Heels On The Field: A Baseball Blog

How Twitter Changed Minor League Baseball

In the dusty bus leagues there's games with countless empty seats, kids paying more attention to the between-inning entertainment, and players whose names no one is sure of. And they will never know a lot of them.

The social media powerhouse that is Twitter has dramatically changed that.

Mid-level and low-level prospects might have struggled in years past to get noticed, lucky enough to get attention if they were part of a major league trade. In that case, their name suddenly had meaning by relationship to a far more important player. But while top prospects have become richer and more famous before they've played a lick of big league baseball, those less valuable guys have upped their status as well. Perhaps they didn't get the same bonus as the top guy in their organization, but his name, through Twitter, is often just as recognizable. Fans are now invested in the kid playing for the Class-A team and when he might be promoted. Prospects are already famous due in large part to Twitter.

The exclusive arena of fame has had it's gates blown open. Celebrities and sports figures have embraced a more open access to their lives, thoughts, and careers. The sense that we are us and they are them is no longer the same. There's tremendous value in that, but also a downside. The access gives fans the illusion that they're talking to friends. It's given writers, particularly start-ups, a relaxed attitude toward the players they cover. Twitter blurs the lines of the profession.

But for minor league players and teams, there's a broader base to reach and that's good for baseball.

Minor League Baseball saw an increase in attendance a few years back, but while it hasn't suffered as much as feared, it's still taken a hit. For all the promotional tie-ins and fireworks nights, people aren't always that interested in seeing a team they aren't emotionally invested in. If a team is near that is affiliated with their favorite major league team, it's surely more attractive. But that's not always the case. Minor league teams are often located in areas nowhere near the big club.

Enter Twitter.

The connection that Twitter gives fans to players they can't always watch (MILB.TV has certainly helped in that department) is of huge value to minor league affiliates and their parent clubs. This isn't a business piece, no predictions on a numbers increase, but it's possible it will have a far reach. Fans talking casually with a prospect are going to tune in for his major league debut. How much could a minor league team's popularity increase if fans know all the guys on the roster and are socializing with them?

Minor league teams benefit. By getting a following on Twitter, they increase fan connection and possibly their attendance. It's a wonder major league teams aren't embracing social media more. With baseball fans pouring out their passions for baseball on Twitter, they want to know everything all the time. And they want to feel appreciated enough to attend a game that's gonna cost them. The minor leagues give the baseball fan a chance to be part of their team without shelling out too much cash. Twitter gives them a closer relationship with that team and the players whose names they know as well as the big guys.

Young players must be cautious. There's a risk in that wall coming down. But major league teams are paying attention to that. Warnings have been handed out and there has been stories of players needing to be told to hold back a bit. Teams must protect their players. Journalists must not forget they aren't fans and be careful about their level of interaction.

But the bus leagues, still dusty, are looking a lot brighter with the emergence of a social tool that gives them a chance to shine.

Future Major Leaguers And The Lure Of Steroids

I hate addressing the topic of steroids. And I've avoided writing anything in regard to the subject here. But then I started wondering why.

The truth is I feel protective toward those who chose to go that route. And saying that out loud was scary. I know people may not respect that or even understand it. What I mean by protective is that I didn't want to judge players who had felt that would help them get an edge over guys with a lot more talent. I didn't want to judge the guys who did it when their jobs were on the line, and they weren't considered among the best in the game. I don't want to throw those desperate souls in with the superstars who were already talented or highly regarded. Maybe that doesn't fly with a lot of people. But it's part of my staying the distance.

Also, I'd much rather just write about the games and the numbers and the interesting stories and developing prospects, than who tested positive for what. I guess that was me trying to be a bit purer of heart. I'd rather not think about it and leave that to the writers who feel compelled to tell that story. I understand it needs to be told. It just didn't garner much of my interest.

But two questions keep coming to me as the steroids question is hotly debated during HOF voting season:

How does steroids affect this generation of prospects? Will they be smarter or less encouraged to go that route?

It's really the only questions I have. I leave the HOF business to those who have a vote and run that show. For me the larger issue is the future, not the past.

