March 22, 2009 — The Wasatch front’s own version of Big Bird is at again. Opening Day for the Orem Owlz is still on the far horizon. Nonetheless, team mascot Hootz seems to have kept himself busy all winter. His latest adventure explores the fun you can have as a civil engineer. Huh? Trust me, watch the video. And enjoy the music. Bye for now!
Add comment March 25th, 2009
February 01, 2009 — What is it about human nature that craves to be part of the in-group, I’ve always wondered? I didn’t give it much thought prior to my college years, maybe because I was a hopelessly geeky, clumsy, bookworm. It was in the larger fishbowl of the college campus I first noticed how much physical discomfort and personal embarrassment people were willing to suffer, just so they would be accepted into the right sorority or fraternity.
After leaving school behind, I discovered the charisma of coolness manifests in other ways—money, power, sex, fame.
It’s the last type that seems to have the most influence over bloggers of baseball. If you crave public acknowledgment as a sabermetrician, chances are your blog will boast of comprehensive and/or practical stats. Armchair scouts will highlight in-depth interviews of players and coaches. Armchair GMs can boast of knowledgeable analyses and professional expertise.
Me? Oh, my motives are fame-based as well. I’m a writer; this is another page of my portfolio. I suppose I could have picked any topic to blog about. Considering how many hours I spend each spring/summer at the ballpark, though, I’d be crazy to waste all that data collection. Besides, what better way to learn the finer points of the game I love than to turn in a weekly homework assignment?
It’s not all about fame, I must admit. It’s certainly about sharing ideas and experiences that extend beyond the playing field. Like it or not, we Americans put an inordinate social value on victory, sports-related in particular. And so when I think about sports, I am also thinking about life. I can’t help it.
And this “other agenda” is what leads me to write about athletes who might not be the bonus babies or five-tools guys or clubhouse leaders (although the last reason is more likely to catch my interest). Nor am I always looking for the underdog either, because let’s face it, life doesn’t follow a Disneyland script.
Take for example last year’s Pioneer League Championships. The “good guys” didn’t win the final game. There were no stories of redemption or inspiration. There’s nothing in the boxscores to indicate anything wonderful happened back in September of 2008. In fact, most of the press coverage focused on what went wrong with the team having the season’s best win-loss record. However, having been there, I would summarize what happened to be something else entirely.
In late August, Orem Owlz manager Tom Kotchman had to leave the team for a family emergency. Brenton Del Chiaro, in his first season coaching organized baseball, was promoted to interim manager. The rookie manager and his rookie ballplayers finished out the regular season playing .500 ball (10W-5L). The team advanced through the playoffs and into the final three-game championship series against the Great Falls Voyagers.
The second game of the Pioneer League championship series was an amazing extra-innings, come-from-behind victory for the Owlz that forced the series to the third and deciding contest. The next evening, I drove back to Orem and watched the Voyagers win game three and the championship. The ensuing media coverage predictably attributed the defeat to a few factors: vulnerability of a three-game series to a few strokes of good/bad luck, too many defensive mistakes and not enough hitting by the Owlz, and the missing Kotchman, whose decades of experience might have saved the day.
Perhaps. . . .
It seems to me that focusing on why the Owlz lost misses the point of minor-league baseball, or any developmental athletic league. The purpose of a minor-league organization is to build championship individuals, not baseball dynasties; it’s the polar opposite of a major-league organization.
It’s easy to forget this fact while reading, hearing or watching sports blogs and news feeds. Analysts make their living deconstructing boxscores down to one at-bat, sometimes even a single pitch. In April, they chart the progress of the latest crop of prospects, calculating their statistical strengths and weaknesses to the third power. As October draws near, they look for historical trends, comparing the first half to second half of the season. It all seems so clear, so logical, so concrete. The bottom line is the numbers don’t lie.
Except, since when is anything in life that reliable? You know the answer already, of course. Never. Life is messy. We screw up. A lot. And quite often, life screws us up through no fault of our own doing.
For yours truly, at any rate, quantifying a loss down to a statistical probability misses the larger view of athletic competition as a process. From this perspective, loss begets opportunity. In other words, “What have we learned about ourselves through failure? And are we able to grow beyond our personal disappointment?”
One unforgettable night in Orem, I watched a 13-inning rite of passage, cleverly disguised as a baseball game. The next night, during late innings of the losing end of a championship game, free-swinging-power-slugging-19-year-old Angel Castillo drew a base on balls—out of just 18 BB for the entire season. That private victory could have professional value in the future of a young ballplayer.
We’re humans, not robots. We make mistakes because we’re imperfect. And we grow emotionally, mentally and spiritually as a result of hardships, not ease. And it’s our response to these challenges that determines what life lessons stick with us, and ultimately what sort of winners we are in the bigger picture of being parents, spouses, citizens, neighbors and friends.
Likewise, the coach who says, “In order to win, you need to execute,” has already put the cart before the horse. My idea of a better developmental philosophy comes across thusly, “You need to execute because that’s your job.”
