Minoring In Baseball

Lakers ready for California dreamin’

Minoring In Baseball — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 07:00:16 +0000

The Lake Superior State Lakers softball team is ready to this the road this spring, as the first leg of their season takes them to California. Trips like this are expensive for small programs, especially since LSSU is the smallest state funded college in Michigan. One of the ways the girls earn money for the trip is the annual Take Me Out To The Ballgame dinner. This has also been a tradition for the kids and I, who’ve been going since Lily and Trevor were probably Brian’s age. We had fun again this year, and the kids Papa was able to join us, too. One of Lily’s favorite things to do is to put a pie in the face of her favorite player. They started doing this last season, and it’s been a big hit. A lot of the players already know Lily from the local softball camps and clinics, so it’s fun for them, too. The girls were also raffling off a flat screen TV and went out on the ice during the hockey game that night to announce the winner and promote the team. Pictured above is the team sporting their very cool new uniforms. The photos below are from the banquet, and feature Lily sporting her new softball hoodie and us enjoying our spaghetti dinner. Good luck to the Lady Lakers this season, and we hope the weather is decent this April for their home games here in the Sault. Here’s the link to the girls 2012 schedule:

http://www.lssulakers.com/sports/w-softbl/2011-12/schedule

Top photo courtesy of LSSU Athletics

Bottom photos property of M.I.B.

The future of Brandon Inge

Minoring In Baseball — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 09:03:14 +0000

I’ve been mulling over this topic for a while, now, so I thought I might as well vent my feelings on the subject. Brandon Inge continues to be a sensitive topic for Detroit Tiger fans, and has become a player that some simply love, hate, or love to hate. I like Brandon Inge, I really do, and would like nothing more than to see him succeed and have a very productive MLB career. The fact is however, he batted .197 last season and is a career .235 hitter. So… I can understand why fans have a problem with him making $5.5 million a year this season, when it’s not even a ‘gimme’ that he’ll make the Major League roster. I think he will, though, and we’ll find out here in a few short weeks if all of the work he’s done in the offseason will pay off. The signing of Prince Fielder didn’t help Inge’s case, either, with Miguel Cabrera now being moved back to his old position at third. A bit of deja’ vu, as Inge went through this before when Cabrera was originally signed, and even back when the Tigers got Pudge Rodriquez who took his catching position. Tigers manager Jim Leyland really didn’t help matter either, by stating at the Prince press conference that Inge “isn’t the happiest camper”. I guess he could have put a positive spin on it, or not really mentioned Inge at all. All this does is give the media a chance to open up a Pandora’s Box of Inge bashing, without him even making a statement himself. I really think that I can step back and see both sides. I can see how fans may have a problem with Inge’s average and salary, but how can you blame a guy for just wanting to play? I don’t see what’s wrong with a guy stating that he wants to work hard enough and play well enough to earn a starting position. I would like to think that Cabrera will be the DH much of the time, with him being gradually inserted into the hot corner throughout the season. Inge’s defense is enough to at least earn him a spot on the bench, but if he can out-hit Don Kelly in spring training, he could see plenty of starts at third until Miggy gets used to third base again. Leyland stated that he wants Inge on the team, but he’ll have to accept the position as a reserve player, which isn’t bad considering he doesn’t have many options. It’s doubtful that any other team will pick him up with his salary, unless Detroit eats most of it. Last season he was demoted to Triple-A Toledo, and stated he didn’t want to play anywhere else but Detroit. When he was called back up to the Tigers and hit a home-run in his first at bat, you would have thought they won the Series. Despite all of the haters, many fans still like Inge, and would like to see him stay. Even GM Dave Dombrowski seems positive about Inge’s contribution to the Tigers in 2012 stating, “Probably the best thing is to let him come to spring training, let him play well, and let’s see what happens from there. He’s still an important part of our club at this point. “