The culture in the rear view is one we can neither completely leave behind, nor can we afford to take our focus off the road ahead. The future of baseball is developing as we consider the past sins of their baseball fathers.

Despite the crackdown, minor league players are still testing positive and getting suspended. Because they make so little at that point, you'd think they'd avoid the temptation. But they're not. And we can't ignore that. There is a fear driven by their hope to succeed. They've seen their heroes rise, the ones that have now been publicly outed as users. But their outing and subsequent fall from idolatry hasn't stopped them. They continue to try to get around the tests that are in place to nab them in the act. When you talk to them for a living, they're easier to understand. You see their daily struggles up close. And how down and dirty the competition is between players vying for a job.

The financial part of the equation might make no sense if you consider only what they'll lose in the short term. Their rationalizing that if they don't get caught the payoff will be huge. And there's only one reason for that. Because it's happened. Major League baseball knows it and they're partially responsible. The deal seems to have been made in a back alley where all parties who could benefit - or get into deep trouble - agreed to wack baseball. When we all discovered it's remains we were shocked. Much of the ticket-buying public was anyway.

Young players need new role models. This generation of major leaguers is vitally important. Seeing new superstars in the cleaned up era could provide a lot of inspiration.

It doesn't eliminate the deeper and more painful question they have to ask themselves. If they don't turn to those things, will they have any shot at a career in the majors? Fame is a drug and that's extremely attractive. But more often it's the desire to keep a job that motivates them. It's the promise that any drug makes. If I try this, maybe all my problems will be solved....

And there are just as many guys that made it to the big leagues that felt broken and scared. They could get their hands on the good stuff. They could ninja their way through it. And they did. Many of those guys never became superstars. But they stayed employed.

I suppose the reason I don't write about it is that the desire to judge and ridicule players is so intense. Baseball fans need to dehumanize the players who did it, because they never saw them as human in the first place. They saw them as heroes. And they never were. So count yourself among the responsible parties in this mess. Holding them accountable doesn't mean casting them out of baseball. The hard part is facing our own humanity. They failed. Accept it and move on.

For today's top prospects and the players that will impact the game whose names we don't yet know, moving on is up to them as well. Embracing the truth will be difficult. If they can't make it on talent alone, they'll have to work harder. And if that's not enough...then they go home. But the inspiration they need is doing the job now. Whether they're big name players or not doesn't matter. They're making a living or they're rich or they're richer than the average person, but they're all in a uniform and they have something in common. They're following the rules. They're taking the matter seriously. As the future unfolds, that will purify baseball more than any denial or harsh judgement.

The questions I started with made me think back to a player I interviewed at the start of my career.

He had been released by a major league team and had gotten a job with an independent team. He's one of many to use indy ball as a way back in with a big league team. Many for the same reason as him.

I knew he'd been working hard toward another shot at affiliated baseball. I actually didn't feel compelled to ask him about the release until the very end of the interview. I didn't do it in an outright sort of way. I used subtle language, but we both knew what I was talking about.

I'll never forget the look of shock and embarrassment on his face. We'd had a great conversation about baseball. And then I was bringing up the one thing he likely didn't want to talk about. He was gracious and apologetic. But the question quieted him. I felt terrible. And you may not agree with that either.

In that moment I saw the raw bleeding heart of the matter. We were sitting in an independent baseball stadium for a team that brought in a couple hundred fans a night, if that. He was looking at the long road home from a dream he thought he could touch. He never did. He was out of baseball soon after that.

I think about that guy when I contemplate the question of steroids and how young players will handle the temptation. For some the answer will still be to try and see if they can get away with it.

But if they're asking themselves the right and very tough questions, they'll get the right answer. Unfortunately, their humanness might get in the way. And I don't hate them for that.

 

 

 

 

Where Does Padres Trade Put Castro and Kelly?

The San Diego Padres trade of first baseman Adrian Gonzalez gives them a 2008 first rounder.

Casey Kelly was the Red Sox first round pick in '08 and he received a $2.6 million dollar signing bonus. The Sox propensity to over slot is well-known, but so is Kelly's potential and arsenal of quality pitches.

