The Alaska Baseball League @ Alaskan-Legacies.com

Boston skipper gets two years added on to end of current deal
By Maureen Mullen / Special to MLB.com

FORT MYERS, Fla. — The Red Sox announced Tuesday that they have agreed to terms with manager Terry Francona on a two-year contract extension which will carry Francona through the 2008 season.

Francona was in the third year of a three-year deal, with a club option for 2007. The new contract supersedes the option year of the previous pact.

Francona, 46, became the 44th manager of the Red Sox on Dec. 4, 2003. In his first season in the job, he led the team to its first World Series championship since 1918.

In his two years, he has brought the Sox to the postseason both seasons and won at least 95 games both years. He has won more games (193) in his first two years than any other manager in club history. Among managers who have spent more than one season leading the Sox, Francona ranks third in winning percentage at .596.

Francona, who moved with his family to the Boston area in August, addressed his contract status Tuesday morning, before the deal was announced.

“I have not been real shook up about [the lack of a contract extension] all spring, tripping over my front lip over the way the Red Sox treated me,” he said.

Without addressing specifics of the contract — or whether a new contract was in place — Francona said that moving his family to Boston was a big step, and that he was looking for more than a one-year deal.

“If you’re asking me if I want to be part of the solution, I don’t want to be a rental manager. I moved to Boston,” he said. “You take your kids out of school. Part of it’s family. You want to see your kids at night. I did the same thing in Philadelphia [where he managed for four seasons from 1997-2000, compiling a record of 285-363].

“I just think that showing a commitment to the organization is important. Being able to walk in [the office] in the winter even to say hello. I don’t believe in managing and going home. I don’t believe you can do the job correctly and do it any other way.”

Francona said moving to the Boston area was a decision he made with his wife, Jacque, and their four children.

“It was bigger this time than last time [moving to Philadelphia],” he said. “The kids were young and it was the first move. This one, we’ve got kids in high school and you’re asking them to move again. We were unsure how fair it was to the kids. It’s very difficult.”

Financial terms of the contract were not released, but The Providence Journal reported Tuesday that Francona’s salary, with performance bonuses for postseason accomplishments, will be increased dramatically. His previous contract — $1.65 million over three years — was considered to be on the lower end of the pay scale for big-league managers.

“You guys obviously have not seen my wardrobe,” quipped Francona. “There are some things in life I really care about. I want to put my kids through school. If I get my Nikes once a year, they cost about $64. There are other priorities.”

By JEFF MILLER
The Orange County Register

PHOENIX – Jeff Weaver took another step forward Sunday and so did his brother, Jered, but only after rallying.

The younger Weaver missed the Angels’ bus to Tucson for his first spring-training start, against the Chicago White Sox in a split-squad game. After driving himself the two hours to the ballpark there, Jered pitched four scoreless innings.

“He has been in the clubhouse early every day and picked the wrong day to be a couple minutes late,” Jeff said after making his second start, here against Oakland. “I think he knows you can’t do that. We’re all human. I’m sure it’s not something that will happen again.”

Jeff, throwing only fastballs and changeups, allowed three runs and four hits in three innings. Eric Chavez and John Baker homered, as the A’s hit several balls hard.

In his first start last week, Jeff gave up eight runs in 21/3 innings against the San Francisco Giants.

“I felt a lot better today,” Jeff said. “I wasn’t trying to set up hitters. I was just trying to get my arm strength up. Next time, we’ll mix in some other pitches.”

For his younger brother, this first major-league camp has been eventful and not for the best reasons. Last month, the Angels decided not to discipline Jered after learning he had been cited for public intoxication in Long Beach on Feb. 9.

As a No.1 draft choice and $4 million bonus baby, Jered plays under extra scrutiny. He told Manager Mike Scioscia he misread the bus departure time. Jered arrived at Tempe Diablo Stadium 15 minutes after the bus had left.

“There’s always a learning curve with every young player,” Scioscia said. “He’s going through that right now. He’ll be fine.”

Against the White Sox, Jered gave up two hits and two walks and hit one batter. In three appearances this spring, he has allowed two earned runs in 72/3 innings.

