Interview: Jon Barr

In an attempt to gain a better understanding of the league, we will try and preview each Wingnuts’ series with several questions answered by personnel from each opponent. Jon Barr, the Diablos’ Director of Broadcasting, was kind enough to take some time and let us know what’s going on in El Paso as the season begins.

SS: El Paso has 10 returning players from 2007, a high number for an independent club. This trend can be found though with several teams in the leauge. What do you think the reason is for this?

 JB: I think that in Independent baseball, clubhouse chemistry is huge. In affiliated ball, the players are out there to move up the ranks, winning is in a way secondary. At this level, a lot of the guys know they are not going to get signed by an affiliated team, so they are in it to win it. The Diablos returned a solid core, because they enjoy playing for Butch Henry and they are treated well. They spend so much time together, as one player said, it’s like a brotherhood. And they want to be reunited with their brothers every season.

 

SS: How did everyone associated with the team cope with the collapse in last year’s division series?

JB: Well it definitely left a sour taste in everybody’s mouth. At the same time, it gives the Diablos more incentive in 2008. Any time you play with a chip on your shoulder your going to be that much more resilient. If anything, perhaps the Diablos can learn from last years defeat and not make the same types of mistakes this season.

 

SS: After what happened in the playoffs, would you consider Fort Worth your biggest rival in 2008?

JB: I would absolutely consider Fort Worth the Diablos biggest rival. The Diablos and Cats played in some intense games in 2008. There was definitely a little bad blood between the teams. I saw the Cats lost a lot of last year’s team, so I don’t know if the rivalry will be quite as big. But after what happened between the squads in 2007, I can assure you that many of the Diablos players have circled those games on their calendars.

 

SS: What are your thoughts on Jorge Alvarez? How does this guy keep it up into his 40’s?

JB: You’d have to ask him! He’s a freak of nature. He loves baseball, and is probably the happiest ball player I’ve ever met. His work out program is intense and he doesn’t look like a 40 year old. If anything, he’s in better shape than any player on the Diablos team, maybe any player in the league. He’s told me that he has to work twice as hard as a guy half his age. And I think he works three times as hard as guys his own age!

 

SS: The offense was top notch last year, but the pitching was middle of the pack, plus you lost Greg Wiltshire. What are your thoughts on the additions to this year’s staff?

JB: The Diablos pitching staff is obviously the biggest question mark in 2008. There are 3 new starters in the staff (4 if you count Justin Knoff who made a couple of starts last season). Obviously, getting Josh Neitz back was huge. He had a very solid 2007 season, winning a career high 9 games. Justin Knoff should be quite successful, as he was a great swing guy last year between the pen and the rotation. As for the three new starters, they each bring something unique to the table. Beau Hintz is a control specialist with a lot of experience, who will aid the rotation. Adam Blackley is from Australia and has an instant rapport with fellow Aussie, catcher Matt Kent. We saw last year what Kent and his fellow countryman Greg Wiltshire could do together. Not to mention, Blackley has a nasty cutter. The biggest surprise to me was David Whigham, who mowed down you guys today. He wasn’t originally slated to make the rotation, but he may have bought himself a lot of time in the staff with a six inning, one earned run performance. He’s a poised youngster with potential, who can be a contributor to the staff. The bullpen has a ton of new faces as well, most notably closer Chris Thompson. Thompson didn’t have much of an opportunity to consistently finish games with a struggling Pensacola team last season. He’ll certainly get more chances with El Paso. The Diablos have a couple of rookies in the pen and a couple of players with a few years of experience. How these guys gel could be the difference between a good season and a great season.

 

SS: You’ve bounced back really well from the 21-5 loss on opening night.

JB: Yeah, that loss may have been the best thing that could have happened to these guys. The Diablos came out flat in the opener. The pitching staff was atrocious and the offense mediocre at best. Any time you see a team set a league record for runs allowed in a game, it’s a huge motivational factor. The Diablos don’t want to get embarrassed at home.  They normally play well at Cohen Stadium. The veterans didn’t let the youngsters take the loss to personally. However, the loss shifted their focus and the team seems more poised in the midst of this four game winning streak.