Simon Castro's ability to overpower hitters is highly regarded and he is consistently ranked as the Padres top pitching prospect. 

Both young righthanders (Kelly 21, Castro 22) full with talent and potential, but Castro's position in the Padres system as the top righty prospect stands. That's due in part to Kelly's 2010 finish.

The Red Sox top pitching prospect did not fare well in 2010, finishing at Double-A Portland with a bloated 5.31 ERA. After 95 innings pitched the Red Sox shut him down. Coming into the Padres system, he's still got a lot to prove. Regardless of Kelly's 2010 numbers Kelly's ETA was predicted no earlier than 2012.

Castro on the other put in a solid season of work for the Double-A San Antonio Missions in 2010. He finished his season there with a 2.92 ERA and compiled 129 innings of work. He also tacked on 10 innings for the Triple-A Portland Beavers.

Kelly and Castro do project differently. Kelly has the stuff to be a number one, while Castro is regarded more as a number two guy.

It's very possible the Padres call on Castro in 2011. Kelly, an excellent acquisition for the team, still has a ways to go.

Note: First baseman Anthony Rizzo and outfielder Reymond Fuentes were also part of the Red Sox-Padres trade, as well as a PTBNL.

 

Eastern League Playoffs: A Conversation With MILB President Pat O'Conner

Trenton, New Jersey - Pat O'Conner's love for his job is clear from the moment he starts talking. The President of Minor League Baseball paid a visit to Waterfront Ballpark for Game Three of the EL Championship (the game was later postponed to Friday) between the home team Trenton Thunder and the Altoona Curve, and spoke about his hope for MILB, what has impressed him, and the power of diversity.

Change Is Good:

"I want to see more diversity, both with race and gender in MILB. Because baseball should reflect the world at large. I want to see more players of color and to embrace our diversity. And with the new initiative we've started this year, we've begun to do that. As the world changes, baseball does as well."

Getting Used To The Girls:

"There's no question it's important for them to be around women in the media at this level, absolutely. I'm a traditionalist in the sense that I believe in a cooling off period," he said. "I'm still enough of an old school [man] that I don't think men should be in the women's locker room and women shouldn't be in a man's locker room when they're showering. But they need to have access to them. Right after the game there always needs to be a cooling off period for all media. From time to time you see boys being boys, or men being boys, and they shouldn't be that way. I remember the players were brought to a room so the women could talk to players. It should be the way it is now, a freer flow, while also respecting everyone's privacy and also respecting everybody's got a job to do."

Financial Statement:

"Well, as a result of the economy we've taken a hit, just like everyone else. But our characterization is that we are not recession-proof, but we are very recession resistant. We are a collection of small businesses. And when you compare other small businesses to us, we've taken far less of a hit. Our attendance this year will be down less than one percent. In this economy we're extremely proud of that. From our position - stability, viability,  financially - we're fine. We're not seeing layoffs or cut backs."

Testing, Testing:

"We wholeheartedly support what the commissioner [of MLB, Bud Selig] is doing in regards to smokeless tobacco, drug testing prior to this...we've had drug testing for over ten years. My hope is that it will clean up a game to the extent that there isn't a problem, but it will send a message to the young people coming into this game, emulating the players that you can't do that. That there are options, there will be options and it's an unacceptable option. And I think what you're going to see is that as these players learn to feel ground balls a certain way, to hit pitches a certain way, to throw a certain way, as they work their way to the Minor Leagues, they're going to learn that life in this game is drug free and that you are responsible for what goes into your body, and there are going to be ramifications and consequences if you do something you shouldn't be doing. My hope is that it will send the intended message that baseball wants to be drug free, and it wants to keep a level playing field on natural skills. I hope that's the result of what the commissioner is putting in place here.

The Unforgiven:

"The policies depend on what the infraction is, what the violation is. There are counseling measures that go along with [getting caught]. It's not just you're suspended for fifty games, come back in a month and half. It's incumbent upon the player to help make sure that he doesn't fall through the cracks. Organizations have about 250 players under contract, does one get lost? I think that's naive to say that's not a possibility. But baseball has a great opportunity to help a young man, one, straighten out his life, and two, what is the introduction? How is it getting in the game? The science in this whole performance enhancing drug business is so advanced. For every scientist trying to identify the drug for MLB, there's a guy out there trying to develop the next one. It's a very difficult paradigm to try and work in. It's incumbent upon us to do the very best we can. It's not going to be fool-proof. But I believe any testing that will be done will be vetted and it will be the fairest."