With help from his manager and teammates, Astro worked on his swing until he liked the results

By JOSE DE JESUS ORTIZ
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

KISSIMMEE, FLA. - Doubts crept in often for the Astros’ Jason Lane last May as he hit .118 for the month.Finally given an opportunity to solidify his status as a starting major-league outfielder, he began wondering if the second month of the 2005 season would land him back on the bench or even worse, at Class AAA Round Rock. After two months, he was hitting .218 with five home runs and 17 RBIs. That wasn’t the start he envisioned.

Desperate to hit himself out of the slump, Lane tried to compensate by starting his swing early.

Lance Berkman worked on Lane’s confidence by assuring him all players fall into ruts. Astros manager Phil Garner went to work on Lane’s swing. By June, Lane started to regain the righthanded stroke that made him one of the Astros’ most feared sluggers in the second half of the season.

“I certainly didn’t feel at ease or comfortable during that slump,” said Lane, 29, who is entrenched in right field. “I think it was just putting in the extra time and making the adjustments to my swing, shortening things up and having a little bit of success. Right before the All-Star break, a couple weeks before that, I started kind of pulling out of it.

“After the All-Star break, I felt like I had a better idea what I needed to do to be successful at the plate. I think it was a combination. It started by shortening my swing up and getting the bat head into the zone quicker and hitting the ball farther out front.

“As soon as I did that and became quicker, I could see the ball long, which meant that I would not chase as many bad pitches and be more selective. All those things were a snowball effect.”
Figuring it out

Lane hit a respectable .259 with eight homers and 18 RBIs in June and .317 with three homers and 11 RBIs in July. Despite his resurgence in June, he was hitting only .234 (65-for-278) when he headed to the All-Star break.After the break, he hit .305 (73-for-239) to finish the season with a .267 batting average, 26 home runs and 78 RBIs. Despite having 39 fewer at-bats after the All-Star break, his 12 home runs and 38 RBIs after the break were not far off his 14 homers and 40 RBIs from before the break.

“Phil started working with me. I think that helped me the most just because (during a slump) you start second-guessing and wondering what everybody else is thinking,” he said. “Then when the manager takes the time to help you out and give his thoughts on what’s going on and what you might be doing wrong, to work on things with him and for it to turn around, it gave me a lot of confidence. I was like, ‘Hey, he still believes in me.’ ”

Garner isn’t the only one who believes in Lane.

“As a player, I think he’s a guy that wouldn’t surprise me at all if he hits 30 or 40 homers a year,” Berkman said of Lane. “He almost hit 30 last year, and I think that’s going to be some- thing of a standard for him.”

Lane admits thinking he has a better idea of what he’s looking for when he strolls to the plate. He no longer starts his swing early.

He is confident at the plate because he trusts his ability to recognize pitches and lay off bad pitches while waiting for a good pitch to hit.

“At the time I was struggling, I wasn’t getting a good pitch to hit,” he said. “I was kind of swinging at everything and cheating because I didn’t feel I was quick enough. It’s just more of not feeling comfortable.

“You want to do good, so you don’t want to get beat with pitches. You just start things earlier to try to get the bat head out front instead of doing it the right way.”
‘Room for improvement’

With that said, Lane is perhaps his worst critic.Although he was probably the Astros’ most potent bat while they were swept in the World Series, he realizes there’s not much to brag about hitting .222 (4-for-18) with one home run and two RBIs against the Chicago White Sox last October.

“I feel like I have a ton of room for improvement,” he said. “In the second half of the season I feel like I took a good step. I was real happy with my success and my numbers in the second half. But I feel like there was still a lot of improvement (to be made) off that. Even throughout the World Series, there are still things I think about that I could have done better.

“I just expect a lot of myself. I felt like I left a lot out there. It took me longer to adjust than I felt like it should have. I feel I have a lot more potential.”

Astros general manager Tim Purpura isn’t surprised Lane isn’t satisfied with the progress he made last year. Since signing with the Astros in 1999 after he was chosen in the sixth round out of USC, Lane has been one of the top players on his teams throughout the farm system.
Tough on himself

If not for the Astros’ depth in the outfield, Lane might have settled in as a starter in the majors as early as 2002. He finally got his chance last season, and he rebounded in time to solidify his role heading into this season. Now, he wants to take another step.”What I’ve seen from him since the day he walked into the organization, he always set his sights very high,” Purpura said. “Here’s a kid. I shouldn’t say kid. … Here’s a player who was MVP at every level in the minor leagues on his team and always pushed himself harder.

