Wednesday, September 12, 2007

An Inspirational Story

I found this story/blog entry on Baseball America; it's a regular feature by a guy who will most likely be a permanent minor league pitcher, maybe someone who'll get a couple of cups of coffee at the most. Anyway, it really says a lot about the role sports plays in our lives and that, while they may seem like meaningless games or a way to make a living to the guys playing them, they're a lot more important to other people. Baseball has been more than just a game to me; ask my dad what baseball meant for me the week that my brother died. The Reds were playing in the World Series, and I drove up to Oakland with my dad and saw them win the whole thing. It was a catharsis that helped me cope with my grief, pain and loss, and even though Chris Sabo and Rob Dibble may have been just 'playing a game', one person in rightfield was getting a whole lot more from their efforts than that.

I hope this moves you as much as it did me:

Dirk Hayhurst is a 26-year-old righthanded reliever in the Padres system who has spent parts of three seasons at high Class A Lake Elsinore.

Though he made it all the way to Triple-A Portland last season, Hayhurst began this year back with the Storm, officially making him a California League veteran.But after going 0-1, 1.80 at the Lake, Hayhurst was promoted to Double-A San Antonio in early May, and made two appearances at Triple-A Portland before settling into the Missions' bullpen. Currently, Hayhurst is 3-1, 3.77 in 45 innings in the Texas League.The 2003 eighth-round pick out of Kent State is writing a diary for Baseball America this season, delving into the side of the minor leagues fans seldom see.

A mother brought her son past the bullpen a few days back. As they approached, we instinctively acted as if our attention was wrapped up in the game; looking away from them, avoiding eye contact.

They made their way directly to us, eyes trained on us, hoping to catch our attention. Soon they had closed the distance and were standing right in front of us, staring expectantly through the fencing with wide eyes and nervous smiles.

"Hello," said the mother. We said nothing in return and continued to act as if we couldn't see or hear her. She stumbled at our coldness, and cast hear eyes around sadly. She looked at her son, who never took his eyes off us, smiled, and then mustered enough courage to try again.

I can't explain to you what its like to avoid someone on purpose. When I write about the concept it just seems too rude and heartless. Maybe it is, but I still do it all the time. In my line of work, sometimes you have to ignore people. You have to tune out the noise of the game. There is no shortage of kids who want balls just because some other kid got one. No shortage of folks who want scraps signed with illegible autographs because everyone else is doing it. No shortage of begging, and pleading for stuff they don't really need, just want because someone else has.

Besides, my signature is just that: words written across something to spell my name. And my name is not important (hence, non-prospect diaries!). Yet to baseball fans, signatures are very important. They're so important in fact, even the mascot signs balls. It doesn't even have to be my name, or a name at all, just the fact we players scribbled on a scrap for fan is enough. Its all about the context.

For me, it's a dead ritual, and doesn't make sense. Maybe this is because I know who I am. Because everyday I see the mistakes and shortcomings I deal with that humanize me. I disagree that I am somehow more valuable because I do this job. Fans however, see my clean uniform and their boyhood dreams incarnate. When my hand presses a pen to paper, they find it magical. I don't understand why this works the way it does, but its lack of logic in no way negates the reality of it.

"My son," said the mother as she looked at her boy, "would really like to meet you."Again, she smiled nervously and again she was met with silence.After a moment I broke and said hello to the young boy. He smiled and tried to hide behind his mom like young kids do when they are nervous. Mom asked him if he could be a big boy and say hello in return? He did, in a mute voice, then ducked behind his mother again. I bent down at the fence to get on the boy's level, steadying myself with one hand on the links. As I did this, the mother knelt down quickly and put her hand on mine. My comfort zone was just violated, but before I could say anything, she spoke, in a soft and sad voice saying, "My son has liver cancer. It's terminal. He really wanted to do this before . . . um, thank you so much for taking the time to talk with him."

I was silent again, but this time for a different reason. I stared at the young boy, then at his mother whose face was serious and stalwart. The fellas around me had started talking with the young boy where I left off, though they were unaware of his condition. I walked away from the scene and over the some of the guys and whispered what I was just told. We looked at each other and, without a word of discussion, scooped up the youngster and placed him the pen with us.

We sat him down in one of our chairs and took seats around him. There he sat while we lavished him with attention. We asked him about everything a young boy loves to talk about: toys, baseball, candy, parks, games . . . We acted amazed at his stories and affirmed how he would become a big leaguer someday. We made him feel special, because he is. Finally, when our time was up and he had to go, without request or prompting, we produced a baseball and signed it for him.

