BSBL Press

Last year, Benjamin Ridings managed a 10-12 record and a 5.62 ERA over 30 starts for the San Antonio Mission. On most teams, these would be the stats of a #4 starter at best, but on a team that put up a BSBL record high ERA of 6.15 (beating the 5.94 mark set by Omaha in 1953) these stats were enough to make the then 22 year old Ridings the unlikely staff ace. One season later, and the Mission pitching staff has improved their ERA by over a point, slenderizing it to 4.68, good enough to make them 11th out of the 20 teams in the league, not great, but far from the historically bad marks of last season. Ridings, in that same time, has gone from pitching 2 games under .500 to 10 over, leading the team with a 16-6 record, good enough to make put him in a tie for 5th winningest pitcher in the league.

“I can’t say that I’m where I hoped to one day be,” Ridings admitted in a recent interview, “but compared to where I was, I’d say I can’t complain. I still need to work on keeping my walks down.” A problem that he shares with a staff that is last in the league, having put nearly 600 free runners on base already this season. At the same time, though, Ridings already has 40 more strikeouts under his belt than he managed in all of last season with five more starts still ahead of him.

“It’s a young staff. We’re going to get better. We joke around with [29-year old] Overholt all the time, calling him old man, but really, none of us have been around the league for more than two years. Just look at Knapp and Brookshire,” Ridings said, referring to the two rookies occupying spots in the starting rotation, putting up a combined 14-19 record. “Knapp is having the season I had last year this year, and Brookshire is doing more than any of us could have hoped. They’re going to come out next year stronger and more confident, both better pitchers.”

Team management has similar hopes for the young pitchers. “We’re putting together a staff that we hope to keep in tact for the next five to seven years. These kids can seriously pitch, and given time, should morph into a starting rotation that anyone in the league would be happy to stand behind.”

While the future is uncertain, the present has the Mission only 4 games under 500 just one season after finishing a solid 30 games under, mostly through riding the improvements to the pitching staff.

“Look, we’re never going to be happy with a season under 500. Never. But the turnaround we’ve seen this year…well, I might not be happy, but I’m certainly less unhappy, let’s just put it that way,” the Mission GM said.

Finally, Ridings was asked about that mythical 20th win, something no Mission pitcher has done since Josh Stephens in 1953. “I’m not thinking about that. It’s just one game at a time. I’ve got 5 starts left, and those are five individual games, each of which I hope to win, and each of which I’ll give my best in. Hopefully I win all five, but I’m not going to pay attention to any kind of arbitrary milestones.”

JACKSON, Mississippi - July 31 was a great day to be a Hermit. The “New Hermitage” was packed, the sun was shining, and some future stars got to showcase their talents to their mentors in the First Annual Jacks n’ Jackson Exhibition.

In the middle of what couple possibly be a record-setting season in the Minor Leagues, the AAA Jackson Hermits defeated their Major League team, the Kansas City Jacks, 7-4. The player of the game, John Arteaga, said that he wasn’t even concerned about the score.

“I didn’t care at all. I was just happy to see guys that I looked up to when I was growing up”, Arteaga said after the game, while signing autographs with Cory Ashburn and the injured Chris Harvey. “Tony Flores? Billy Milligan? I can’t tell you how much I wanted to be like them when I was younger. Hopefully they saw at least a little bit of me in them.”

It’s hard to doubt that they did. Even with a dislocated finger, he had an impressive 3-for-4 night, including a solo homer and a bases-clearing double. Cory Ashburn added a home run and two walks, while Bernal Morales stole two bases off of the usually unbeatable Eugene White. Earl Griffin did not dazzle, giving up four runs on eight hits in five innings, but Marlin Morris and Richard Baker did not allow a single baserunner. In fact, Baker struck out the heart of the Jacks’ line-up (Tony Flores, Joe Whelan, and Billy Milligan) on ten pitches to end the game.

“It was a little bit of payback for being sent down earlier”, Baker said with a wink.