“He was always harder on himself than a lot of guys were on themselves. And because of that, he’s here today and had a great season. He was one player in the minor leagues that you never had to challenge. He was always challenging himself.”

ALAN ESKEW

Associated Press

SURPRISE, Ariz. - Instead of luck making him Kansas City’s starting third baseman, Mark Teahen is counting on something a little more substantial this time around - experience and ability.

One of three players acquired in the trade of Carlos Beltran, Teahen was supposed to spend 2005 gaining much-needed seasoning in the minors. But veteran Chris Truby got hurt in spring training, and fate played its hand, handing the job to a 22-year-old Teahen who really wasn’t ready.

As a rushed-to-the-majors rookie, Teahen hit .246 with seven home runs and 55 RBIs and had an embarrassing 20 errors for a team that lost a major league-worst 106 games.

Now he’s feeling altogether different. He’s ready to take the job on merit.

“I think I learned a lot throughout the year,” Teahen said. “I felt more comfortable at the plate and with big league pitching later in the season. This year is totally different than last year. I came in last year, my first big league camp, trying to figure things out. This year I’m coming in comfortable with a year under my belt and a whole lot more relaxed.”

He said teammate Matt Stairs gave him some hints in the batting cage last season that freed up his swing and allowed him to get “more of my body” into it.

Teahen began 2005 slowly and was put on the disabled list in April with a bad back.

“Obviously, you can’t swing fully if your back is hurting you,” he said. “I’m sure it affected me. Once it felt good, I started feeling more comfortable and confident.”

Teahen, a left-handed hitter, rejects criticism that he lacks power and tries too often to hit to the opposite field.

“When I got drafted, I really didn’t pull the ball at all, so it was valid then,” he said. “This is my fifth (professional) season I’m going into, and I’ve definitely progressed to where I’m hitting the ball to all fields. I feel confident driving the ball everywhere on the field, so I’m not really concerned about it. I know I drive the ball the other way better than some guys, so I might get that label I can’t pull the ball. I think I use the whole field.”

Teahen said he believes he can become a 20-plus home run hitter in the majors.

“I try not to read a lot of things because it might say, `He has no power potential.’ But they don’t know what I really work on at the field or what I do. It is not really that accurate, and I don’t worry about it.

“I know where I was and how far I’ve come. I know just how much further I can go, so I’m not really worried about it. I know it will show up. I know the strides I made last year.”

The Royals are optimistic Teahen will develop into a Gold Glove defender, but he committed 20 errors as a rookie and had a .947 fielding percentage, the worst in the American League for players who played a minimum of 100 games at third. The only third baseman in the AL with more errors was Detroit’s Brandon Inge, who had 152 more chances and three more errors than Teahen.

“I know I need to be more consistent,” he said. “At times last year the game was a little faster than I was used to and I got caught up in it. I know I can make the plays that any third baseman in the big leagues can make.”

Eddie Romero Named WAC Pitcher Of The Week  

This marks the second time the baseball team has received a WAC honor in 2006.  

Having fun with the midnight sun 06/24/2002

By John Stofflet, Evening Magazine What would you do if it didn’t get dark at night? Play 24 hours a day? Well, the folks in Faibanks and the other northern towns in Alaska have a hard time hitting the sack this time of year.

In summer it is light for most of the night and that means you often forgo sleep in favor of having fun.

Imagine a land where the cows dance under a midnight sun, where huge veggies grow, where the ice cream man is out in the middle of the night, and where you golf and bat all night through.

People eagerly march into summer the third week a June.

Fairbanks is only 160 miles from the Arctic Circle and that means it’s more than just home to the northernmost Denny’s in the world. It means, when summer begins on the summer solstice, the sun is out about 22 hours a day, dipping below the horizon for only a couple hours in the middle of the night, creating just sort of a twilight.

We wondered, what it’s like living under a midnight sun. Do these people ever sleep? What happens to their love lives?

The Alaska Goldpanners baseball team and their fans certainly enjoy it.