When we gave the boy that ball, there was no dead ritual involved. Our names were no longer scribbles to be collected, and the ball was no longer a souvenir. That baseball was now a letter, and each signature was a testament of hope, encouragement, and joy. I can't explain to you how much happiness it gave that mother and her son to share those moments with us.I still can't explain why people treat us so special for putting on a baseball uniform. But in those few moments together, it didn't really matter--in those few moments, baseball made perfect sense.

You can reach Dirk at dirkhayhurst@baseballamerica.com.

Monday, September 10, 2007

A Preview of the League Meeting

My sources in the future have sent me a glimpse of the upcoming league meeting. Things look they're going well at this point:

Injury Scenario

Here's a hypothetical situation that involves roster management, injuries and the post-season. Let's say that you're winning your division, and on the last day of the season, all three of the catchers on your roster suffer fifteen game injuries. Since any acquisitions made after the trade deadline are not eligible for the post-season, what would you do in this case? Technically, a team that doesn't have two position players on their roster has to forfeit - what would we do here? It's one for the constitution, I suppose.

PS This is only one of the many reasons I'd like to see the injuries turned off until Strat comes up with a solution to the current problem.

The League Meeting: A Wrinkle In The Plan

Hey all,

Christian has advised that he will be in Santa Clarita on Saturday, the 22nd, and he can stay up there overnight until Sunday. He's down with doing the meeting somewhere in the SCV instead of in OC. How does everybody feel about making the change? Loren's traveling right now, but he did offer his place as a potential meeting location. What say everybody? If we can get a final headcount by the end of the week, I'll start working on a meeting agenda. These are definitely some of the items that people want to discuss:

  • Redrawing the divisions
  • The missed series deadlines
  • Injuries being turned off
  • The 1911 Season
  • Finishing the Constitution
  • Potential managerial vacancies
  • Standardization of game procedures
  • Playing the All-Star Game

If there's anything else not on the list, comment here. I highly recommend that you sign up for a Blogger account so that we all know who's leaving the comment, but otherwise, if you're anonymous, just say who you are in the body of the comment.

Sunday, September 9, 2007

'06 Pennant Race Preview, Eastern Division

With the '06 season coming down to the final four rounds, let's take a look at each division and what lies in store for the rest of the year. This season has turned out to be extremely competitive in every race, especially for the Central Division and Wild Card. Five teams could potentially be fighting it out for the Wild Card in the very last series of the year, which is going to make for some extremely contentious matches (and a lot of screaming and yelling). Here's how the Eastern Division is shaping up:

1st Place: Cleveland Thunder, 25-15

The Thunder started the season at 5-8 but have dominated their opponents after that, going 20-7 to take a strong lead in the division. Manny Ramirez, Carlos Beltran and A-Rod have torn up league pitching this year and are among the league leaders in homers and OPS. Beltran has hit an eye-popping 18 doubles. The team itself is hitting .261 and has stolen a respectable 22 bases (but with a +14 in SB-CS ratio). Of the team's stars, only Vladimir Guerrero has been having anything close to an off-year (.209 BA, .646 OPS). However, it's the pitching, not the hitting, that is going to easily carry the Thunder to a post-season berth. The pitching staff leads the Canyon League with a 3.61 ERA and is paced by starters C.C. Sabathia (6-2) and John Lackey (5-1). While the rest of the rotation has been decidedly average, and even disappointing in Dontrelle Willis's case (2-3, 5.40 ERA), the bullpen has been lights out. Free-agent draftee Scot Shields is making a case for the Cy Young award, with 10 saves in 12 attempts and a miniscule 0.87 ERA (with only 2 earned runs allowed all season). Justin Duscherer has done a very effective job in his role as primary setup man, and Oscar Villareal, Matt Capps and Brandon League have also pitched very effectively in different relief roles (all with ERAs below 3.30). Even Jose Valverde has struck out 22 batters in 13 innings.

Remaining series: Baltimore, San Diego, New York, Boston. None of these series should pose a serious challenge to the Thunder's stampede toward a Canyon League title. Baltimore's pitching staff can't match up to Cleveland's offensive onslaught, and San Diego is not in their league right now. New York and Boston will be lucky to win one game in their matchups with the Thunder.

Projected Finish: 1st place, 36-20.

