Travelerocity

The spring training games begin–– and we are a part of this

Today in Tempe, Arizona, a collection of former and future Travelers opened up the spring schedule with a 12-3 win over the Chicago White Sox. Among those players on the field were Mike Napoli hitting a two-run double to break the game open, Hainley Statia doubling twice, Hank Conger driving in three runs, Freddy Sandoval sending in two, Ben Johnson hitting an RBI double, Jose Arredondo throwing two strike outs in one perfect inning, and Rich Thompson throwing two perfect innings.

Meanwhile in Little Rock, the temperature was a spring-like 72 degrees at lunch, the windows in my car were partially down, and I was listening to the Cincinnati Reds play the Tampa Bay Rays courtesy of XM Radio, which later treated me to the Red Sox and Twins on the way to Kroger.

Spring training games are here –– and we are part of this. One of the objectives I had in starting this web site in January 2006 was to impress upon people in Central Arkansas that we are a part of the baseball universe thanks to the Travelers and all the players who come through here on the visiting teams. What happens in spring training games -- whether it be with the Angels or other teams -- affects what we will see, and the players we've already seen, too.

So it's about that time. Summer nights at the foot of the Broadway bridge are right around the corner. I'll have two slices of Damgoode Pies supreme and a lemonade from across the way, please.

-- Travelerocity reporter

Should Valentine's have made 'best Italian' in Arkansas Times?

After being named the best new restaurant in Central Arkansas last year, Bill Valentine's Ballpark Restaurant didn't make the list of best Italian eateries in the annual Arkansas Times issue highlighting the best restaurants in the state as chosen by readers. According to Arkansas Times readers, the best Italian food is served at Bruno's, followed by runners-up Ristorante Capeo, the Italian Couple, and Cafe Prego.

I am not the biggest Italian aficionado in these parts, so unlike the baseball commentary, my expert opinion only carries so much weight. That said, Valentine's appears to be a superb place and everyone I know who has eaten there comes back with generally stellar revues. The descriptive e-mails I get in my inbox announcing the specials at Valentine's always make me want to stop in for dinner. I'm glad the place is there because it definitely adds one more great destination in a city overly blessed with fantastic places to eat (and by "city" I mean the entire metro area, NLR people).

Regarding the winners, I haven't been to Bruno's in a long time. I remember it being good, but I have kind of been turned off because of issues not related to food. Maybe I am still mad about all the great Hoopfest teams the owner used to field that you didn't stand a chance against. Never been to Capeo, but one day. Italian Couple is temporarily closed again, so maybe that opens up the slot for Valentine's as a runner-up. I love Cafe Prego, but the place seems more European than Italian to me. I love hearing Chef Louis' wife speak French at the register. That's enough of a reason to go.

But besides all the restaurants mentioned above, it's hard to beat The Villa, a long-time supporter of Travelers baseball going way back. I kind of wish they were still in the same location on University (known as Hayes Street when the Villa first opened), but it is always my first choice for Italian. Bene Vita is also a good option, and Valentine must like it, too, because I saw him eating there before he opened his own restaurant. Of course, he could have driven home cursing the chef as if he were a Travelers reliever and spelling out G-A-R-B-A-G-E as he talked about his meal.

-- Travelerocity reporter

Canseco's case

With the publishing of his book Juiced in '05, Jose Canseco opened up an all-time can of worms for professional baseball. Most called him a worm, or worse. Especially a lot of those he accused.

 

As time went by and more and more fools lied their way through Congressional hearings and grand juries, it became apparent to me that perhaps Mr. Canseco's claims weren't as juiced as his critics (mostly those he ratted on, the union, and the Commissioner's office) led us to believe. Especially now that Alex Rodriguez has self destructed. Canseco was the first to hint of Rodriguez's possible association with steroids after "The Chemist" had held lab classes with the boys of summer during his stay in Texas.

I saw Rodriguez play six games with the Rangers. He hit a home run in three of those games. In one, he hit two. All with that free and natural swing that we all thought was a gift. His gift was apparently coming from shady people in the Dominican Republic, who were hooking him up and destroying his legacy forever. Canseco's gall at the time of insinuating baseball's top player was some how possibly doing what he had done, now rings true. A lot of what Jose said has become true.

In his recent article "Jose Canseco, you the only one who can see?", Boston Globe writer Ron Borges called Canseco the "last honest man, in a dirty place." Other gems from Borges...."Canseco has become the Walter Cronkite of baseball's slimy steroid scandal." "Once E.F. Hutton used to say when it spoke people listened. Now Canseco can claim the same on the matter of better living through chemistry." "This is the kind of mess Bud Selig and Donald Fehr have made of Major League Baseball: The most trusted man in their sport is now Jose Canseco."