Every year on the solstice, they play a game that doesn’t get underway until 10 p.m. and lasts as late as 2 a.m. And they don’t even have to turn on the lights.

They’re so used to day games at night, they think it’s funny those of us in the lower 48 find this unusual.

And where else but in Fairbanks would you find a run getting started at 10 p.m. with costumed runners celebrating summer.

Things grow huge up there under the intense sun – 70-pound cabbages, colossal carrots and cauliflower, mushrooms that would send a salad chef searching for a chainsaw.

From the gardens to the greens, there’s plenty of action thanks to the all night sun.

They say you’ll find golfers out here at 4 a.m.

If you do want to snooze and just can’t get used to sleeping while it’s light? Some folks find tin foil to be a good light blocker, but it doesn’t always work.

When you make your living selling ice cream in Alaska, you better believe a sunny summer night is a welcome sight.

About the only place you’ll find things a little quieter during the summer is at the make-out spots where the midnight sun isn’t really your friend.

But when winter does roll around, during the darkest time, it’s night for 22 hours a day.

We also wondered what happens to the crime rate during the light nights of summer. Police in Fairbanks say it doesn’t really change from the dark days of winter.

It’s all about the darkness from here on out.

What? You didn’t know that yesterday was the summer solstice? There wasn’t a festival down there in the lower 48? Ha. You people are missing out. Lucky for me and Eros, our day off happened to be on this most blessed of days. After a very long and slightly traumatizing week (for me, anyway), it was fabulous to have a day to ourselves again. We stole some bikes from the program and rode around town, rummaged through an antique store, saw Mr. & Mrs. Smith (Eros liked it, I thought it a bit lame), showered, and started the midnight sun festivities. Fairbanks has a big festival that goes until midnight, right in the downtown area on the Chena River.

Following is what we ate:
Halibut Thai eggrolls
Locally-made ice cream
Reindeer crepes
Cotton candy
Sugar corn
Lemonade
Bolivian empanadas

I find it neat that some enterprising immigrants have Alaska-ized their native foods. Some locals didn’t take to this well, however. We overheard some people looking at the Bolivian’s empanada trailer say, “What’s that? If I can’t pronounce it, I ain’t gonna eat it.” Clap it out: em-pan-a-da. Geez. It’s not like it’s Yupik or something. (If you can tell me what that is you get a prize).

So we gorged on food, walked around stuffing our faces like big fat slobs, and people-watched. The bellydancers were fabulous and a definite favorite. All in all, it was very pleasant. Crowds here are apparently well-mannered. I didn’t have the urge to trip, smack, or make faces at anyone behind their back. Rare.

So after that we walked to the Midnight Sun baseball game between the Fairbanks Goldpanners and the Omaha Strike Zone (yeah, yeah - that’s their team name. We heard enough heckling at the park by a big Comicbook Store Guy in front of us). The game started at 10:30 and the park was packed. We found a teensy spot of grass behind some old people and staked our claim (pun totally intended - get it? They’re the Goldpanners?). It was quite fun, aside from the old guy getting nailed by a foul ball and bleeding everywhere (also pictured below).

Since I like lists, I will now list the top 5 reasons why a Fairbanks Goldpanners game is MUCH cooler than a Chicago Cubs game:
1) The people there actually know that they’re at a baseball game rather than a frat-party
2) The bathrooms are porto-Johns and are still more sanitary than the Wrigley flushables
3) I didn’t see one person on a cellphone
4) No trixies
5) The beers are $2 - $2!!!

So that was the solstice. It would be nice if it were that cool everywhere.

http://takuganartok.blogspot.com/2005_06_01_takuganartok_archive.html

Bret Boone finished his 14-year career with 252 home runs and 1,021 RBIs. (Elaine Thompson/AP)

PEORIA, Ariz. — News of Bret Boone’s retirement swept through the Mariners’ Spring Training clubhouse and was met with varying reactions. But the one conclusion everyone seemed to come to was that a great career has ended.There was shock, expressed in one case by outfielder Raul Ibanez, who didn’t find out about it until reporters told him. Ibanez asked, “Are you serious?” a few times before contemplating the situation in silence, then collecting himself and answering questions.

