moran/PressBox)

Though the Baltimore Blast have been in a downward slump as of late, the potential to improve is there. With weapons like former Reading Revolution star Max Ferdinand, they are set to make a speedy recovery.

“The obvious thing is his speed,” said Blast captain Robbie Aristodemo. “He’s one of the fastest players in the league so just that alone, he’s already offering a lot.”

With just half a professional season under his belt, Ferdinand has already contributed five goals in nine games, including a hat trick in Baltimore's first win against Rockford this season.

In the Dec. 27 road game, Ferdinand single-handedly kept the Blast up to speed with Rockford. The 5-foot-11 forward put up three points unassisted in the first half and contributed five points in the third quarter before fellow rookie Lucio Gonzaga put up the last two points needed to push the Blast to victory.

For a rookie who has never competed at the professional level, Ferdinand has used his speed and ball-controlling skills to outpace defenders and open holes for his teammates. He attributes his success so far to “a lot of help from the older guys like Denison (Cabral), Sagu, Robbie. They help me out a lot.”

And as with most rookies who don’t have experience playing indoors, Ferdinand has had to make adjustments in order to adapt to the new style.

“It’s a different game,” Ferdinand said. “It’s much faster. You have to make your decisions quicker. It’s a lot different.”

“Sometimes players come in from outdoor to indoor and they think, ‘Oh, I’ve been playing outdoor for a long time,’” Aristodemo said. “But it’s a totally different game, and he realizes that and he’s humble and he comes in and works hard.”

Ferdinand knows he has much to learn, but so far his teammates have been impressed with what he has brought to the table.

“He’s been playing a couple of different positions so it makes it a little bit more difficult for him to learn both,” Aristodemo said. “But once he gets into his natural position, I think he’s going to continue to improve and get better and help us. He’s been a great surprise for us this year.”

A finalist in the Sueño MLS 2009, the nationally-televised talent search that pits players against MLS teams in an 11-on-11 outdoor game, Ferdinand leapfrogged from high school in Reading, Pa., to a soccer career, playing for the Reading Revolution, a National Premier Soccer League amateur team.

However, his roots are not based in Reading. Ferdinand was born in Haiti before moving to Brooklyn, N.Y., in 2001 when he was 13. With his mom and cousins still in the now-devastated region, it has been rough for Ferdinand, but he knows there isn’t much he can do this far away.

“It’s tough, but I talked to my mom last week,” Ferdinand said. “I try not to think about. But I can’t really do anything; just pray and that’s it. Actually, the only time I don’t think about it is when I’m practicing.”

Issue 146: February 2010