The Passion Of The President:

"I think being in ballparks [is favorite thing about the job]. I don't have a team, I have 160. But when I come to a ballpark and I get a chance to talk to the media, I find it very engaging. The questions are genuine, sincere, and informed. It makes me feel that we have that kind of interest. When I go out and look out here and see fans cheering because the tarp is coming off, what it does is it validates everything we do back home in St. Pete. Tonight you see generational family. That validates what we're trying to do. I travel about 180 to 190 days a year, so getting there is an exaggeration because of travel, but being there is still the same gas it was three years ago. So being with the fans, watching the game, seeing the athleticism [is my favorite]. I've been to a lot of games this summer and I think the play has been better this year, than I can recall. I've been to more playoff games this year than I have in the last few, and I've been so impressed with the energy level of the fans, the awareness of the fans, they're staying through the whole game. I was at a game Friday night, 6,700 people, fireworks after the game, and I thought that's why they were staying so late- but there was a mass exodus after the last out. They weren't there for fireworks. They were there for the ballgame. That kind of stuff is still fun."

Safe: Life As A Woman In Minor League Baseball

Stare steadily into the eyes of a young hotshot player who is laughing as his teammates mock you and make sexual remarks. Stay focused. You cannot waver or walk away. You can't turn and respond, no, that will do no good. And no matter what, no matter how physically and emotionally impossible it feels, you cannot cry. Don't show one single emotion. Smile, ask your questions as if you are being respected with quiet understanding of the job you're trying  to do. Pretend that your interview subject isn't testing you and turning to his laughing teammates. Hold on. It's the clubhouse. Your office and theirs.

Welcome. 

In my nearly seven years as a MILB writer, this type of experience doesn't happen even half of the time. Not that bad, anyway. Yes, there's usually one player, sometimes a few that call me out to embarrass me or make a filthy comment. And while I've always turned my head to that, the recent controversy over NFL reporter Ines Sainz in the Jets locker room made me wonder about my own reaction, which was a mixture of a shrug and a fist in the air. I shrugged at whistling and catcalling. That's never bothered me. I threw my fist in the air for good measure, though. Because, hey, wait a minute, are we saying she deserves everything she gets based on how she dresses? Athletes will be grateful for that free pass. Funny thing is, I know women who wear business suits or jeans and have dealt with some pretty rough stuff from players. I get it, though. Sainz wears it low-cut and tight and she doesn't apologize. You can respect it or find it concerning. Or maybe you can feel a little bit of both.

But none of this is the point of why I wrote this. I started to wonder about what the differences are between the top tier of the sports pyramid, and covering the places where athletes are made. I've never covered the NFL or the NHL or NBA, and my experience at the MLB level consists of a few stories a year. This year it's a count of one. And I hear myself saying to someone that I love it that way. I don't want to cover the big leagues. Someone might say that at that level of sports, women are more protected and respected in the clubhouses and locker rooms. Sure about that? I've got stories I could share. And not from yesteryear.

Covering the minor leagues, and to be specific I've mostly covered the Eastern League, you learn quickly you will likely be the only woman in the clubhouse. A lot of those guys are young. Some are really, really young. If they've been in a strip club it was illegally. I thought today about all the players I've met and the experiences I've had with them. There has been far more good than bad, but it's all in how you look at it, isn't it? When NFL players think what they're doing is funny and harmless, maybe we're allowing them to think so. I wondered today if I'd gone a bit numb or if I'd just learned to handle it and ignore. Learning how to focus on doing your job and not be affected by the reactions of players is essential to survival.

Minor League Baseball is in many ways the same experience for writers as it is for players: it's scrappy, and without much promise of being Nationally recognized, and there aren't many perks. The money isn't the best. A lot of young writers start there and, like players, are working hard to move up. To be a woman in the minors is even scrappier. It's dirtier and uglier. If you're a priss, you won't make it, babe.