There was acceptance, evident in the face of first baseman Richie Sexson, who said he speaks to Boone every day and knew about Boone’s decision after a three-hour conversation Tuesday night.

Most of all, there was nostalgic and inevitable laughter from the veterans who were asked to recount memories of the confident, unflappable, sarcastic and super-competitive former teammate who called himself “The Boone” and made himself a fixture at second base in Seattle from 1992-1993 and 2001-2005.

“He was one of the best in the game,” Sexson said. “Look at his career numbers and he’s right up there in some good company.”

Boone, 37, called it quits while in the midst of trying to make the New York Mets as a non-roster invitee. Sexson said he believed Boone’s decision had something to do with the fact that the father of Boone’s wife, Suzi, recently suffered a stroke.

“He said he was hitting the ball the other way and doing some of the things he used to do,” Sexson said. “But some things are more important in life, and family’s definitely one of those things.”

Boone finished his 14-year career with a .266 batting average, four Gold Gloves, two Silver Slugger awards, 1,775 hits, 252 home runs and 1,021 RBIs in 1,780 games for the Mariners, Cincinnati Reds, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres and Minnesota Twins.

“Something I’ve loved my whole life has become a major, major job for me,” Boone said. “I don’t think it would be fair for me or fair to the Mets to continue something I’ve loved my whole life and had so much passion for, and all of a sudden that passion isn’t there anymore.”

Mariners manager Mike Hargrove said he wasn’t surprised by the decision — Boone struggled early last year and was traded to Minnesota, where he struggled even more — but was upset by it nonetheless.

“It’s a sad day,” Hargrove said. “But he should be proud. He’s had a career a lot of people would love to have. … He’s a smart guy with a lot of pride and it’s never an easy decision.”

Most of the Mariners chose not to dwell on the depressing part of Boone’s retirement.

Closer Eddie Guardado, the former Twin, got a laugh out of remembering a game when Boone swung at one of Guardado’s filthiest split-fingered fastballs and practically picked it clean off the Metrodome turf for an impossible double.

“I asked him how in the [world] he hit that pitch,” Guardado said. “And he said, ‘Sometimes Boone hits those pitches.’”

And now that Boone won’t hit anymore of those pitches, his place in history should be given its due, Guardado said.

“Everything comes to an end,” Guardado said.

“But I think he had a great career.”

Greg Dobbs hit .321 with three homers and 22 RBIs in 50 games at Tacoma in 2005. (Jim Bryant/AP)

PEORIA, Ariz. — In the winter of 2004, Greg Dobbs could have sat at home in Southern California feeling pretty good about his chances of making the following season’s Mariners as a backup corner infielder.He didn’t, and it turned out to be a good thing.

The team unloaded $114 million on multiyear contracts for slugging first baseman Richie Sexson and third baseman Adrian Beltre, leaving Dobbs with an outside shot at the club that he took advantage of in Spring Training.

This year, Dobbs is even more of a longshot.

He’s 27 years old, he’s not on the 40-man roster anymore, and young hitting prospect Mike Morse has readied himself for more of a utility role, meaning Dobbs might very well start the season in Triple-A Tacoma.

But could that be a good thing, too?

“It might be,” Dobbs says. “The way I look at the whole situation is that it has to be taken in a positive way. If I make the club, great. I want to be a part of the team here, because I think we’re moving in the right direction.

“If I don’t make it, I’ll work hard, hopefully in Tacoma, to be ready if they need me.”

That type of attitude has enabled Dobbs to help the Mariners when he’s gotten the chance.

His stats with Seattle — he hit .246 with one home run and 20 RBIs in 59 games — weren’t great last year, but he had a career-high 10-game hitting streak in September when given the chance to play a lot and had three doubles and five RBIs as a pinch-hitter.

“I feel like I bring something to the team that they can use,” Dobbs says. “I’m a left-handed bat off the bench and I can play good defense.”

Dobbs certainly has so far this spring.

While playing third base in last Saturday’s intrasquad game, Dobbs drew applause across the diamond by bare-handing an excellent bunt by Willie Bloomquist and throwing out the speedy runner at first.

And in Thursday’s charity game against the Padres, Dobbs started at third and made several tough plays look routine.

