Baseball in Fort Wayne

Archive for September, 2008

From Jim Shovlin…

We have a full show this week, as we’ll be previewing the IU/Ball State football game with the Journal Gazette’s LaMond Pope, the NotreDame/MSU game as well as the USF/Taylor matchup with The Judge Phil Houk. We’ll also run down the keys to a Boilermaker victory as they face Central Michigan.

We’ll also be joined by Duke Dickson, Senior VP of Business Development for the Canlan Ice Sports Corp, the firm that will be managing the new ice rinks in Fort Wayne, as well as the existing McMillen Arena.

We’ll be recapping Week 5 high school football scores and highlights and previewing Week 6 as we head towards the IHSAA tournament beginning October 24th.

Tune in each Saturday morning at 10:30 for Talkin’ Sports on FM100 Talks! WNUY-100.1FM.

A lot of people have been coming to this blog via this post in search engine results lately. Apparently, there are a lot of folks interested in the new name of the Fort Wayne baseball team. Unfortunately, I don’t have that answer.

Curious minds can find a few posts on other blogs that have done some domain registration digging and followed up on some “leaks” but I have chosen not to post anything until I hear it directly from the team and/or have permission to disclose the info.

For the record, I have neither of the two.

I’m anxiously awaiting the official word as much as you are. Personally, I hope they stick with Wizards and do another revamp of the branding much like was done in 1999 (I think that was the year).

Thoughts anyone?

Updating a previous post, the winner of the WeMix Diamond Cut Contest was announced earlier this week. RIPCHORD and TAZUH won the competition and their song, “Luv Of Da Game” premiered last week as former Wizards outfielder, Torii Hunter’s official walk on tune. 

You can hear the song here. You can purchase the song here. All proceeds go to the Torii Hunter Foundation so please support it.  You could win a great prize for signing up, so go get it!

…… in other Torii Hunter news, he was out of the Angels’ lineup Wednesday after getting hit by a ball in his right cheekbone during batting practice. Ouch.

Padres catcher, Josh Bard will likely miss the remainder of the 2008 season. The Padres have reportedly decided that they will not offer Bard arbitration during the offseason and will likely non-tender him, effectively ending his tenure in San Diego. .

The means good news for former Wizards Nick Hundley and Luke Carlin. Hundley will  probably go into Spring Training as the candidate most likely to win the starting catching gig unless there is a trade or free agent signing – but either is not real likely. Carlin is likely slotted to be the backup catcher.

I gotta wonder if Colt Morton is in the mix in any fashion. Doesn’t seem real likely given that he barely got a chance earlier in the season.

I’m a little behind on this, but former Wizards Catcher, George Kottaras made his Major League debut on Saturday, September 13th. That makes him the 76th former Wizard and the 14th of the season to do so.

Kottaras entered in the 7th inning that saw a flurry of other defensive replacements. I guess being down 8-0 will do that to a team late in the game. In the bottom half of the inning, he struck out in his first MLB at-bat, only to take first base on a wild pitch and later scored on a sacrifice fly from Kevin Cash after reaching third. In the bottom of the ninth, he flied out to right.

Back on Aug. 31, 2006, the Red Sox acquired Kottaras from the Padres for David Wells, thinking he could be their catcher some day.

It remains to be seen if or when that will be, but catcher Jason Varitek is eligible for free agency this winter. Kottaras had a good year at Triple-A Pawtucket, belting 22 homers to go along with 65 RBIs.

While Varitek’s future is undecided, Kottaras is using these last few weeks of the season to learn whatever he can from the captain.

I still don’t see Kottaras in Boston’s long-range plans. they seem to really be coveting Texas’s Jarrod Saltalamacchia. 

Related BBIFW Posts:

• Wizards Where R They: George Kottaras
• Macias & Ekstrom to Join Padres Roster
• Wizards’ Alumni (Page)

I’ve been following several storylines regarding Torii Hunter as of late. I guess it all started when he got into a scuffle with the Yankees’ catcher, Ivan Rodriguez. The twosome got into a bench-clearing incident in the sixth inning as the Angels scored six runs en route to a 12-1 victory. Both men were tossed from the game. Both men were suspended for two games as a result.

But this was just the beginning.

I’ve followed Hunters The Torii Hunter Project for several years as he has set out to restore urban baseball for today’s youth. On Wednesday, things reached a new level.

Forming a Web site called WeMix.com, Hunter and Christopher “Ludacris” Bridges created “WeMix Diamond Cut,” a contest for the best original song made for an athlete. To the winner went the opportunity to record with Ludacris.

The contest will benefit baseball education for inner-city and rural youth. And apparently, Hunter and the Angels are a better fit than I had thought. Angel’s owner recentlly was quoted while attending the grand opening of a field that Hunter donated $50,000 to help build.

“One of the things we try to do in the Angels organization is to try to expand youth fields, the RBI program, inner-city baseball and continue to develop, that’s the future of the game.”