 

SS: Your twin brother is the broadcaster for the new Grand Prairie AirHogs. Have you made any side bets on the clubs you broadcast for?

JB: No not yet. Although, I haven’t seen his team yet. I’m sure it’s going to be fun being in the same press room, though quite a spectacle at first. I definitely pick the Diablos over the Airhogs for the season series. We play them more than twenty times, so I’ll probably know them better than any other squad by the end of the season!

…thanks a gain to jon, who did a great job with this interview…

postGame: Diablos 5 - Wingnuts 4

The Wichita Wingnuts fell to the El Paso Diablos 4-3 Tuesday afternoon in the opening game of a three-game series. Brad Davis took the loss, evening his record at 1-1. Chris Colton hit his first homerun to give the Wingnuts a 1-0 lead in the fourth, but the Diablos rallied for three in the bottom half and never trailed again.

The two teams continue their series tomorrow with an early 10:30am Mountain Time start. The game will start at 11:30am in Wichita.

…wichita had several opportunities late in the game, but could not find the game-tying hit. they left the tying run in scoring positino in their final five at bats. in one run games, every play gets magnified, so it’s really tough to point to any one play in particular that turned the game around. clint smith looked very sharp out of the bullpen. brad davis allowed 11 hits, but more than half of them were softly hit bloopers that found the right holes. hat tip to brenan herrera who made two sensational plays in the field to rob base hits. colton also made a great throw from center field to nail a runner at home plate during the diablos’ three-run fourth. justin young, who pitched very well in his first start takes the ball tomorrow morning…

preGame: Wichita vs. Sioux City - Game 2

The Wichita Wingnuts continue their series with Sioux City with a double header at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium at 5:05PM.

The Starters:

Wichita: RHP Justin Young (0-0, 0.00)

Sioux City: RHP Nick Singleton (0-0, 0.00)

Wichita’s Lineup: LF Blake Gailen, SS Brenan Herrera, CF Chris Colton, 1B David Gates, 3B Michael Thompson, RF Heath Keel, 1B Steve Pearson, C Felipe Del Rosario, 2B Derek Schermerhorn

preGame: Wichita vs. Sioux City - Game One

Tonight the Wichita Wingnuts and Sioux City Explorers commence the 2008 American Association at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 7:15, to make room for the opening night festivities that were rained out last night.

The Starters:

Wichita: LHP Brad Davis (0-0, 0.00)

Sioux City: LHP Dusty Bergman (0-0, 0.00)

Wichita’s Lineup: LF Blake Gailen, SS Brenan Herrera, CF Chris Colton, DH Dustan Mohr, 1B David Gates, 3B Michael Thompson, RF Heath Keel, C Felipe Del Rosario, 2B Derek Schermerhorn

Notes: Kevin Hooper is away from the team for the next two days attending his brother’s wedding. Hooper is the best man.

How to Catch it: All the action can be found on Sports Radio 1410AM KGSO in the Wichita area. You can also catch the game worldwide on www.kgso.com

Live scoring can also be followed on the league’s official website: www.americanassociationbaseball.com

…here we go folks, play ball…

Interview: Chris Varney

In an attempt to gain a better understanding of the league, we will try and preview each Wingnuts’ series with several questions answered by personnel from each opponent. Chris Varney, the Explorers’ Director of Broadcasting, was kind enough to take some time and let us know what’s going on in Sioux City as the season begins.

SS: What have your first impressions been of Les Lancaster? Have you already noticed anything in Les’s style or approach that differs from former manager Ed Nottle?

CV: The short answer to your question is yes, there has been a significant difference. Les is pretty much hands on in all aspects of how a team is run. During practice, he’s out hitting fungos, throwing BP, very much pro active and shouting instructions. Camp has been a lot more work than it has been in the past. I think the players are buying into it. Les has their respect because he has the track record to prove it. Seven strong years in the major leagues, 7 years as a manager and has made the playoffs in 5 of them. And I think Les has something to prove in this league after the Lincoln Saltdogs let him go. I think Les is a winner and everything else is secondary. He’s not afraid to get his hands dirty; heck, the other day, he was helping us hang the outfield fence ad signs. Not many other managers would be willing to do that. It has been a real pleasure working with him.