2nd place, Baltimore Colt 45s, 21-15

In his pre-season preview of the Colt 45s, the Commish predicted a last place finish for them, based on woeful pitching and other issues left unadressed by GM Loren Nodolf. While they're not dominating the division, they're far from the cellar dwellers (more on the Blue Sox later). The Colt 45s fortunes might rest on their unplayed Round 10 series vs. California, which could leave them thinking about next season or could see them pushing the Thunder in a serious fight to the finish. Statistically, Baltimore is definitely middle of the pack at best, and their record seems to indicate that Nodolf has been getting by on smoke and mirrors. Only one Colt 45 hitter has reached double digits in home runs, and that player, Jim Thome, is now playing for the Houston Seraphs. Additionally, his replacement, James Loney, is very limited in ABs for the rest of the season, which leaves Shawn Green as the primary first baseman down the stretch; Clayton Kershaw may pay dividends in future seasons, but last I checked, A-ball pitchers don't get to play in the Canyon League. With Thome plying his trade in the Central Division, it will be up to Shortstop Derek Jeter (.364 BA, 1.064 OPS) to carry the team the rest of the way. Underrated CF David DeJesus has also been productive this year (.500 SLG), but it will be a challenge for him to finish as strongly. While nobody on the pitching staff will populate the Cy Young balloting, many have had effective seasons up to this point. Todd Jones has 7 saves in only 9 innings, and Juan Cruz is 4-1 in a middle relief role. The starters have all been very average but only Noah Lowry has been brutalized thus far (6.75 ERA, 37 hits in 23 IP); Lowry has to get on track for the team to have a chance to make the post-season.

Remaining series: California, Cleveland, Atlanta, Boston, New York. 20 games remain, and it looks like a roller coaster ride that will lead to a 10-10 finish. The loss of Thome coupled with the weak Baltimore pitching staff makes Baltimore a decidedly average team, but their hot start will still leave them with an over .500 finish. Loren's been a tough manager, though, and he's defied expectations before, so a miracle title is still a possibility.

Projected Finish: 2nd Place, 31-25

3rd Place: New York Knights, 20-24

The Knights were a franchise in serious disarray when orphaned by ex-GM Rick Hand. The team was offered to several potential replacements, but the AARP status of so many New York players saw the suitors run away faster than the characters at the end of a Casper cartoon. Luckily, David R. Moxness was the perfect masochist for the job, but cleaning up the roster almost caused his hair to fall out ala Roger Maris. Between the waiver pool and trades, the Knights have sent 14 long-time players off to greener pastures, including star First Baseman David "Big Papi" Ortiz and CF Johnny Damon. While not a serious challenger to Cleveland and Baltimore, the Knights have played a respectable brand of baseball and have deflated the 'sweep hopes' of more than one opponent (Houston and Atlanta still have yet to recover). "Big Papi" paced the hitters with 16 homers during his final season in New York, and he's probably on his way to the league MVP. New everyday First Baseman Justin Morneau is hitting .425 since the trade, and he's going to make it easier for Knights fans to forget Ortiz. On the pitching side, top starters Brandon Webb, Chris Young and Dan Haren are 9-13, but their numbers are stronger than that record. Save leader Bob Wickman (7) was sent to San Diego in the "Big Papi" trade, and NY intends to use a closer by committee the rest of the way. The present may be somewhat gloomy, but the future is considerably brighter; unlike his predecessor, Moxness covets draft picks and currently has 10 waiting for him in the '07 draft. He also acquired young studs Troy Tulowitzki and Chris Young (the outfielder), and they'll make opponents miserable beginning next season.

Remaining series: Cincinnati, Cleveland, Baltimore. Nothing is going to be easy for the Knights down the stretch, and their depleted bullpen forces the starting rotation to bear the load. Emmert predicted the Knights would finish with more wins than the Zouaves, but a 3-9 finish won't get them there. The weak finish will give the Knights a solid position in next season's draft, and they'll finish with a much better record in 2007.