On the Kansas City side, rule 5 pick Oscar Hargett struggled early, but caught on later, giving up four runs after the first four batters (punctuated with the Ashburn homer), but only allowing one baserunner after that. Shelby Brinn and Andrew Allen kept the Hermits scoreless from the fifth to the seventh, but James George didn’t quite show why he was put in the all-star game, walking the first three batters in the eighth before giving up Arteaga’s double against the left-center field wall.

“I can’t wait until he’s on our side”, James said of Arteaga, during the Jacks’ autograph session with Joe Whelan and Jermaine Jensen. “Cory, as well. Those guys are simply amazing.”

Other notes: Chris Harvey and William Fraley did not play, due to injuries, but both were present at the game…James Fabela and Jason Massingill had two hits and two stolen bases each. Joe Whelan went 1-5 with a two-run homer, but struck out three times.

Friday evening Michael Brookshire, the Mission Rule-5 starting pitcher, stared down the fearsome Salt Lake lineup and didn’t blink. In the process he racked up his second complete game shutout in as many starts, allowing just six hits on the way to a 4-0 Mission victory. While Brookshire only had to face the dreaded Pedro Savino only once in the game, he held Russ Witham and David Almond to a combined two hits in eight total plate appearances. By the end of the game, Brookshire needed only 104 pitches to shut out the visiting Locusts and walk away victorious. He allowed only two walks on three strikeouts, and lowered his ERA to below 6.00 for the first time in his short big league career.

Brookshire’s next challenge in his attempt to extend his streak of shut out ball will be the visiting Denver Grizzlies who will be bringing their PL North leading record to Alamo Field for a three game series starting Tuesday. Brookshire’s start will come on Thursday. Following that, Brookshire is scheduled to take on the Oklahoma 89ers, the last team to score a run on the young pitcher in a 0-8 rout of the Mission.

San Antonio Rule-5 draftee Michael Brookshire continued his rookie season in grand style on Saturday when he pitched only the second complete game shutout by a Mission starter this season. Coming up short in the game were the Dallas Eagles who were held to only three hits in the affair, falling to San Antonio by a score of 3-0.

Brookshire needed only 98 pitches to round out the game, giving up three walks on the way to his third win in his rookie season, even managing to pitch around a 45-minute rain delay in the process. However, what was more unusual about what Brookshire did is what he didn’t do. Coming off an effort where he fanned a season high 7 Oklahoma batters, he was unable to record a single strikeout in the complete game. Instead the outs came through an even mix of 13 infield grounders, 13 pop outs, with a Cude-Seger-Hyde double play thrown in for good measure.

“I won’t say I felt I was pitching my best out there,” Brookshire said in a post game interview, “but somehow it just kept working. I know I got a lot lucky out there. That game could have gone drastically the other way.”

The win was Brookshire’s second over the Eagles, who are still fighting with the 89ers for the Pioneer South pennant. His next start will come at home against Salt Lake and their star slugger Pedro Savino.

“No one looks forward to pitching against Savino. But after tonight, who knows, I feel ready to take on anything.”

Chee might be done for season

We won’t panic - McClymont

The clouds parted and the rain blew away in time for Sunday’s Willamette-Angels clash. LA won 6-2 thanks to Edward Wright’s two taters and a complete game effort by Michael Knepper.

But, metaphorical clouds continued to hang over the home dugout as their star player lay in a hospital bed. Team doctors gave GM P.J. McClymont further bad news over the weekend.

MVP Abraham Chee will miss at least 10 weeks with the broken ribs suffered Wednesday night at Multnomah Stadium. Indeed, Chee could be done for the year.

If there could be a silver lining to this particular cloud, replacement CF Donald Pan continued to fill Chee’s shoes. The 31 year old went 2-for-4 with a triple in yesterday’s defeat.

Overnight, Portland finally made moves to fill the big league roster. Veteran Richard Bryant returns to the Rose City after a year’s absence.