Now we come to the impass on how well the 2012 season goes for him, though. This is the last year of his contract, but even if he plays well enough, it’s doubtful that he’ll get more than a one year deal, and with Victor Martinez returning to the DH spot next season, the hot corner will be completely owned by Cabrera. They also have Nick Castellanos being groomed in the Minors and should be big league really in a few seasons, though they may move him to the outfield. With 2013 not looking like there will be a place for him, I do have a suggestion….I’d like to see Inge get into coaching. Hear me out…please. This is what Inge needs to do in 2012: work hard, don’t get caught by the press bad mouthing the organization, no matter how much he plays, or doesn’t play. The fact is, that Mike Illitch is one of the best owners in pro sports, and does a good job of taking care of players who are loyal to him. Look at all he’s done for some of the Red Wings alumni like Kris Draper, Kirk Maltby, Chris Chelios, and Chris Osgood. They all have pretty nice cushy jobs within the organization. Inge has been in Detroit longer than any other Tiger on the roster, and if he plays his cards right, could still be employed by the organization when his playing days are done. Granted he’s only 34, but is he starts coaching at 35-36, he could still be able to relate to the younger players. The fact that he’s played so many positions in at catcher, infield, and outfield, will also help his case. Just because he’s a career .235 hitter doesn’t mean he can’t be an effective hitting coach, either. Many players who don’t even have much of a Major League career have had success in coaching, including Leyland himself. I think Inge’s attitude would go long way in his coaching career, and could even lead to a manager job. Where else would I like to see him coach, also, than West Michigan? Inge lives in metro Detroit year round, and moving to Grand Rapids wouldn’t be much of a change for him. He’s also one of the most popular players to ever play for the Whitecaps and the crowds at Fifth Third Ballpark are riddled with Inge jerseys/shirts (though Brennan Boesch is starting to give him a run for his money). He also was part of the inaugural class of the Whitecaps Hall of Fame. Inge has only good things to say about his time in West Michigan, too. During a rehab game in 2010 he stated to the Grand Rapids Press, “I love it here, I really do. It’s kind of the starting point for me. This was the first full season I had in the Minor Leagues. This place produces great ball players, and it’s the first place you go to where you have larger crowds. People are very loyal here-the most loyal I’ve ever seen.” It seems like the Whitecaps are a perfect fit for Inge’s post-playing career. His alpha and omega….

Photos courtesy of the Grand Rapids Press

Fifth Third Ballpark update

Minoring In Baseball — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 06:00:39 +0000

During the off-season, they are busy at work in West Michigan, getting the new scoreboard and video board ready for game play. Things seem to be coming along nicely, and I can’t wait to get to our first game of the season and check all the changes out. I think I’m really going to like the new manual scoreboard, as it brings baseball tradition to the modern ballpark. The new state of the art video board will satisfy the fans of the modern age, too. With the way things look, everything should be up and running by April.

The only change I wish would be made is the ballpark’s name. The stadium’s name was originally Old Kent Park in 1994, but was changed to Fifth Third Ballpark in 2001 after the merger of Old Kent and Fifth Third banks. The name generally wouldn’t bother me so much, if it wasn’t for the fact that Fifth Third bank has been digging it’s claws into so many Minor League stadiums here in the midwest. Just south in Toledo, the MudHens(International League) play at Fifth Third Field, and in their same state of Ohio, the Dayton Dragons(Midwest League) also play in a Fifth Third Field. Confused yet? To make things more confusing, this season the Kane County Cougars changed the name of their stadium to…you guessed it….Fifth Third Bank Ballpark. So, here’s the break down: West Michigan=Fifth Third Ballpark; Toledo=Fifth Third Field; Dayton=Fifth Third Field; Kane County=Fifth Third Bank Ballpark. Where is the originality that we love about the Minors? I’m not niave…I know money talks and make these teams possible, but I’d rather have a stadium named after a local ballplayer, coach, or even a local business or benefactor than another large bank. Then again, I’ll take Tiger Stadium over Comerica Park, too. I would love to see the Whitecaps play in, say a Mickey Stanley Stadium, named after the Tigers legend who’s from Grand Rapids. Anyway, this blog is just more of a rant than anything else. Enjoy the pics, and I’ll have some of my own in April.

Photos courtesy of the West Michigan Whitecaps

Indy on Super Bowl Weekend

Minoring In Baseball — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 10:06:00 +0000

Trevor and I at Victory Field in 2009. Photo property of M.I.B.

I have to say, I’m really glad it’s time for the Super Bowl. Really, I am. To me, it means the end of the football season, and we can finally concentrate on baseball. The fact that this years ‘sporting’ event of funny commercials and laughable half-time shows takes place in Indianapolis, does hold a special place in my heart. The city’s football stadium (I’m sure it has a name, I just don’t care) is right next to one of my favorite Minor League venues in Victory Field. This house of baseball mastery has been around since 1996, and has been voted the best Minor League stadium in the past. While there on our baseball trip in 2009, there was a lot going on already to get the city Super Bowl sound. Out over the left field wall, we witnessed constant construction on a brand new hotel big enough to house all the players and celebrities. That didn’t distract us from seeing some great baseball, though, or taking in all of the ambiance of one the best stadiums to feature the best sport.

Trevor with Rowdy in 2009. Photo property of M.I.B.