Look we all know Madonna's ex is no angel. In fact Borges calls him "a slimy reprobate on his best days, but no liar."

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Book add. I recently came out of winter hibernation with a post about the book Moneyball in reference to Tulsa (Rockies) infielder Corey Wimberly being traded to the Oakland system. Of course Moneyball was an up close look at Oakland G.M. Billy Beane's saber-metric computer analysis system used to find players before any one else, so his low budget club could steal them and beat the market.

 There's a lot more fun stuff revealed in the book than that, like Beane's tendency to drive around in his car during games and listen on the radio because he was too nervous to handle the "drip, drip" of the game at the park. If anything, besides revealing Beane's genius the book also proves him to be eccentric.

Well to my surprise shortly after that post, word came from the Chicago-Sun Times that actor Brad Pitt is up for the role of Beane in a movie base on the book.

  

Reggie Hayes of the News-Sentinel in Ft. Wayne, Ind. said, "This proves the old Hollywood axiom: If your'e going to make a movie about a guy analyzing baseball statistics, he better look like Brad Pitt."

Post by Lonesome Traveler

Odd Man Out

Matt McCarthy, now a surgeon, spent a year playing baseball in the Angels minor-league system. He never got to the Travs. The best he did was spend some time with the Provo Angels in the Pioneer League, but he has a rather funny tale about Bobby Jenks.

The daily exhibition game was pretty boring if you weren't scheduled to throw. Pitchers were assigned odd jobs, such as tending to broken bats, chasing foul balls and manning the radar gun. My job was to hand three baseballs to the umpire between innings. A bat was cracked in the fourth inning, and I walked over to have a look. "Check it out," Bobby [Jenks] said softly to me, holding the bat. With his big rosy cheeks and pale skin, he looked much younger than I'd expected, and he certainly didn't look like a monster. He held the bat up, showing the fracture from the handle to the barrel. As he did so, I noticed a tattoo under his right shirtsleeve.
"You like it?" he asked, rolling up his jersey. On his arm was a large tattoo of a flaming vampire skull with baseball stitches.
"Nice ink," I said, trying to sound cool. "You like that?" he asked. "How about this!" And he pulled down his left sock to expose a tattoo of a wolf on his ankle.
"So you're new around here?" I asked.
"Yeah, I just got sent down from Little Rock."
"How was Arkansas?"
"It's no Idaho."
"Of course."
"Me and the coach had some personality issues," he said, looking out at the exhibition game. "He said I threatened to kill him."
Bobby looked away from the field and into my eyes. "It was just a figure of speech," he said. "I really didn't mean it."

Tulsa's time

In December ground was broken and construction began in downtown Tulsa for the Drillers' new home in 2010.

 

The new park will be called ONEOK Field. ONEOK is one of the country's largest natural gas distributors and its home office is in Tulsa.

 

An exact design of the exterior for the $39 million multipurpose stadium ($60 million for entire project which includes acquisition of surrounding land for mixed-use redevelopment) has not been released but will be contemporary in design and will seat 6,200 with 30 suites. The site located in the historic Greenwood District next to I-244 will have a sunken playing field 13 feet below street level. The final concourse design was released earlier this month.

     

Private donations will cover $30 million of the costs and the Tulsa Community Foundation will finance a $25 million bond that will be repaid over thirty years through a special downtown property assessment. The remaining $5 million will come from the Drillers' lease. $5 million of the pledged private donations came from ONEOK for the 20-year naming rights.

 

ONEOK Field will replace 11 thousand seat Drillers Stadium on the Tulsa County Fairgrounds, which has the largest seating capacity of any Double A stadium in the minor leagues.

   

In '05, the Drillers celebrated the 100th anniversary of professional baseball in Tulsa. Some of the Major league stars who have played for the Drillers (Rockies) include:

 

Sammy Sosa, Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez, Juan Gonzales, Matt Holiday, Mark Teixeira, Jeff Francis, Travis Hafner, Brad Hawpe, and Troy Tulowittzki seen rehabbing and signing autographs at Dickey-Stephens last season.

    

       

     

Post by Lonesome Traveler

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Razorback baseball team to play March 2010 series in Dickey-Stephens

I have long contended that there isn't as much interest in the "Diamond Hogs," as the University of Arkansas baseball team is known by our local sports anchors, in Central Arkansas as some would have you believe.

My theory is that Razorback baseball largely gets a lot of hype on TV news and sports talk shows because those guys can't find a lot else to talk about this time of the year in Razorback football and basketball dominated Arkansas. Bad teams in both those sports don't make it any easier come spring.

For the record, I am also no fan of Dave Van Horn, who overthrows his pitchers and comes across as somewhat of an a$$ in his press conferences always held for some reason in his office.