Bryant was signed just before Spring Training as an emergency outfielder. However, the 37 year old hardly expected to be replacing Portland’s marquee player in what has turned into a tight, though less than dogfight of a pennant race.

For Long Beach in 1955, Bryant posted decent numbers (.283/.343/.421) though these were well down on his stellar 1954 campaign (.336/.395/.484), his last in Portland.

McClymont conceded last night that the loss of Chee is a major blow to the pennant hopes even though the player has been in a season long slump.

“His numbers (256/.352/.511) would hardly be a slump for most other player,” said McClymont. “Even at that level, Abraham adds much to the club.”

“We’ll miss his presence on the field, in the dugout and in the club house,” said veteran Clifford Morrone.

Already fans are calling Chee’s mishap “the $100 million injury” or just “the injury”.

Rather than a rain maker, Portland now needs a new saviour to prolong the reign.

Notes: McClymont announced last night that 2b Michael Nagy, received in an early season trade from Houston, had been designated for assignment. The move freed up a roster space for Bryant.

Second base has proved to be the Willamettes’ most troublesome position this season. Nagy fell short of expectations going .251/.309/.310 in 171 at bats.

Also last night, Albert Sherman was recalled from Des Moines along with Bryant to fill out the roster. Sherman had been optioned in early June after Keith Hinton’s short turn on the disabled list.

[Houston] It’s been an up-and-down couple of years for Michael Brookshire. Drafted late in the dispersal draft by the Hollywood Stars, he was part of an early three for one pitching trade that brought reining Pitcher of the Month Christian Schwandt to the Los Angeles suburb, and resulted in Brookshire landing in the Kansas City organization. More specifically, he landed in Homestead playing for the Heritage, the single-A club for the Jacks organization. There he started for two and a half seasons before being delegated to a relieving role in 1954 and notching just 30 innings in 27 appearances last season, racking up a 2-2 record with a quartet of saves. Total single-A ERA in those four seasons? 4.25.

When he was left unprotected by the Jacks during the Rule 5 draft, he expected to be returning to Homestead the next season. “My best case was getting promoted to [Jacks AA club] Sky Valley,” Brookshire said in a small press conference at Hogg Field in Houston. He was right about being promoted, as the San Antonio Mission, in a move that struck several as odd and a few as flat out desperate, picked up Brookshire as the third pick in the Rule Five draft, giving him an immediate promotion to a 25-man roster. A few months later and he was on the mound at Alamo Field being handed the start against the visiting New Orleans Pelicans. He allowed eight earned runs over five and two thirds innings, got nothing in terms of run support, and was brought out of the game with his first big league loss.

“I didn’t care about the loss, I cared about getting that first big league start. When I was brought in as a Rule Five player, I expected maybe a few emergency starts and then a trip to [Mission AAA club] Tulsa, or even [AA club] Albuquerque next season.”

Over the next few weeks, Brookshire got two more chances to show what he could do. Both games resulted in losses, though he was able to stretch his second big league start into an 8 inning complete game, hurling 122 pitches with just shy of 60% as strikes. “The level of competition…I mean, I knew it would be higher here in the bigs, but the step from single-A all the way up to the big show, it’s hard to really express what kind of jump that is.”

Then came the game this past Saturday, when Brookshire was once again called on to start, this time facing down last season’s Pioneer South champions, the hard stealing Houston Lone Stars. Brookshire started with three innings of one-hit shutout ball before giving up an RBI double to Houston’s Kevin Pazos in the fourth inning. Everything changed in the top of the fifth with the Mission handing Brookshire a 7-1 lead after an offensive explosion that included 11 at bats. Prior to that, the Mission had just scored four total runs in Brookshire’s last three starts, two of those runs coming in games Brookshire had already been pulled from. Brookshire himself showed his worth in that inning, advancing Michael Hyde to third on a sacrifice bunt. From there, the Mission and Brookshire didn’t look back.

“That kind of run support is a major self esteem boost. I had my first major league win handed to me by our boys with the bats, and it was just my job not to blow it at that point.”