Ok, let's address that darling elephant. That giant thing is just asking to be noticed. How we look. Yeah, I know, you notice and make judgments based on that. With the newest controversy of women in the locker room, the appearance issue sticks her fat elephant butt in the equation again. This one is breaking my back.

And the reason is that I don't believe it's just about whether a woman looks professional in the the sports reporting industry. It's more than that. Because if I wore jeans you definitely wouldn't have a problem with that. And it's the fact that we're talking about it at all that drives me insane. As if THAT'S  the reason men don't take women in the sports industry seriously. Sure, that might enter into it. But that's a good excuse. There's also a nice dose of boy's club sexism. Because if you were so worried about professional attire, you would tell off the guys who wear birkenstocks and t-shirts and jeans. Last I heard, offices don't allow jeans or sandals.

It's whether you find the sports reporter sexy or pretty. In the male dominated industry of sports you have to fit a mold. We all know it. Be safe. Dress a certain way and you can stamp your ticket to being taken seriously in Serious Sports Writer Land by the athletes you cover! Get on board! If you fit the mold, honey, players will all take you completely serious and they'll never, ever sexually harass you or question your knowledge. Sure.

In the minors, no one is dressing too spiffy in the press box. And for all the looks and some criticism I've gotten, let me tell you what matters to me. I would never cover a baseball game in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. I overdress by Minor League standards. Do you know why? Because I am representing the great game of baseball. Putting on a pair of nice high heels and an impeccably cared for dress or skirt makes me feel I'm respecting how important the job is. I won't dress like I'm going to a game. I'm not a spectator. For the past two years I've covered the Trenton Thunder regularly. There is something meaningful to me about representing the Yankees. I take that seriously. Maybe the attire seems cutesy or too sexy at times, but I'm a woman and I like to be feminine. I respect this job enough not to show up wearing just anything. I stand out, sure. But that's ok. I like nice shoes and I hate jeans. Why are you more serious because you're dressing that way? I don't judge or doubt those who do.

My life in the minors can be lonely and weird. For any woman at that level, it's different from going higher up. You can feel the difference.

But my love for the minors is so deep that the challenges pale beside the difficulties. There's plenty of sexism. I don't take it too personally. You can't. It's the culture. I'm not going to change and neither are they. But in the minors, you're seeing the early morning of their long journey. You like to hope their maturity is a guarantee.

The issue of respect at the highest professional level is before us again and while I'm down here in the bus leagues, maybe you can all figure that out. Ines Sainz could be a good girl and change her personality and way of dressing, but it won't extinguish the male/female dynamic. Men will always see us as girls in the locker room or clubhouse. If being at the highest level of pro sports suggest to you a place where men change their thinking about women, let me be the first to tell you about all the young players I've had the pleasure of knowing in the minors. They've decided that no matter what a woman is wearing, they'll view her and treat her as a professional.

I don't know if all players get more mature as they go onto the big time, some definitely don't. That face that I had to look into that humiliated me? He went onto the big leagues. He caused more trouble there, too. Maturity isn't a definite.

If I'm in the minors forever, I'll have lived my dream. And I'm sure, even at the end, I'll have the high-as-heaven heels on. Elephants, well, I think they're kind of wonderful. They let you know they're there the minute they enter the room. I love those sorts of creatures.

To all you girls making your way to your internships, you'll likely get your test at the Minor League level and you'll more than likely want to move up the ranks. Or maybe you'll be like me and fall in love with it. The scrappiness, yes. The early hope of a young player. Watching them learn and grow and feel their confidence rise and fall, but all the time keeping their eyes on a larger prize. Maybe you'll relate to them in that way. You'll walk in and, let me warn you, you might hear laughter or have to interview a wet-behind-the-ears smart guy who thinks he's the next big thing in baseball. Focus. Smile.

Know that the Welcome mat was laid out for you.

Mike Coolbaugh's Minor League Life Is The Gold Standard

                                         "He was Minor League baseball."- S.L. Price

As a copy editor at Minor League News (MLN.com, The Raw Feed is for breaking news) I had one, sometimes two jobs: edit the copy, write headlines.