Victory Field has been, and will be a part of the festivities this weekend, however. So far Dan Patrick has been broadcasting his syndicated sports show from there this week. Today it will also host the DirecTV Celebrity Beach Bowl, and will be transformed into a nightclub tonight and Katy Perry will put on a show. I’d prefer Avril, but, hey, that’s just me. Making a beach atmosphere on a baseball field in February is no easy task for the Victory Field grounds keepers, either. Along with a million pounds of sand, there will constructed a concert stage, LED robbonboards and specially constructed bleacher sections. It’s basically a giant airplane hangar, that can house a beach, stage, and fit in 5,000 rapids fans. Below is a promo pic and a good photo of the preparation being done on the field.

Photos courtesy of the Indianapolis Indians

Here are some artists rendition of the completed beach and night club. Looks like a lot of fun to me, but he grounds crew will have their work cut out for them getting the field back to being baseball ready in a couple of months. Last year, Victory Field was voted Triple-A ‘Field of the Year’ and head groundskeeper Joey Stevenson was named Triple-A ‘Sports Turf Manager of the Year’, so there is a reputation at stake, here. In all, though, it’s good to see this field get a little publicity, even if it’s not just for baseball.

Photos courtesy of Minor League Baseball

The Prince of West Michigan

Minoring In Baseball — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:45:20 +0000

I’m not going to over analyze the Prince Fielder signing by the Tigers any more than it has been. The papers, web sites, and talk shows have already done that to death. Some experts have the Tigers winning the Series, others have them flopping this season. Whatever. They’ll play their games this summer, and whatever happens, happens. Am I excited about the upcoming season? Of course, I am. But no more than I am or would be for any other baseball season. The reason for this post is to simply drive home the point I’ve been trying to make for the last three years I’ve been on MLBlogs…get to your local Minor League ballpark. The fact is, you really don’t know what future star you’ll be seeing. You never really know what player you might see that will play on your favorite team one day. Personally, it’s fun for me to watch MLB games on TV and say “I saw this guy play in Toledo”, or “Savannah”, oh, well, Hell…pick one. Here are some pics of Prince playing for the Beloit Snappers as a mere 18-year-old, in front of probably mostly Tiger fans at Fifth Third Ballpark. I also read that daddy Cecil was in a suite watching his son play, too. Most fans probably thought that the future Tigers would be wearing the Whitecaps uniforms. Who knew??

Photos courtesy of the Grand Rapids Press

How we do things U.P. North

Minoring In Baseball — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 12:01:22 +0000

Great little story from my own Lake Superior State University about the girls softball team. With the team getting a little sick and tired of practicing in doors, our second year head coach Lori Shimasaki decided to shake things up, and take it outside. Despite the cold sup-zero weather and waist-high snow, the girls took in some diving drills, and used the snow to their advantage. Things like this are great for team bonding and morale. I don’ t think the team will be out much today, though, as I write this we’re suffering from freezing rain/sleet/snow. Brutal.

Photo courtesy of LSSU Athletics

Whitecaps Update 1/12

Minoring In Baseball — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 07:23:56 +0000

Ernie Young Returns: Ernie Young will return in 2012 for his second season managing the West Michigan Whitecaps. The Whitecaps were 70-69 under Young last season, and barely missed the playoffs. He also led Team USA to a silver medal at the Pan-Am Games in October. Also returning for his fifth season in West Michigan will be pitching coach Mark Johnson. Scott Dwyer will be replacing Ben Oglivie as the hitting coach in 2012. Dwyer spent the last two seasons as the hitting coach for the short-season Class-A Connecticut Tigers.

2012 Winter Banquet: The 18th annual Whitecaps Winter Baseball Banquet took place yesterday at the DeVos Place Convention Center in Grand Rapids. It was hosted by ESPN baseball analyst Tim Kurkjian. Kurkjian has been with ESPN since 1998, as a reporter for Baseball Tonight and senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. Also in attendance were current Detroit Tigers pitchers Rick Porcello and Doug Fister. The event included a silent auction with proceeds going to the YMCA Inner-City Youth Baseball and Softball Programs and the Detroit Tigers foundation. It’s estimated that about $461,000 has been raised from the previous banquets.

Whitecaps HOF: Two former players and one manager have been selected to the 2012 West Michigan Whitecaps Hall of Fame. Having the most impact on baseball in West Michigan without a doubt was former manager Matt Walbeck. Walbeck led the Whitecaps to a Midwest League championship in his first year at the helm in 2004. Two seasons later, he won another championship in 2006 (the Whitecaps won the title in 2007 under Tom Brookens after Walbeck was promoted to AA Erie). He managed the ‘Caps for three seasons with a 238-181 record. Walbeck seemed to enjoy this time with the Detroit Tigers Class A team, too, in his statements to the Grand Rapids Press:

“It was a perfect spot to start my managerial career. It’s a great sports town, with super fans there and I just could not ask for a better situation for me and my career as a manager. It’s a tremendous honor, and something that I am really looking forward to (the HOF). It’s truly and honor to be among the names that are in that Hall of Fame.”