All that said, this University of Arkansas graduate is happy to see the D-Hogs coming to Dickey-Stephens Park next March for a midweek series against Louisiana Tech (allegedly). Yeah, it's college baseball, not anywhere close to the Double A level we are used to seeing on Valentine's grass, but won't it be nice to be able to see baseball at Dickey-Stephens in March as we are awaiting the real baseball season to start?

Go Hogs and pass the PBR.

-- Travelerocity reporter

Celebrate we will: Dave Matthews coming to Dickey-Stephens Park

I heard this rumor last week and completely dismissed it as garbage. There was no way the Dave Matthews Band would put Dickey-Stephens Park on its summer tour, especially after playing Alltel Arena five or so years ago and it being one of the few shows not to sell out.

So I see that the band has released additional summer tour dates today, and I anxiously scroll down the list to see if Memphis made the cut. As I get toward the bottom of the dates, the third from the bottom startled me -- it said "September 29, Little Rock, Dickey-Stephens Park."

How did this come about, especially when there are no other shows booked for a baseball stadium, much less a minor-league park? I have no idea. But I am so there.

Last summer I went to see the Dave Matthews Band at Autozone Park in Memphis, and it was beautiful, even on an August night when it was a sultry 100 or so degrees at 9 p.m. Autozone -- and its concourses and rest rooms built for 12,500 seats -- was jam packed. I don't know how this show is going to fit in Dickey-Stephens, population 5,800 (seats). Of course, both stadiums can fit a lot more people in for a concert with people sitting in the field, but that doesn't mean the rest rooms can handle it.

At Autozone, the stage was set up in center field, and fans were allowed to stand anywhere on the field other than inside the diamond. I assume that's how it will be set up at Dickey-Stephens (regardless, don't expect a stage set up in front of the beer garden/bleachers). So here's a tip, if you are buying tickets, don't go for one behind home plate. That will be among the worst seats in the house.

When do tickets go on sale? If you are a Warehouse member, at 6 p.m. Thursday. For the rest of you, 10 a.m. on March 14. The Memphis Redbirds were somehow able to offer tickets to season-ticket holders, so maybe the Travs will do the same.

Valentine's grass will never be the same.

-- Travelerocity reporter

Wimberly to play "Money Ball"

The news that speedy utility infielder Corey Wimberly (Tulsa/Rockies) was traded this week to the Oakland organization for big league hopeful Matt Murton, should come as no surprise.

 

If there ever was a prototype player for Billy Beane's A's organization, it's the 25 year old Wimberly.

 

Wimberly, possibly the fastest man in the Texas League, hit .291 for the Tulsa Drillers last season and stole a league leading 59 bases. That was the seventh best total overall for swiping bases in the minor leagues, and Billy Beane loves guys who can get on base and cash it in. In fact, really that's all Beane cares about. It's common knowledge now that the Athletics' G.M's genius at picking winning players through a maze of computer analysis has as its center piece one key factor..... on base percentage.

 

His secrets were no longer with the publishing of Michael Lewis' book Money Ball, which chronicled how Beane along with his Ivy League assistant used their brains and not scouts to build competitive teams with one of the lowest budgets in baseball. Published in '03, Lewis was given all-access to spend a behind the scenes season with the Athletics' G.M. to learn first hand how Beane's front office snubbed their noses at traditional wisdom to build a team. 

  

Through endless statistical analysis(sabermetrics), the former marginal big league player came to realize that on base percentage as well as slugging percentage were the key ingredients to juice up a winning offense. And surprisingly nothome runs or RBI. At first baseball insiders scoffed at his madness and his computers, especially when he fired almost all of his scouts. Now no one is laughing at Oakland and Beane's success. Once the book became widely known copycat offenses began to pop up, most notably with the Red Sox.

By mining the known data and using the predictability factor of the long baseball season Beane runs the numbers to success and has spied potential stars in the making, long before any of the other MLB teams. Probably the most notable is Kevin Youkalis, who became as well know for his role in Money Ball as for his playing ability. Beane coveted Youkilis, but never got him. 

One flaw in the system is when Beane steals a player through his statistical combines, they usually don't stay long because he can't afford to keep them around once they become a "star." No matter, he'll use his computers and stats to find another one, and another one......

 

Whether the sixth round pick of the Rockies in '05 is one of those remains to be seen, but you can bet Beane saw something he liked about Corey in his sabermetric crystal ball and it certainly wasn't his size. Take a look at the listed 5'8" infielder standing in the middle of his Tulsa teammates for the Anthem last season at Dickey-Stephens.

 

Obviously with "Money Ball", size doesn't matter.

Post by Lonesome Traveler

Hot Stove on a cold night

No it's not the damn ground hog. Nor the official end of football season that stakes a claim Spring is around the corner. The true official sign of spring nearing is the professional baseball Hot Stove events held all across the country this time of year.