Most of it is banal stuff: game results, player transactions, team awards. Rarely does anything out of the ordinary come your way in a job that's mostly boring. You try to be creative and inspire yourself at certain moments.

There was only one story that ever came through the wire that made me stop, sit back, and consider asking the editor to take care of. It wasn't just the story, though. Something about the name Mike Coolbaugh sounded so familiar. I couldn't put my finger on it. So I searched through past stories to find his name. I finally remembered, without looking, why I'd remembered him. Nineteen days had passed since I'd reported that the 35-year-old coach had been hired. Now I was reporting his death.

I didn't remember Mike Coolbaugh as a player. I don't remember any of his 44 games in the majors and never covered any league he was in as a minor league player. The reason I remember him most is because of the way he died. I imagine a lot of people relate to that. His name wasn't big when he played, it was how he lost his life on a baseball field that many of us remember most. That truth becomes most unfortunate when you read "Heart Of The Game" by S. L. Price.

It's a book that tells Coolbaugh's life story: life in the minors, life in baseball with the hopes of "just one day." When he got his first call-up to the big leagues, he wept. Life with Mandy: poetry, love songs, believing, as every baseball player does, that someday there will be an opportunity for them as a family to enjoy the Major League life. But he did what every guy does in the minors and that's work like a dog to try and get there. If you're not a top prospect or get bitten by injury one too many times, you're painfully vulnerable to slipping through the cracks. Coolbaugh experienced a lot of bad breaks, but the book illustrates his defiance toward negative thinking and his overall faith. It's that age-old heartbreaking question: why don't the good guys always make it? There were men more talented than him, but not every player loves the game the way he did. Many baseball people felt he also didn't get his fair shot. Another reminder of the baseball life: timing and politics. Both are unavoidable, but there's no way to fight against those factors, so any guy knows he has to just keep trying. And hope one or both of those variables work in his favor.

Coolbaugh did everything he could to make it work for him, but, ultimately, embraced a life without baseball. Eventually, though, a place in baseball opened for him. He became the Tulsa Drillers hitting coach and he instantly loved it. 

It wasn't just his death that touched me. It was that he'd been in the bus leagues for most of his career and those guys are most fascinating to me: they're tireless workers, trying to prove themselves. Their soul is always close to the purity of baseball. They have no job security, they don't have thousands of fans of the big club licking their chops in anticipation of their Major League debut. They can't rest or ever be sure of what will happen to them. They press on. 

I tried to pay small tribute to Mike Coolbaugh two years after he died. Before the Atlantic City Surf folded, I contacted Chris Carminucci and asked him if we could put a fund-raiser together for the Coolbaugh family. He was on board immediately. I'd covered the Surf a lot in 2008 and knew all the people in the front office would want to do it and I was right. Unfortunately, it never happened. The Coolbaugh family hosts the Mike Coolbaugh Memorial Tournament every year, honoring him and trying to promote safety in the game.

There aren't always answers for the randomness of circumstances. So much is out of our control. You will read the book and admire his spirit and you will also put it down feeling life is truly unfair. Mike Coolbaugh was robbed of his life in a cruel twist of fate, a ball that could've hit him anywhere and been one to shake off. There's no way to make sense of it. But what he left behind is a place in baseball that should matter as much as numbers: he loved the game and devoted his life to it. He's an example of what every minor leaguer should look to and try their hardest to imitate. 

Be like Mike.

Dirk Hayhurst 'Gospel' Leaves No Truth Unturned

I've read a lot of baseball books. Now I've read the best. 

Perhaps that's biased, as my passion and life run through the minor leagues. Maybe there's better. Sure, Red Smith's "On Baseball" is the bible for any baseball writer. Roger Angell has a large part of a shelf in my bookcase. And David Marannis "Clemente" changed my life. But Dirk Hayhurst's "The Bullpen Gospels" is the closest you (or I) will ever come to understanding the baseball life and particularly, the Minor League baseball lifetyle.