With Beltre having departed camp to join the Dominican Republic team for the World Baseball Classic, Dobbs has yet another chance to show the Mariners what he can do.

As he says, that’s nothing new.

“This is the situation I’m in every year,” Dobbs says. “It’s always a challenge, and I’m always motivated. You just never know what happens in this game, the way rosters change, the way offseason acquisitions push guys out and move guys around.

“That’s the nature of this business and I understand it. It gives me something to shoot for.”

This year is a bit different, though.

Dobbs was designated for assignment over the winter, cleared waivers and was outrighted to Tacoma, meaning he had to secure a non-roster invitation to be with the club in Spring Training.

If he does start the season on the Triple-A team, he figures to feel pretty comfortable.

Dobbs hit .271 with eight homers and 31 RBIs in 67 games for Tacoma in 2004, then hit .321 with three homers and 22 RBIs in 50 games there last year.

“If I’m in Tacoma, I’ll be able to play every day,” Dobbs says. “I’ll put up numbers down there and I’ll be fresh and prepared to come help this team.”

Hitting coach Jeff Pentland says that’s the outlook Dobbs needs to have.

“Greg’s a solid human being,” Pentland says. “Obviously nobody wants to lose the opportunity to play in the big leagues, but all you can control is what you do on the field and how you handle yourself.

“And he’s battling his butt off for whatever he can come up with.”

With most of the Spring Training schedule ahead of him, Dobbs enters that battle with what he calls a positive frame of mind.

“My situation doesn’t change my focus,” Dobbs says.

“I still think I can play at the big-league level.”

March 1st, 2006

SARASOTA, Fla. - It’s odd to say after the year Rich Aurilia had, but his situation isn’t much clearer this season than it was last.

Last year, Aurilia was given an opportunity to win the shortstop job in spring training.

This year, the Reds haven’t really said what Aurilia is shooting for.

The second-base job is open, but when Reds manager Jerry Narron was asked about it the other day, he mentioned six players - three of whom don’t even play second.Aurilia understands and expects the uncertainty.

“I don’t think they know,” he said. “I’ve played the game long enough to prepare for anything.”

That means the possibility of playing second, third, shortstop and first - even though Aurilia has played only one game at first in his big-league career.

“Do I want to play at one position?” Aurilia said. “Sure. But I’m not going to let ego and pride get in my way.”

Aurilia, 34, is entering his 11th season in the majors. Last year was his best statistically since 2001.

But it was an odd year. Aurilia won the starting shortstop job in the spring. Then he lost it when he went on the disabled list - somewhat reluctantly - with a strained left hamstring May 11. Aurilia was hitting .198 at the time of the injury.

Felipe Lopez took over in Aurilia’s absence and played sensationally - making the All-Star team and having one of the best seasons offensively ever by a Red shortstop.

After Aurilia returned from the DL on May 28, he played extremely well. He hit .306 with 11 home runs and 56 RBI over his last 89 games - making 64 starts at second base, 14 at third base and four at shortstop.

Overall, Aurilia hit .282 with 14 home runs and 68 RBI in 468 at-bats. He led the club with a .343 average with runners in scoring position.

Aurilia, however, was not happy with all the bouncing around, and he made it known at times.

But his play never reflected it. He played nearly flawless defense, wherever he played, and he was among the most productive players offensively over the last 4½ months of the season.

“Whether you’re happy or unhappy, you’ve got to go out and perform no matter what’s going on,” Reds manager Jerry Narron said. “That’s what separates pros from the other guys. It’s easier to play when everything in your life is going well.”

Narron made it clear he wanted Aurilia back as soon as he had the interim tag taken off his manager title.

“Richie knows how to play the game,” Narron said. “He’s an intelligent player. I like players like Richie.”

Narron would not, however, promise Aurilia an everyday position. That’s why Aurilia didn’t sign with the Reds until Jan. 24 - the last day he could.

Aurilia would like a shot at winning the second-base job. Tony Womack and Ryan Freel will tell you the same thing.

Narron would not handicap the race in any way.

“He’s not tipping his hand to me,” Aurilia said. “Healthy competition can be good.”

Aurilia is the Reds’ backup plan if Edwin Encarnacion struggles at third base.