DAYTON, Ohio — It was in the hours before his first game as a professional that the gravity of it all hit Ryan LaMarre.

The Dayton Dragons' outfielder looked up to the pitcher’s mound as he prepared for batting practice and saw three-time All-Star and franchise cornerstone for the Cincinnati Reds, Ken Griffey Sr., staring back at him.

“(I was) like, ‘What?’ ” LaMarre said before a game August 13 against the Lansing Lugnuts. “’His son’s Ken Griffey Jr.? He played for the Reds, the Big Red Machine?’ ... That was kind of like, ‘This is professional baseball.’ Just everyday, you get these crowds, these fans, people wanting your autograph and everything like that. It’s crazy.”

The spotlight, though, is nothing new to the Jackson native.

LaMarre started for three years in Michigan’s outfield, culminating in 2010 when he came back from a broken thumb suffered in the third game of the season to lead the team in batting (.419, sixth-best all time for the Wolverines), slugging and on-base percentage in a first team All-Big Ten campaign.

Major League Baseball scouts took notice, and after whispers that LaMarre might sneak into the bottom of the first round or the compensation round, the Reds snatched him up with their second-round pick, 62nd overall. It was the highest a Wolverine has been drafted since David Parrish went in the first round back in 2000.

And since signing shortly after being drafted on June 8, LaMarre has been playing for Dayton, Cincinnati’s Low Single-A affiliate. He knows that if he is to ascend to the majors and man an outfield spot that Griffey Sr. himself once held down, it will take plenty of hard work as he adjusts from college to professional ball.

LaMarre said that Griffey Sr., the Dragons hitting coach, initially helped him re-tool a swing that had gotten too long because of the aluminum bats used in NCAA play. But the 21-year-old had used wooden bats in high school summer ball and the Cape Cod League, helping to ease the transition. As of August 14, LaMarre was hitting .289 with three home runs, 22 RBI and 15 stolen bases for the Dragons.

“I didn’t really set goals specifically — I got to hit this, I got to score this many runs — that sort of thing,” LaMarre said. “To be honest, I just wanted to come out and play hard everyday and have good at-bats and do whatever I could to help the team.

“You see more depth of talent here … It’s just a constant learning curve. Which I feel like I’ve made a pretty good adjustment to so far, but I know I can still do a lot better.”

When they drafted him, the Reds saw LaMarre as a player with a lot of versatility. His use in Dayton reflects that, as he has played in both center and right and has bounced between the leadoff spot and the heart of the batting order.

But no matter where he or his teammates have played, the results have been mostly the same for the Dragons — losses. Dayton finished in seventh place in the Mid-Eastern division for the first half of the season and has gone a miserable 10-36 since the break, nine and half games behind the next closest team.

For a player as competitive and as used to winning as LaMarre, the disappointment on the field combined with the grind of minor league life and the harsh new phenomenon of playing just about every day has been tough to deal with, despite his solid stats.

LaMarre, a team leader at Michigan, said he has to keep reminding himself that the focus is mostly on his individual development as a player and not wins and losses, as has been the case in the past.

“I feel like that’s one of the bigger adjustments,” LaMarre said. “In college, I could just sit down and talk to the team or pull people aside and I don’t feel like that’s my role yet here. So I’m just kind of going with the flow and trying to do my part and encouraging people, not really trying to overanalyze everyone’s business and stuff like that.”

Four other Michigan players —catcher Chris Berset and pitchers Alan Oaks, Matt Miller and Tyler Burgoon — were drafted along with LaMarre, more than any other team in the Big Ten. They all still keep in touch, encouraging each other during slumps and offering congratulations for good performances.

And LaMarre still keeps up with Michigan coach Rich Maloney as well, whom he says was completely supportive of his decision to sign with the Reds and forgo his senior season in Ann Arbor.

“I love Michigan,” LaMarre said. “I love everything about it.