There's so many words one hopes to find when describing something they love. You don't want to just say you loved it, you laughed, you cried...no, this book deserves more. But I don't know that Webster (do I have to say Merriam-Webster?) has created any word to quite express how magnificent this book is.

Hayhurst, a relief pitcher currently with the Blue Jays, though on the 60-Day-DL, has been telling his story in other ways, writing "The Non-Prospect Diaries" for Baseball America. And though 'Gospels' was released earlier this year, it was only recently that I noticed it in the baseball section of a bookstore. Why did this gem take so long to get to me? I expect anyone reading this to throw a high heel shoe at me for that. Because this is the book for any Minor League fan, writer, player and so-called expert to read. Each verse sweeps you into a new phase of the bus leagues lifestyle, the physical and emotional pain mixed with the absurd and exciting. Anticipation. Hope. Humiliation. It's all there the minors, and Hayhurst puts all of it under the hot lights with gorgeous and excruciating detail.

For all my time spent writing about Minor League baseball, there's certainly a million things we can't comprehend as writers. There are simply things that only players know. And Hayhurst gives the bare-bones portrait. Things I didn't know, for example: that groupies are called "beef" (I was sure it was cheesecake). Or, according to one coach, you want to handle a baseball like a certain part of a woman's anatomy. That lesson must not get passed around in Little League. There's also a mortifying tale of Hayhurst experiencing a stomach virus. Well, sure, we can all relate. How about with a roommate a few feet away, though? Or the fact that there's six stalls to a Minor League clubhouse bathroom. The teammate relationship is illustrated in a whole new way here, folks.

While you'll likely find yourself laughing out loud, just as quickly you'll be snapped back into a killer reality. Hayhurst's humor in many ways is a survival technique. In order to get through the constant uncertainty and disappointment, he finds the funny. Though when he describes going home to his parents house and dealing with the toxicity of some of the relationships, it's achingly sad. He lets you in, so that you will know why baseball is so important to him.

There isn't much in the way of wild tales of sex with groupies, so if you're a guy looking for stories that confirm all your ballplayer fantasies, Hayhurst doesn't give it. Though there is a story involving a teammate during a game, that makes you wonder what your fourth grade teacher was like outside of the classroom. And, also, if you're a thin girl you aren't what's considered a "slump buster." The ballplayer logic!

Hayhurst is great at weaving a story with vivid detail, giving you a feeling of being with that teammate sitting on the curb after his release. Or, unfortunately, the Elsinore Casino and Hotel, where he explains the lay of the land all too well.

"I knew that if you turned a black light on in the room it would look like Jackson Pollock had painted on your bed," Hayhurst writes.

Having spent two weeks on a bus with a baseball team, I heard it all ("Wedding Crashers" is a repeat favorite in Indi league too). I don't embarrass easily. However, I found myself cringing and gagging at that description. But it works. You see how bottom-of-the-barrel the conditions really are. It can be gross.

The humor is steady, as is his willingness to do what he must to keep a job in baseball. When he thinks his job is safe out of camp, he learns there will be more cuts later in the day. He can breathe, then, just as quickly, he can't. He goes to his hotel where he contemplates his existence in the silence of the room he no longer shares with a just-released teammate. He has some peace. Then he gets a phone call from a coach who tells him not to bring his stuff to the field the following day. When Hayhurst describes going to the ballpark the next day, it's a gut check.

"I came to the executioner's office and walked in without knocking," he writes. "The stark expression I wore did all the talking." Moments later he's told he has an opportunity though it isn't a dream one - he's offered a spot at Single-A Lake Elsinore.

But the narrative doesn't skip a beat. In the next chapter he's on the bus, day one of his time at Single-A. You understand his desire and dedication. And, yes, his desperation.

There's the theory that players lax once they make it to the majors, that in the minors everyone is still battling their hearts out. This book gives new meaning to that belief. Each page pulsates with a gushing, hopeful, battered heart. Even when he's making you laugh, you know the life he's lived was rough. As you read the unfolding journey, you feel the authentic rawness of a path chosen out of boyhood dreams. And in adulthood the inability to let go...or, perhaps, the inability to imagine doing anything else.