Projected finish: 3rd place, 23-33

4th Place, Boston Blue Sox, 15-29

My grandmother always threw out that line, "If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all", but a) I have to write something about Boston, and b) she's dead, so I don't have to listen to her bitching anymore. January 22nd seemed like an ordinary day, but for the teams in the Central Division not managed by Shannon Somers, it is a day that will live in infamy forever. Boston was in a serious rebuilding mode, adding youngsters like Cameron Maybin and Alex Gordon to a roster that was very similar to the Atlanta Rebel franchises of the late 90s/early 21st century. Suddenly, the following trade was announced: Atlanta trades Chad Cordero (p) and their 2006 Free Agent pick (12th overall) to Boston for the Blue Sox 2006 Free Agent pick (3rd overall) and their 2006 1st round rookie pick (3rd overall)
Little did Boston GM Joe English realize at the time, but this trade would set off a trading frenzy that has never been seen before in the Canyon League. It is doubtful he was prepared for the angry tirade that the Commish would level at him, and the trade sparked an ugly month in terms of bad manners and rude e-mails that have thankfully abated. While the trade did fill one major need of the Blue Sox, it cost them a shot at young talent like Evan Longoria or Yovani Gallardo and free agent Matt Holliday. The Rebels were able to flip their stronger draft status into Eric Bedard, and in exchange, the Blue Sox received Chad Cordero and drafted Ryan Freel with the #12 FA pick. It was the Matt Mantei/Jake Peavy trade, 2006 version, with the Rebels exploiting a team's desperate need for a closer and getting much stronger for the effort.

As for the season, it's been another one of futility for the Blue Sox. Without going into painful detail, very little has worked for Boston, although Cordero has been very effective, with 9 saves and a 2.29 ERA. The problem is the rest of the pitching staff, which has more members with ERAs over 6.00 than under. Felix Hernandez has been brutally ineffective, with an eyepopping 8.51 ERA and 15.5 H/9IP. Underperforming stars like Chase Utley and Ryan Freel have pushed the Blue Sox to a worse record than they deserve, but this was never a team with a chance to contend in 2006. The future still looks bright in Boston with young studs King Felix, Philip Hughes and Cameron Maybin, among others, all ready to dominate for years to come.

Remaining series: SF, Baltimore, and Cleveland. Three tough opponents left to go, but for some reason, the Blue Sox should put up a good fight and will go 7-5. It's not nearly enough to salvage the season, but Joe English can head to next season with his dignity and a good future intact.

Projected Finish: 4th place, 22-34

Next Up: the Central Division. Will they figure out a way to make trades legal after the deadline? Will Emmert and Shannon fight to the death in Nelson's orchards next week? Stay Tuned!

Friday, September 7, 2007

Inagural Canyon League Confidential

Today's marks the beginning of a new weekly column here on the CL Blog: Canyon League Confidential. We'll be talking about anything and everything in CL world, from the pennant races to the gossip that goes on behind the scenes. We hope you enjoy it - drop us a line with suggestions for our next column. Away we go:


From the Penthouse to the Outhouse -
San Diego's Mega-Meltdown

It's beginning to look like Cinderella's coach turned back into a pumpkin much earlier than anticipated by her fairy godmother, as the scrappy San Diego Gulls have gone from a hot 19-7 start to a sub .500 record of 20-22. For those of you who aren't math majors, that's a 1-15 record since they sat atop the league's best record. Not since the incident at Chernobyl has a meltdown of this proportion been witnessed. GM/Manager Nelson Somers has begun to drink heavily, and the players are on the verge of a 'Storm The Bastille'-like revolt. We sat down with an anonymous Gull team leader, and he painted a portrait of a team that is more Jackson Pollock than Thomas Kinkade. Fasten your seatbelts - it's gonna be a bumpy night:
Q. Hi , thanks for talking with us after a second painful loss to your hated rivals here in San Francisco. What is your opinion of your team's performance, especially over the last 16 games?
A. It's a freakin' embarrassment what we're going through right now, losing so much, playing like we're in last place! I don't take that lightly. I don't take it as nothin'. I'm embarrassed. I can't even pick up my head because we're so bad. I can't take it no more
Q. Does losing so much, so fast, ever get any easier?
A. I'm freakin' tired of being embarrassed. I just hate losing. I'm sorry. I'm not a big guy on anything else but winning. If nobody likes the way I take it or go about it, come and see me. I just like winning. That's why we're here.
Above: "Mr Anonymous"
Q. What do you think needs to change? Is it your GM or the players? Some have said that after your hot start that Nelson Somers began to create a 'soft' environment and encouraged players to focus on their stats.
A. I don't care with who or without who, but winning needs to be our priority! We came here to win. We didn't come here to be part of a country club just to pass the time, just to get paid. At least I didn't come here for that. I didn't come here to frickin' lose. People have got to understand, if you think only for yourself and your numbers and not the team, you're probably going to have a so-so year. But if you play for the team, to win, you're going to have way better numbers. If we have people here who are worrying about getting paid or just happy to be here and not worrying about winning, they're on the wrong team - or I am.
Q. So you're saying some guys have fallen into the 'spoiled superstar mode'?

