Professional baseball is the goal of any Little Leaguer who ever laces up a pair of cleats and puts on a glove.

Erik Church was no different.

Unlike most others, the 2006 Thomas Jefferson graduate reached his goal three weeks ago when he signed with the Yuma (Ariz.) Scorpions of the independent Golden Baseball League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball and includes teams up and down the West Coast in the United States and Canada.

“A lot of people compare it to (Double A) ball,” said Church, a left-handed outfielder. “I am facing a lot of ex-Major Leaguers. The competition is the best I’ve ever seen. It’s fun to play against guys that used to play in ‘The Show.’ The pitchers don’t really make too many mistakes. They are good and they know what they are doing.”

But Church’s short journey into professional baseball is currently on a hiatus.

Church and his Yuma teammates were informed that the team would be shutting down for at least a week after a game in Victoria, B.C., last Sunday. Church returned to Federal Way, where he has spent the past week waiting for a phone call from Yuma’s general manager.

The owners of the Yuma Scorpions, Golden Glove Professional Baseball, failed to meet their financial obligations with the team, business partners, vendors and service companies.

Diamond Sports and Entertainment has stepped in to provide financial and management support so the Scorpions can continue playing this season.

“It was a shocker,” Church said. “We all thought that this week we were going to Las Vegas to play. It gives you a little taste of how cut throat the business side of all of it is. It’s going to be interesting to see how that all works out.”

Church does expect to return to the Scorpions when they start their season up again next week.

“I don’t want to be overly optimistic and assume everything is going to work out,” he said. “But I’m being really guarded right now. I’m just trying to focus on what I can do on the field.”

During his 12 games with the Scorpions, Church earned the starting right field job and is 7 for 40 (.175) with four RBIs.

And like Church’s first three weeks in professional baseball, the path that led him there is also a little on the unorthodox side.

After playing a pretty good centerfield for his dad, Mike, at Jefferson, Church was set to run cross country at Eastern Washington University before knee problems forced him to reconsider.

Instead, he decided to give baseball another shot and enrolled at Shoreline Community College, where he played for two seasons. That’s where he drew the attention of the Jamestown College (N.D.) coaching staff.

“I’ve definitely had a very interesting sports career,” Church said. “I’m extremely lucky. I just try to work my butt off every day because I know that it can be taken away at any moment.”

Church joined the professional ranks after his eye-popping senior season at Jamestown College in North Dakota. During the 2010 season, Church sported a a .466 batting average with 12 home runs and 61 RBIs. He was named the Dakota Athletic Conference’s MVP and helped Jamestown to a 40-13 record and a trip to the NAIA national tournament.

“I worked my tail off in the offseason,” said Church, who graduated from Jamestown with a business degree. “It was just one of those situations where everything fell into place perfectly for me.”

But the monster season didn’t draw much attention from Major League scouts, and he went undrafted in June.

“Scouts from the (Arizona) Diamondbacks and (Cincinnati) Reds were the only two to talk to me,” Church said. “Both said that they liked me. They just weren’t too sure of the level of competition I played. They like to draft guys out of the Pac 10 or big D-1 guys. I told them if they took a chance on me, I’d give it all I got.”

But nobody was willing to give Church that shot, so he was forced to take the long road into professional baseball.

“I didn’t think I was through,” he said. “I told myself after I graduate, that I would give it an honest, fair shot for two years and see what happens. I just don’t want to be one of those 30-year-old guys still holding on.”

Church is paid $600 per month while playing with the Scorpions, with $20 per day for food. Yuma’s season is slated to run until early September, then Church hopes to play professionally in Australia during the winter.

“There are a lot of things that are still popping up,” he said. “It’s just allowing me to keep playing and to see some of the world for free.”

Before getting the call from Yuma, Church spent the first half of the season playing in the Canada-based Western Major Baseball League with the Medicine Hat Mavericks. The semi-pro league includes mostly college-aged players and doesn’t pay its players.