 

SS: The four returning teams in the North seem to have an unusually high number of returnees, certainly compared to years past. Is this just a coincidence, or is this the start of a new pattern in indy ball? If so, what do you think the reason is?

Well, I think Lincoln has totally redone their team which is unusual and St. Paul has a lot of people back which is also unusual. For the most part, you want to create a core group of guys and piece together a team around them.  The Saltdogs did that with Josh Patton, Bryan Warner, Pichi Balet, etc. Ft. Worth did that and won 2 championships in a row. But, everybody hits that wall and guys retire or you decide to break things up. Lincoln decided to break things up this year. Sioux Falls looks strong with Steve Shirley building his team around Pat Mahomes, Ben Van Iderstine and others. The Saints seem stacked with Balet, Marcel Longmire, Brent Krause, and Brian Sprout. I think we can play with any team in the league. We’re building our team around vets like Alex Llanos, Jason Tuttle and Pete Pirman and young players like Nick McCoola. And then you add a Juan Camacho, Abner Arroyo, and Dusty Bergmann and suddenly you have something.

 

SS: The infield looks very solid with McCoola and Llanos returning up the middle. And I’m sure you have to be excited to bring in Juan Camacho who finished third in RBIs last year?

We are ECSTATIC to have Juan Camacho in Sioux City. Last year, we went down to El Paso and he hit 3 HR in 3 games against. Just pretty much tore up our pitching. I was watching him in practice the other day and the ball just jumps off his bat. Without a doubt, one of the best hitters in the league. And a great guy too. Llanos is simply a professional and a great hitter. I think him and Josh Patton are pretty much the same type of player with the same type of production. Nick is a guy who will have a big year this season. He made the All-Star team as a true professional rookie last year and then hurt his hamstring and didn’t see much action in the second half. If we had him healthy last year, we might have made a run at St. Paul. Then, you add Abner Arroyo to the mix and our infield is as good as anybody’s. Abner is playing with the Puerto Rican Olympic team right now and will miss the first couple of series, but we expect him in the line up in mid May.

 

SS: Do you know much yet about newly acquired lefty, and veteran, Dusty Bergman?

Dusty is a great guy. Very down to earth and easy going. He doesn’t throw really hard but you don’t have to throw hard to have success in this league. He’s very savvy, does tend to give up a few hits, but never panics and is a very good leader on and off the field. He pitched for Les last year in Reno and there is no doubt that they work will together. I think he’s going to eat up a lot of innings and bring a great dimension to our rotation.

 

SS: In addition to Bergman, it seems like it’s the pitching that’s gone under the biggest overhaul?

Well, when your team ERA a year ago was 5.09 and dead last in the league, you’d overhaul it too. Les has worked hard to bring in some great arms this year. Nick Singleton has had some success out west in the Golden League the last couple of years and should be our number 2 starter. Paul Fagan has looked really good in camp and threw 4 innings of scoreless ball against Lincoln the other night. He’s #3. That pushes Alexander Francisco to the number 4 spot. #5 right now is up in the air with Les giving Brett Reid a chance to win that spot. Brett has never started in his career and has great stuff; its just a matter of whether he will start or relieve. Our bullpen has great depth this year with Kevin Fitzgerald, Tony O’Donnell, Garvis Romero, Cameron Cheek, and maybe Reid in the mix. O’Donnell and Cheek can also start. Les has a lot of flexibility in this pitching staff. The closer’s spot is up for grabs. Fitzgerald had 27saves for North Shore 2 years but bounced around last year. Reid could be the closer. Romero could close. I think once Les figures out where he wants to use Reid, the other roles will work themselves out. Brett was a great acquisition for us last year and I think he’s going to be a key ingredient for us this year.

 

SS: How about Alexander Francisco? I know his numbers weren’t the prettiest last year, but everyone raves about his stuff. Can he put it all together this year?

