The minor league baseball season starts for the Boise Hawks tonight. You can hear all of the games with Mike Safford on 1350 the Ticket. If you are like most fans you'll go to the game and just enjoy it and not no much about the players that are taking the field. As someone who has announced minor league baseball in the past, I know every one of those players has a story. Something that makes them interesting.
Some of the stories are of players trying to reinvent themselves. Hawks opening night starter James Pugliese had a less than stellar year last year at 1-5 with a 5.37 ERA. He didn't get promoted to long season A ball and remained in extended spring training. He completely changed his mechanics and is hoping that will be his ticket to improvement.
Outfielder Shawon Dunston, Jr., also had a difficult year in 2012 for the Hawks, batting just .185. The son of the former major league shortstop by the same name said he has worked on his maturity, saying he didn't handle the adversity well. He's all of 20 now and is hoping that will make the difference.
If you travel with the team you'll get to know them as individuals. The last time I called minor league baseball, we had a lefthanded pitcher, who graduated from Yale that deferred med school to give baseball a chance. My guess is he is a doctor by now. Another player was released at the end of the season and ended up coaching high school baseball in Louisiana. And one of the pitchers married a local girl and stayed in the town and now runs an automobile dealerships. Most of the players you will see will not make the majors. Some won't make it until the end of the season.
The Theo Epstein regime took over the Cubs last season and this season there is a new director of player development in Brandon Hyde. Hyde has relaxed some rules and the players and coaches seem pleased. Facial hair, as long as it is neat, is ok now. They also can wear their pants long. These are things that the young players feel more comfortable with, You will notice these things when you come to the ball park.
Last year the Hawks stunk early in the season, then got hot and made it all the way to the championship series. The turnaround was credited to adding Dan Vogelbach, who hit 10 home runs and gave them a presence in the lineup and clubhouse. We'll see as the season unfolds who will the guys who make a difference. The one problem for Boise Hawks fans…you want your players to be good, but not too good that they get promoted.