Not surprisingly, the field now bear’s Hunter’s name. Kind of makes you wonder if he has sat out recently with an actual injury (as reported), or if he just needs to catch his breath.

Related BBIFW Posts:

• A Tale of Two Hunters
• Wizards Watch: Torii Hunter Earning Good Press with New Team
• Torii Hunter – a Perfect (Angels) Fit
• Torii Hunter Does His Best Superman Impression
• All-Time Wizards

One of the most often hit pages on this blog is the Local Ties page that details what locla standouts are playing at various levels (college through MLB and Indy if I know about it). While I try to personally keep up with all these players, it’s not always easy.

So, if I miss anyone, please accept my apologies. But help me out. With the new college season, I will nee to start updating the kids on college rosters. Either leave a comment on this post or contact me so I can update the listing.

Thanks.

Nick Hundley Gets Ejected

On Tuesday, former Wizards catcher, Nick Hundley received his first MLB ejection after arguing his strikeout with homeplate umpire, Marty Fosterin, the eighth inning. He was replaced by fellow rookie and fellow Wizards alumnus, Luke Carlin.

Michael Cuddyer Still Trying to Return

Minnesotat Twins’ outfielder and former Wizard, Michael Cuddyer took two batting practice sessions on Tuesday and he had his broken left foot re-evaluated. He was given the okay to start running, but he’s still making very slow progress and the chances of a 2008 return are starting to slim.

“We’re just going to let him get well first,” (Ttwins manager, Ron) Gardenhire said. “Maybe when he gets to the point where he can run a little bit, and maybe put a swing on it, then we’ll see what he can do.”

Drew Macias Hits Homer for First MLB Hit

Usually, when a player collects his first Major League hit, you see a player toss the ball to the team’s dugout personnel so it can be saved. But former Wizard, Drew Macias got his first Major League start the other night. He went 3-5 and homered off a first-pitch fastball from Giants RHP Matt Cain during his first at-bat to collect his first MLB hit and home run.

Gary Jones Discusses Cumberland, Zawadski, Kazmar, Blanks & more

MadFriars caught up with Gary Jones, where he talked candidly about the progress of many former Wizards who are still in the Padres system. If you want to know more about Drew Cumberland, Lance Zawadski, Sean Kazmar, Matt Antonelli, Kyle Blanks and Raynar Contreras, this is the read for you (subscription required).

Will Venable Making Most of His Playing Time

Padres center fielder, Jody Gerut has missed a lot of games due to a sprained left middle finger. Will Venable, who is a recent callup, has thrived while getting extra playing time in Gerut’s absence; including a sixth multihit game on Thursday. He’s going to be on the 2009 Opening Day roster IMHO

Tune in to Talkin’ Sports Saturday morning at 10:30 for 90-minutes of local sports news and information.

This week’s show will feature a recap of IHSAA football Week 4, previews of Week 5, as well as college football previews of interest to area listeners. Happy with the Colts season opener? Let us know your thoughts!

Guests this week will include “The Judge” Phil Houk, Fort Wayne Mad Ants VP of Sales and Marketing Jeff Johnson and Fort Wayne Wizards GM Mike Nutter.

We’ll be taking your calls throughout the program and getting your input on a variety of local and area sports topics.

Join us Saturday morning on FM 100 Talks (100.1FM) at our new time, 10:30 a.m. for 90 minutes of Talkin’ Sports!

Next year’s Low-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres will play at Parkview Field.

Team owners, city officials and Parkview executives announced that Parkview Health has purchased the naming rights for Harrison Square’s baseball stadium in a deal that amounts to $3 million over 10 years.

The $300,000 annual contribution will be split between the baseball team’s owner, Hardball Capital, and the city. The city’s portion will be put into a fund to accumulate money for future capital projects at the stadium. City officials have said this is necessary to keep taxpayers from having to finance future improvements at the ballpark [Journal Gazette].

The health provider will have a large presence in the stadium, where it could provide blood pressure and other health screenings at the park and willstaff the first-aid station and a nursing room. Nutritionists and dieticians will also work with ballpark concessionaires to provide healthy food and drink options.

An e-mail was sent to Parkview Health workers about the decision before the public announcement was to be made. Cathy Dee has posted a segment of this message on her Common Sensibilities blog.

Other ources about today’s naming rights announcement:

• Parkview to Buy Stadium Naming Rights (KPCNews)
• Parkview Park (Fort Wayne Politics)
• Harrison Square Stadium Gets New Name (Indiana’s News Center)
• Announcing Parkview Field (WhatsGoingDown[Town]) Great photos
• Parkview Health Steps Up to The Plate (City of Fort Wayne)
• Hospital Puts Name of Fort Wayne Stadium (Indianapolis Business Journal)
• Harrison Square – Parkview Field Announcement Video (AroundFortWayne Blog)

On a related note; if you go to ParkviewField.com, it will take you to HarrisonSquareFortWayne.com. Wonder if they will do something more on the domain or if it is simply going to remain a mirror site.

Note: I lifed the image from ParkviewField.com.