The Mission scored three more in the 6th inning and 2 in the 9th. Brookshire stayed in the game, throwing 150 pitches for his second complete game of his young major league career, allowing only three more runs to cross the bag for the Lone Stars. By the end of the game, the pitcher who was a single-A reliever just a year ago was being hoisted on the shoulders of his teammates and walked off the field a major league winner.

“It felt good. What else could I possibly say? It just felt good.”

Brookshire’s next start will be against the Pelicans in New Orleans before returning home to face his old team on July 2nd at Mission Park.

Don’t forget P-Wil fans, tonight is Ring Night at Multnomah Stadium as the World Champion Willamettes pick up their championship rings.

All fans will receive a genuine fake gold ring facsimile set with .0001 avoirdupois ounce nuggets of Kryptonite and Uranium-238.

Oakland are in the Rose City for a quartet of contests. Michael Jackson (3-1, 4.18) takes to the hill for the home side tonight. For the Oaks, Sherwood Cornelison (2-1, 3.71) is slated to start.

GM, Manager Move Quickly to Rouse Moribund Franchise

Rock Etbill, Deseret News

Salt Lake City - It’s time for pre-game drills at Derks Field, and Manager Nate McGinty is not at all pleased with what he sees. On the infield, starting shortstop Shawn Cosentino barely moves as a sharp grounder off the bat of first base coach Wee Wally Obermeuller skips by a few feet to his left. Out by the fences, team captain Pedro Savino is shagging flies with new leftfielder David Almond and speedy Larry Richardson, but popular veteran Waldo Threlkeld is conspicuous by his absence. Threlkeld has taken to warming up only when he’s scheduled to start in right field, a habit that irritates McGinty to no end. It’s no secret that Waldo is unhappy with his reduced playing time, and has been lobbying the team’s ownership for a trade. As far as Nate McGinty is concerned, that can’t happen soon enough.

“There will be no layabouts on this team,” McGinty emphasizes, “no one in this lineup will be allowed to give anything less than maximum effort at all times. Whether it’s the Series of the West or Tuesday infield practice, I expect the same of all my boys.” And McGinty drives the point home later that day, benching the sluggish Cosentino in favor of utility infielder Victor Espinoza. McGinty and his starting shortstop have had a complicated relationship ever since the mercurial Cosentino joined the Locusts in 1952. McGinty believes that Shawn consistently plays below his talent level, and is a negative influence on his fellow infielders. McGinty lobbied hard to send Cosentino to Minnesota in mid-1952, and was not terribly pleased when the front office brought him back on the cheap before the 1955 season, after two disappointing, injury-plagued years in Long Beach.

With the Locusts mired in an uncharacteristic early season slump, McGinty has been given free rein to do some housecleaning. One pending deal would send Cosentino and Provo slugger Bob Almieda to New Orleans for SS Sabino Martinez and a pair of minor leaguers. Another would see Thelkeld shipped out to Portland with two players from the Helena Handbaskets for Willamettes OF Tony Arroyo. If approved by the Commissioner’s office, the moves would reshape the Salt Lake lineup, and rid McGinty of a least two of his larger headaches. Final approval of the transactions is expected in the coming days.

Hitchcock moves to bullpen

McClymont trims sails and finances

The Portland Willamettes moved last night to steady their rocky rotation and trim a bloated payroll.

GM P.J. McClymont characterised the trades as “further fine tuning” in the club’s bid to repeat as PCL North champs.

From Week 1 of the new campaign, Portland has looked to both strengthen the roster and trim salary. This week’s deals go part of the way. Whether GM McClymont can move All-Star Jack Hitchcock and his $10.5m pay check is another matter.

Right-handed starter Vincent Vivian joins the Rose City club from New Orleans and replaces Hitchcock in the P-Wil rotation.

Hitchcock, who has been hit hard in three of his first four starts, is said to be resigned to a move to the bullpen. Even at 35, he believes he has something to offer. McClymont moved quickly to laud his accomplishments in four years at the club. However, club sources say Hitchcock is unlikely to see regular action as Manager Malachi Brown wants to bring in younger arms to the bullpen.