Hayhurst is willing to be vulnerable and show the fear, anxiety and self-loathing that creep up on players through a long season of "auditioning." He opens the clubhouse doors, the bus doors, even the doors to Kangaroo Court. In doing so, he allows the world to see the men behind the numbers we so obsessively track.

Roy Hobbs, that mythical baseball hero from Bernard Malamud's mind, had a great line and it came back to me as I wrote this review. In searching for words about this book, I've decided to borrow:

There goes Dirk Hayhurst's book about Minor League baseball. The best there ever was.

Note: I don't normally write with so much personal tone on my blog, but I went out of the lines for this. It was hard for me not to inject just how meaningful and personal the book felt to me. Journalistic, no. But from my heart.

Koby Clemens And Cutter Dykstra: Let The Sons Shine

With Roger Clemens participating in the Texas League Home Run Derby, and pitching to his talented son Koby, I thought I'd re-run a story about Koby (and Lenny Dykstra's son Cutter) and his recent success.

Upon mentioning the talent and success of Koby Clemens or Cutter Dykstra, you will likely hear a snarky reference to their fathers. What a shame. Both young men are doing so well this season and are clearly doing their job right.

First baseman Koby Clemens is hitting .256, with 17 walks for Double-A Corpus Christi (Astros). 9 of his 33 hits are doubles. The 24-year-old's .526 SLG percentage is second in the Texas League. With RISP he's hitting a healthy .364. He's following up a hugely successful 2009 season, in which he finished with 51 walks and (count 'em) 123 RBI. He was named the MILB Class-A Advanced Hitter of the Year.

Cutter Dykstra is enjoying a four-game hitting streak for the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Brewers) of the Midwest League. The 21-year-old second baseman is hitting .333 with 5 walks and 11 hits. In 209 at-bats in 2009, he scored 35 runs and worked 27 walks for Class-A Helena.

It's one thing to live in the shadow of their success, particularly with Clemens. While Dykstra was a very good player and had a few excellent years - not to mention was a whole lot of fun to watch - he wasn't the living legend Clemens is. He's become a symbol of what is now known as the steroid era. But Dykstra and Clemens have both been lightning rods for controversy in their personal lives. Both men stand accused of shady relations, be it business or women, and have been painted in a harsh light.

It is hard enough for a young player to stay mentally strong and learn how to keep his mind free of distractions.  But when they're up against their fathers perceived failures, there's a whole other world of pressure they don't need. 

Failure is part of it. Learning from failure is the key. Don't let their fathers lives unfairly define them. Especially when Koby Clemens and Cutter Dykstra are proving their worth.

Royals Farm Stocked With Potential

Though the Twins and Indians dominate the AL Central, there are players on the horizon that could mean a more exciting and interesting future for the Royals.

Mike Montgomery is the standout going 3-1 with a 2.84 ERA and 52 strikeouts for Northwest Arkansas, splitting his playing time this season between Class-A Wilmington (2-0, 1.09 ERA) and Double-A NW Arkansas. The lefty is the Royals top prospect with strong potential to make his Major League debut in 2011. With him in the rotation, the ambitious, but realistic Royals put themselves in a more competitive position.

Baseball America ranked RHP Aaron Crow 2nd to Montgomery in the Royals system. He was drafted by the Nationals in 2008, but didn't sign, and is getting his work in his first full season at the Double-A level. After playing for the Indy American Association, he was drafted again by the Royals in 2009. This season he's 2-4 with a 4.33 ERA, although he has allowed 26 walks.

They've also got some great hitting talent waiting in the wings. Mike Moustakas is on a Texas League tear right now and proving himself after struggling some in 2009. The 21-year-old has played through pain, to boot. He's been suffering from a mild oblique strain, but that's not stopped the Royals 2007 first round pick. He's hitting .374 with 41 runs knocked in and 17 walks. CF Derrick Robinson has tremendous speed, leading the team with 26 stolen bases. His plate discipline has been questioned, but his current .404 OBP suggests his ability to be patient could be improving. 

Baseball Prospectus named the Royals farm system 10th overall, and with a payroll that puts them in the bottom third of Major League Baseball, those farm hands are crucial to the Royals future hopes.