The Arkansas Travelers' version was held tonight before a packed house at the NLR Chamber of Commerce banquet room. It was a happy crowd of familiar faces and fans coming together on a sub-freezing night to get warm with talk of the prospects and news for the '09 season.  But this year's Hot Stove seemed to have more spark than any in recent memory.  That's what a miraculous effort by the never quit, '08 Texas League Champions will do for the morale of fans and the club.

 

Tonight's special guest was Angels Farm Director Abe Flores, who told the crowd the one thing for sure that wouldn't change this season or any for the organization.  Our philosophy is "developing through winning," he said. And it's working. The big league club won its fourth division title of the past five seasons during '08 and has the most wins of any team since '05.

Last season three of the organization's six minor league teams played in championship rounds for league titles with the Travs winning it all. He called it the "Golden Era" of Angels baseball. And he said of the 66 players that will open the big league camp, 52 are "home grown" with 43 having ties with the Travelers.

 

Sadly one of those home grown, catching phenom Hank Conger, will not be with Travelers to start the season and may not join the club at all Flores said after the meeting.  Conger, the Angels '08 #4 prospect joined the club in time for the play offs and was an offensive monster.  Abe said player personnel felt Conger needed to catch and work with younger pitchers, since he was injured most of last year, so he'll be sent to Single A-Rancho Cucamonga.

But he had good news about slugging first base prospect Mark Trumbo, who joined the club late last season and was a force with the long ball.  He'll start the season with the Travs.

Flores said fans could expect the '09 edition of the Travelers to be a similar mix of veterans and prospects with "some free agent pitchers to surround the prospects."

Manager Bobby Magallanes will return for his third year as Traveler skipper, along with pitching coach Ken Patterson and trainer Eric Munson.  Magallanes noted fans could expect this year's club to have "more speed."

But Bobby couldn't help but talk about last year's Championship Club.  He called it a "talented team with a special make-up." How else can you explain a team 16 games under .500 winning a championship.  He called it "unheard of." He said despite all the injuries the club suffered the players just came through and "got better."  Mags said that meant more to him than winning any championship.

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Highlights of "WHAT'S NEW" for '09  

*Probably the biggest announcement was the Travelers will hook up once again with its old friend KARN for the radio broadcasts. (Please...please, I beg you now for the sake of decency and baseball listening pleasure while in the park.....no delay in the signal.)

*The remaining gravel area of the parking lot will be paved. Work is to begin this week.

*A new picnic pavilion will be ready in right field and the indoor seldom used Depot Room along the first base line will be brightened up with windows and glass doors so party goers can see out.

*Also a nice touch. When fans enter the Mainstream Technology gate there will be white boards listing the days starting line-ups and updated Texas League standings.

*The team will unveil its remodeled website on Feb. 10.

*The "voice"of the Travelers, Phil Elson and his wife are expecting their first child, a girl.

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'09 PROMOTION HIGHLIGHTS

*4/9--Opening day against Midland

*The Travelers will be home for every holiday throughout the spring and summer including Easter Sunday where Church of Rock Creek pastor Mark Evans will conduct a short service prior to the game

*4/13--1st of two matinee kids games at 11am (The other is 5/11)

*4/24--1st of Championship give-aways, Texas League Championship caps to the first 2.000

*4/25--Give-away replica of Championship trophy in a commemorative box

*5/8--Midget wrestling #1 (#2--8/7)

*5/9--Give-away Texas League Championship t-shirt

*5/22-5/25--Memorial Day weekend series game times moved to better accommodate Riverfest/view fireworks finale from Dickey-Stephens on Sunday night 5/24

*6/4--Remote control dig for big screen TV/men only

*6/5--Travs flip flops give-away (2 sizes)

*6/6--Beach towel night give-away

*6/14--Father's Day baseball give-away, plus catch with dad on field before game

*6/19--Mike Napoli replica t-shirt jersey give-away from '05 North Div. Championship team

*6/21--Salsa bowl give-away from the Angels

*7/4--View fireworks on the river from Dickey-Stephens (truly a great place to watch and have a cold one)

*7/16--Diamond dig on the infield for the ladies

*7/18--Camo cap give-away

*7/30--Valentines Day in July. Get in free with red shirt or suspenders. Bill Valentine temporary tattoo give-away (oh please.....)

*8/20-- Clunker Car Night

*?--Didn't catch the date, but late in Aug. the Club plans to give away a replica green seat from Ray Winder

*8/30--Photo with Trav day prior to game

*9/4--Season finale--fan appreciation fire works

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The night's best line........when introducing Abe Flores, Bill Valentine said Abe had studied five days for a urine test.

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March 16--1st Spring Training game

Post by Lonesome Traveler