Joining Walbeck, are former players Ramon Santiago and Ben Greive. Santiago (currently with the Tigers) earned midseason and postseason Midwest League All-Star honors during the 2000 season. He was named the best defensive shortstop by Baseball America and finished the season with a .272 batting average. Grieve played for the ‘Caps in 1995, and came in as a first-round draft pick by the Oakland A’s (parent club at the time). He broke into the big leagues with Oakland in 1997, and hit .288 with 41 doubles and 18 home runs as the 1998 American League Rookie of the Year. All three were inducted at the Winter Banquet.

Tiger Fridays at Fifth-Third Ballpark: Oh, yes, Tiger Fridays will be back for the 2012 season. The year six former Tigers will be a guest of the Whitecaps and signing autographs for baseball fans. The lineup includes: Lance Parrish (June 8), Bill Madlock (June 22), Willie Horton (July 6), Jon Warden (July 20), Howard Johnson (August 3), and Elroy Face (August 24). I can image that July 6 with Willie Horton will be a mad house. I haven’t had much luck getting to many of these games, but the few I’ve been to have been a lot of fun. Be prepared to wait in line for you autograph, though, and they usually give out a bobble-head at the gate.

Young photo property of M.I.B.

Walbeck photo courtesy of the Grand Rapids Press

Birthday Boy

Minoring In Baseball — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 07:39:21 +0000

Wow…It’s hard to believe that it’s been four years since we were blessed with Brian in our lives, and team M.I.B. became complete. Time seems to fly when you have kids, and this last whole decade has basically been a blur. This should be a fun year with Brian, as he’s finally old enough to start tee-ball. He’s excited about playing and going to all the baseball games over the summer. He talks about the Whitecaps and Beach Bums quite a bit. Happy birthday Bri!!!!!!

Brian the day we brought him home sporting his first Whitecaps jersey:

Brian at the Whitecaps last summer:

Photos property of M.I.B.

Logo of the Month: Syracuse Chiefs

Minoring In Baseball — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 10:34:00 +0000

Current Chiefs Logos

Affiliation: Washington Nationals

League: International League (AAA)

Home Field: Alliance Bank Stadium

Location: Syracuse, New York

Notable Alumni: A.J. Burnett, Chris Carpenter, Carlos Delgado, Ron Guidry, Roy Halladay, Fred McGriff, Denny McLain, Thurmon Munson, Dion Sanders, Hank Sauer, and Stephen Strasburg.

Fun Facts: The first stop on our baseball trip this coming season will be in Syracuse. Lots of baseball history in this town, as they’ve been sporting professional baseball since 1877 with the Syracuse Stars. The Stars fielded to Major League teams, with one in 1879 (National League) and in 1890 (American Association). Syracuse was without a team sporadically, but was mostly able to field a team either in the Eastern League or New York/Penn League. The Chiefs name can be traced back to 1934, when the Jersey City Skeeters moved to Syracuse to become the Chiefs. The current franchise came in in 1961 when the Montreal Royals, and Syracuse has had a team ever since. There have been two players in history to have four home run games under their belts. Gene Locklear did it on July 14, 1977, while Michael Aubrey hit four over the fence on May 04, 2011 against the Durham Bulls.

Logos courtesy of the Syracuse Chiefs

Kids meet more World Champion Tigers

Minoring In Baseball — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 10:20:23 +0000

Not one to miss out on an adventure, I packed the kids up and headed for Traverse City to a baseball card show. I really like the shows and seeing all of the cool memorabilia for sale. This kids picked up a stack of baseball and hockey cards, and the little guy got some cars and comics. The only thing I really collect now is the team sets from the places we’ve visited. It’s fun to keep track of the Minor League players this way. We were also lucky enough that signing at this show were two former pitchers from the 1984 World Series Champion Detroit Tigers, Dan Petry and Dave Rozema. Both players were very nice to the kids and loved talking baseball. Rozema arm-wrestled Brian for his World Series ring (he lost, darn it), but they shook hands afterward anyway. Rozema loved to tell stories of when he was in the minors and how the little ballparks compared to the ones today. Petry was also nice enough to get a photo taken with the kids and we talked some college hockey, as his son played for Michigan State. We really had a fun time and a good trip. The kids Papa also met us there from downstate, so it was good for the kids to visit with him, too. It was fun for me to meet these players, too, as the ’84 team was a fun memory from my childhood. Lily and Trevor are to the age where they’re starting to appreciate experiences like this now. I hope we can make it to the show in Grand Rapids this February to meet Denny McLain!

Dan Petry with Lily and Trevor

Dave Rozema shaking hands with Brian

Photos property of M.I.B.