So why is this difference in coaching styles so important? Because for those of us privileged enough to have worked with young athletes, this attitude defines our multiple roles as coach, guide, mentor and role model.
I believe this is the larger message affixed to Branch Rickey’s famous quote, “Luck is the residue of design.” It’s all about being ready when that window of opportunity appears. I believe this message is at the core of organized baseball as well. Do your job right, live up to your responsibilities and good things will follow.
Whether it’s on the diamond, at the grocery store or in the boardroom, it’s all about how we execute, day-in, day-out, until we draw our last breath on this earth. Bye for now!
Add comment February 1st, 2009
January 18, 2009 —Wow, time flies when you’re not blogging. Has it really been nearly four months?! Ouch. Well, yours truly is back. The good news is lots of things have happened since we last got together. How about starting with what’s new around here. . .
Featured Link
At the sidebar to the right, you’ll notice a “Featured Link.” There’s no schedule, rhyme or reason for how a link ends up getting special attention; although I would consider donations in the spirit of the “Amazon.com Recommends” scandal a few years back. Just kidding! (On second thought, I guess it depends on the donation.) At any rate, the number one criteria is whatever happens to catch my fancy. For now, it’s Jimmy Scott’s High & Tight, a fascinating blog that covers a whole bunch of topics you don’t usually hear coming out of ballplayers mouths, or read off their keyboards in this case. At any rate, highly enjoyable and thought-provoking stuff. But don’t take my word for it, see for yourself. Here are a few of my faves:
Audio “Welcome Message” (top of page)—the who & why of JSH&T
Paul Byrd: Choosing Family Over Baseball
Taking On The Readers: The End Of A Career & Gabrielle Schoeneweis
End of the Story: A Conversation With Brian Boehringer’s Former Agent
System Of A Downward Spiral – Dealing With The End
Many of these posts got the wheels spinning (go hamsters, go!) and I hope to create some point/counterpoint off these topics. For now, though visit, browse, and I promise you’ll enjoy it.
Win a Few, Lose a Few. . .
Most of this is old news, covered thoroughly at places like FutureAngels.com, MiLB.com and MLB.com. Nonetheless, just in case any of you were holding your breath to read it here (hello-o-o-o-o! ?), here’s a recap of some of the organizational roster/staff changes from the last few months. I think the biggest news is the loss of Bruce Hines, Minor League Field Coordinator. Hines’ responsibility was to take the “grow your own” philosophy developed by Stoneman and Scioscia, and make it happen on the field. Or rather, all of the fields from SoCal to Cedar Rapids. (OK, it really should include Orem. Notice though, what a nice alliteration you get this way.)
Rodriguez, Teixeira, O’Day, Mosebach, Gonzalez and Bootcheck are off to other teams. Andersen and Garland are in free-agency, considering their options. Santana, Izturis, Quinlan and Napoli are awaiting arbirtration hearings. We have a new halo in the bullpen, Brian Fuentes, who pitched for Colorado the last four seasons. Guerreo, Lackey, Oliver, Figgins and Riviera are back for one season, or in Rivera’s case three. It appears as though Arte really, really likes LA manager Mike Scioscia, putting him in the dugout through 2018. Sad news—GM special assistant, Preston Gomez, passed away just recently.
The minor league staff acquired a one new face, and one very familiar one. Former MLB outfielder, Eric Owens is the newcomer to the Angels’ organization. Owens will manage Rancho Cucamonga, replacing Ever Magallanes who went to the White Sox organization. Former Salt Lake Bees infielder, Mike Eylward will be Hitting Coach for the Orem Owlz in 2009. (Woohoo! Yours truly will definitely be making some visits to Brent Brown Park this summer.)
We’re famous! Well, sorta.
One of the truly enjoyable experiences to come along this winter was being a guest blogger at Ben’s Biz Blog, where I wax cynically (you were expecting a different adverb?) about the bestselling, homerun book, “Moneyball.” The most noteworthy point about the book review is I am probably one of only eight readers in the entire baseball-reading world who didn’t rave wildly about it. Blasphemy, you shout?! Well, what can I say? Wait a sec, I did say. Read for yourself why I felt like Michael Lewis cheated.
It also gets reposted with an even more inflammatory intro by the 330-win flamethrower and ballplayer pundit, Jimmy Scott. What guys? Are you trying to get me lynched?
Klauke’s Spring Preview
Another fun evening was spent listening to a recent (14JAN09) interview with Steve Klauke on MiLBradio.com. Bonus! Listen closely for the rare opportunity to hear the dulcit tones of my sweetness. At any rate, Steve offers his thoughts on who’s a prospect, who’s in the pen and most importantly, who’s on first.
OK, I think that about clears out the cranial attic. Check back soon. And remember, pitchers and catchers report on February 14, 2009! Bye for now!
Add comment January 18th, 2009