A. We have a saying in Loompaland: 'I put my little piece in the puzzle.' What I do on the field is my piece. But I can not carry the team. Magglio Ordonez can not carry the team. Hanley Ramirez, nobody. This has to be done together. If we do it together, we're going to be fine. If we go separate ways, then it's going to be another year like this year.
Q. On the positive side, you have fourteen games left to play and have just made some solid player acquistions for the stretch run. What do you think the team needs to do in that time to win the West?
A. Go out there between those lines and respect the game. Go all out for 31/2 hours and respect your teammates. That's the biggest thing here, respect your teammates and work your ass for nine innings. If you get beat, you could keep your head up. But if you beat yourself or you don't come out with the right energy or desire, if you're coming out just to get paid, it's hard on everybody.
If the rest of the Gulls can carry this attitude with them in their next two games in SF and for the rest of the season after that, San Diego should be the team to beat in the West; otherwise, fans are about to grow restless with the Gulls rebuilding process, and a new GM may be needed to finish what Nelson Somers can't.


Blame It On Your Brother!

A major performance-enhancing drug-related scandal is brewing in the Canyon League, and to nobody's surprise, it's a division-leading team run by a Somers brother; to everybody's surprise, it's not the Gulls - it's the Thunder. In a development sure to take the wind out of the sails of the 'Good Ship Candy-Pop', two Thunder players, Rick Ankiel and Troy Glaus, have been implicated for using both anabolic steroids and Human Growth Hormone. According to inside sources, both players received shipments from a medical lab called SHANSOM Peformance Tech Inc., located on a remote property known as Shiells Ranch in Fillmore, CA. This is a well-known illegal pharmaceuticals operation that trades its wares at farmer's markets throughout the state of California, using a produce business as its front. Nobody at this operation could be reached for comment, and at present, we are still trying to determine who owns and manages this top-secret organization. In a phone call that could only be described as 'ugly', Thunder manager/GM Chris Somers had this to say about the allegations:
"If you want answers, ask my brother!!! He's the guy behind all of this. I just sell candy to the horse people and try to run my team in my spare time. He's the one who turned everybody on to that lab, not me. I was planning on trading those guys to the Gulls anyway - I need more pitching! Now leave me the f&c* alone - Jennifer needs help in the kitchen"
Above: Rick Ankiel at a Recent Workout
While our insiders did report that highly secretive trade talks did take place between San Diego and Cleveland last night, we aren't sold on the 'blame my brother' stuff. It is interesting that the tangled web of deceit does seem to lead back to San Diego, however. It's obvious the "best behavior" of Nelson Somers is most definitely a thing of the past!


Tuesday, September 4, 2007

1911 - Chicago Team Announces Name Change


The team formerly known as the "Chicago Breeze" in action at the West Side Grounds


Chicago (AP) - At a heated press conference held outside their historic West Side Grounds ballpark, the Chicago Breeze announced their intention to rename the franchise the Chicago Orphans, which will take effect at the start of the 1911 season. Surrounded by a group of small tykes from the Jackson Street Home for Abandoned Children, Team Owner and General Manager Colonel Thorlief Moxness, the maverick saloon and tinned beef magnate, excitedly proclaimed, "The Chicago Orphans will be the pride of the Canyon League, turning those worthless Steelmills into scrap metal. The Steamers will run all the way down to Mississippi when we get done with them. The Stranglers will choke on their own vomit after losing game after game to us. The Bluecoats will turn green with envy when they see our record. The Explorers will discover what last place feels like. The Americans will want to burn down Washington again after they lose another game at home to us. And the Warriors will lose every battle to us just like Custer at Little Big Horn - in a slaughter!!!" Col. Moxness, taking swigs from his bottle of Rye Whisky, talked about the exciting changes he has in store for his new team, proclaiming 1911 as "the year of Adoption" and that he will personally adopt an orphaned child for every win the team has during the '11 season.

When asked why he felt the need to change the name of the franchise, the somewhat inebriated and cantankerous owner responded, "This is my team - mine! And I'll do what I want. The Orphans were my favorite team when I was growing up, and I always wanted to own them. Besides, the name Breeze is for pussies."

The new roster has yet to be filled out, but no matter who's playing in the West Side Park infield, it should be an exciting year of base ball!