By JOSH HOUCHINS

Herald-Whig Sports Writer

A little change can be a good thing in a young man's life.

For instance, Kenny Burns has started reading a book. He's not sure the title, but he is yet to put it down.

His Quincy Gems and University of Rhode Island teammate, Oliver Palmer, has learned to play yard games.

"We're just out there playing in the yard," he said, laughing at something he never saw himself doing or saying.

That kind of open-mindedness is needed when you travel nearly 1,200 miles to play baseball during the summer.

Palmer, who has started a majority of the games at second but is looking for time at third as well, is from North Kingstown, R.I., which according to Google Maps is 1,198 miles from Quincy.

Burns' hometown of Shelton, Conn., is not quite as far -- only 1,104 miles.

"At first, I thought I was staying near my hometown and playing in Connecticut," said Burns, a center fielder. "But then I was told Illinois. Cool, so I get to go near Chicago? Then I see all the farms."

But playing in Quincy has suited them well, even with the culture shock they've endured.

Burns, who sleeps with the TV on, is already tired of tornado warnings coming across the screen in the middle of the night.

"The 'beeps' are driving me crazy," he laughs.

For Palmer, it's been more about the surroundings.

"Everybody is nice here," Palmer said. "I think that's the first thing I noticed. But this is a good league with a lot of history. We looked and quite a few players have moved on to the next level from this league. That says a lot."

So, how do teammates from a Division I college near the Atlantic Ocean make their way to Quincy?

Did they mean to sign up in Quincy, Mass. and get confused?

It wasn't their choice.

"Our coach at Rhode Island has a lot of connections," said Palmer, who has started 90 games the past two seasons with the Rams. "He wants us to go to good leagues and he assigned us here. He also sees this as a way to start a relationship of sorts with the people in this area."

Before Monday night's game at Springfield, Palmer was hitting .261 with an on-base percentage of .370, which catapulted as a result of his eight walks -- second highest on the team. He also leads the team with seven sacrifice bunts.

Burns, who has alternated between center field and designated hitter, is only one of two Gems to have as many or more walks than strikeouts with seven apiece. He is also tied with Thomas McCormick with a team-high three outfield assists.

The summer experience isn't as much about the numbers as it is the melding of personalities.

"It's really neat to see guys come from that far away to play here," said starting pitcher Greg Hellhake, who came back to his hometown to play for the Gems. "I've never played with guys from the East Coast, so it's been fun to get to know them and see how they approach baseball."

Hellhake admits their "play is not that much different. Both have a natural instinct to play hard and play everyday." Burns uses his speed to offset his size, which is listed generously at 5-foot-9 and 175 pounds.

Palmer makes the difficult plays look easy. He can charge the short hopper at second or snag an extreme liner with the infield drawn in at third to start the double play as he did last Saturday night against Springfield.

"Oliver is a glove man," Gems manager Chris Martin said. "Their coach at school told me a little about what both could do and he has been right on. They have been great to have around."

-- sports@whig.com/221-3365