The 28 year old Vivian has less than a stellar career with a lifetime 40-40 record and an ERA of 5.89. Portland scouts are confident that he can still provide a quality option as a No.4 starter.

Portland sends catching prospect Pelayo Salo and a 2nd round pick in the 1957 draft. McClymont said he was reluctant to part with Salo who - despite slow progress through the system - projects as a solid starter.

In the other major move of the day, Portland finally moved fourth outfielder Tony Arroyo in a deal with Pioneer League outfit Salt Lake City that sees veteran OF Waldo Threlkeld come the other way. McClymont conceded that finances where the primary concern in the deal which sees the club save about $1m for this season. Like Arroyo, Threlkeld will be a free agent at the end of the season.

As a bonus, P-Wil picked up a couple of prospects to restock their depleted Minor League system. Starting pitcher Michael Parker and OF Bill Hoelscher join from the Locusts. Hoelscher, a 4th round pick in 1955, had a solid year at A-ball Boise (.273/.377/.433). Parker, a crafty lefty, provides pitching cover possibly as a 4th starter/swingman. A second round pick last year, Parker went 8-6, 3.13 at AA in 1955.

Notes - Portland optioned lefty reliever Eric Bricker (2-1, 7.50) to AAA Des Moines to make way for Vivian. Bricker had allowed 6 hits and a walk in 6 innings, but drew the short straw. The club had been carrying three lefty relievers.

In a cash deal, Portland unloaded OF Juan Vazquez to Hollywood. The deal awaits approval from the Commissioner. Vazquez has had a torrid start to his AAA campaign (.329/.405/.443) after disappointing in 1955. The club feel he was unlikely to crack the Major League level this season, especially after dealing for Thelkeld. In doing the deal, GM McClymont was trying to stem the accumulating red ink as the club is on track for another operating loss.

“Don’t count us out”, says Shiflett

There hasn’t been much to cheer about in Kansas City over the past four seasons. Bad trades and less-than-stellar ownership have put the KC Jacks in last place every year since 1953. Vinny Velazquez and Manny Antigua have gone to more promising organizations, and the ownership has been stuck with bad contract after bad contract (Guglielmo and Van Pelt, to name a couple). Even though they had quite a few draft picks and a lot of money to spend, there was no chance that the Jacks could compete, right?

Well, not so fast.

To the surprise of many, several big-name players were more than willing to play at Kaw Point Field. “Like I told Antoine (Pollard, KC owner)”, says Tiberius Rowe, their manager, “It’s impossible to get more butts in those seats unless you grab some people that fans will talk about. If you want to compete, you need to open up your wallet first.”

Antoine responded with Milligan, Casiano, and Flores. He surprised everyone, however, when he was bold enough to offer Joe Whelan over $100M to play for the Jacks. Whelan says that he was the most shocked. “Never in a million years would I have expected the Jacks to come calling. Honestly, they didn’t give me the best contract, but who am I to turn down a chance to beat up on my old team?”

Whelan’s been beating up on everybody so far, comfortably leading the league in batting average, on-base percentage (an astounding 56% of the time), slugging percentage, and runs batted in. Thanks to the suddenly potent line-up which includes returning players Shiflett, Massingill, Fabela, and Villalba, he’s had one of the most productive starts of his 12-year career. Additionally, his production has lit a fire under this team. Once dead last in batting average, the Jacks are top 4 in almost every offensive category.

“He’s making everybody better. Much, much better”, says second baseman Shiflett. “When Cory (Ashburn), Ozzy (Ostrander) and Artie (John Arteaga) come back up, they’ll be better, too. I hope I’m around to see us finally win it all.” He laughs, knowing that his contract ends this year.

And what about this year? “Don’t count us out yet. Our pitching hasn’t even gotten up to speed. Once it does, we just may be able to compete.”

Whether they win it all or not, this should be one fun team to watch.