Last year, Francisco became just the 5th pitcher in Sioux City Explorers history to win at least 10 games in a season. He does have great stuff, good exploding slider and a strong fastball. His problem was he turned into a 5 inning pitcher and didn’t learn how to pitch. He gets bothered easy and wears his emotions on his sleeve. I definately think he’s a project for Les and our pitching coach Darwin Marrero. Francisco would run into problems after he went through the batting order once. At one point, Ed Nottle was thinking about putting him into the bullpen. I think experience will help him and not having to face the other team’s best starter and moving down in the rotation will help him.

 

SS: Who are two or three guys that you think could be pleasant surprises that fans might not be familiar with yet?

Chad Gabriel is one guy to watch. He has shown a lot of power in practice and brings a lot to the table. He can run, hit for power and has a decent arm in LF. He came in the Jorge Moreno trade so I think the fans will draw a lot of comparisons, which may be unfair. Moreno was a special player and will be tough to replace but I think Gabriel will be a pleasant surprise to people. He’ll have to adjust coming from the Can-Am League to here but I expect good things. Another guy is Pete Pirman. He kind of flies under the radar sometimes. He was our best hitter in the 2nd half last season and is a key again this year. He’s a 5 tool guy. If Gabriel and Pirman have big seasons, our line up will be very, very dangerous.

 

SS: The X’s bounced back really well from a tough first half, and if not for some “questionable” ground rules, you may have outlasted St. Paul for the second half title. Are people within the organization or fans still upset over the controversial “snow fence” games in St. Paul last year?

I don’t think there was any controversy at all. I think the Saints just had our number last year; you can’t point to just one game. St. Paul went 9-1 against us in the 2nd half and 15-4 against us for the entire year. That just can’t happen. That was why we didn’t win the 2nd half. I don’t think they were that much better, I think they just got in our heads a little. Les won’t let that happen this year.

 

SS: Are you happy that you will not have to return to the St. Joe press box this year?

That depends — do you have air conditioning at Lawerence-Dumont? Hope everyone comes out and supports the Wingnuts this year. Looking forward to coming to Wichita.

…once again, special thanks to Chris who did a phenomenol job on this interview. the weather forecast for thursday is a good one, so take two of opening night is hopefully on its way…

Tonight’s Game Rained Out

Tonight’s game between Wichita and Sioux City has been postponed due to inclement weather. A double header consisting of two seven-inning games between the two team’s will be played Friday beginning at 5:00PM.

Thursday’s game will be played at its regularly scheduled time of 7:05.

For more information, check out www.wichitawingnuts.com

Projected Starters

Both Wichita and Sioux City have announced their projected starting pitchers for this week’s opening series:

Wichita:

Wed - Brad Davis

Thu - Justin Young

Fri - Leonard Landeros

 

Sioux City

Wed - Dusty Bergman

Thu - Nick Singleton

Fri - Paul Fagan

…there has been no word as to how tonight’s potential rainout may affect the rotations. stay tuned…

Links: L-DS, Mohr

This morning, the Wichita Eagle provides some great coverage for the Wingnuts. Links are provided for each article.

Wingnuts’ beat writer Jeffery Lutz talks about Dustan Mohr’s path to independent ball.

Veteran sports writer Bob Lutz discusses the current status of Lawrence-Dumont Stadium.

Read: It’s Raining in Wichita

As expected, hail and heavy rains fell throughout last night. It is currently stable, but more rain is expected this afternoon. A final decision will not be made until one hour before tonight’s scheduled 7:05 start.

In case tonight’s season opener is postponed, here is Wichita’s fan-friendly policy regarding rainouts:

- Tickets for Wednesday’s scheduled game can be exchanged for a seat of equal or lesser value for any game later in the season.

- There will be a scheduled double header tomorrow featuring two seven-inning contests. Tickets already purchased for Thursday’s scheduled game will be honored for both ends of the double header.

- Tickets purchased after any potential cancellation tonight for Thursday will be honored for both games of the double header (meaning you are guaranteed a two-for-one).

Read: Wingnuts in the Eagle

Saturday, the Wichita Eagle previewed the Wingnuts in their weekly vendor tab section. It includes stories on Kash Beauchamp, the new cashless system, and more. You can find an electronic version of the tab here.