One month

Over a month ago, I posted my last blog. I know. Sad.

Anyways, back at it today.

In the past 43 days since I've been home I have=

Ran stairs 16 times
Long tossed 14 times
played catch / flat ground bullpen 11 times
Sprinted 10 times
New "White Rock Run" 6 times

All of that has me down 15.5 pounds, so I guess an average of about a 1/3 of a pound a day loss. That's not the most important thing though. I feel a lot more energy, and my body (mostly my legs) have gotten a lot stronger, and I can tell already. I am happy to be in this shape at this point in my winter workout. 43 days down and about 70 left until I head back down south for spring training. This will the most important month of baseball in my life. I am going to battle everyday for over a month to claim a spot on a minor league team with the Toronto Blue Jays. Last year, they started me right away in double A... This year, assuming the Jays still have plans to keep me around, I will have to earn a spot in spring training. This is what I am getting ready for.

Other things I've been keeping busy with=

Seeing many close friends of whom I don't get to see for 9 months out of the year.
Pitching lessons part time (21 hours a week)
Not blogging
Hanging out and helping the folks around the house
Watching hockey
Walking the dogs / Hanging out with the sister

Well, time for December, hope you are all ready. It's about to get cold here in Vancouver for a while. To me, this is bitter sweet, it'll be dry so working out is possible, but it'll be cold, so I better get sweating fast!

Until next time.

Interesting Question

Asonas, Good question, I will answer that when I get some time again behind the computer. Question is published in the comment section a couple posts down.

The Slider

I've been asked recently about my slider, how I throw it, how I locate it, and basically how do I make it work. I want to get one thing straight first though, the slider shouldn't be taught to any children below the age of 12-13. The did studies on it and have proved that the younger a kid tries throwing curve balls and sliders, the higher the possibility of them hurting their arm with it, or later on in their career. So, no 9 year olds are allowed to throw sliders yet... that's my own personal blog rule I just made up, so... don't break the rules!

The most important thing about sliders that I have figured just in the past 2 years is this. When you bring the ball up behind your body, you need to make sure that the arm does not cross behind your body. If it does, the arm won't be up to the power position on time and you will have a loopy Frisbee slider. The grip is also a key, you want to make sure that the last finger to touch the ball (in the sliders case it will be the index finger) is on a seam to make sure you get that last release with the proper spin. The slider is the breaking pitch that is thrown the most like a fastball. When I'm doing clinics these days, and teaching breaking pitches (sliders, curve balls) I remind the pitchers to think 'fastball' until the very end right when you are leaving the power position, then slider, which is when you are to have fastball arm speed when you release the breaking pitch. These are all mechanics that require precise timing, which is brought on by doing the action over and over and over, lots of repetitions.

All in all, the slider can be a go to pitch, a strike out pitch, a setup pitch. It all depends on how it moves, and once you figure that out, then how you move it.

Back in the Rock

Well I'm back.

I'm settled in somewhat back at home here in White Rock, BC. I arrived Saturday, to being picked up by my wonderful sister, who ended up taking me back to White Rock so that we could hang out some. So, that we did. Enjoyed meeting a new family member, lil' Chip. He's an awesome dog of whom I hope to share many pictures and videos of once I figure out how to load stuff on a MAC, or get the wireless going.

Started my workouts 3 days ago. After taking 2 complete weeks off while in New Mexico while enjoying my time with my wonderful wife, I have just started my winter training, It will last until spring training begins in March. So killing my legs the first day were inevitable; I took it easy on the legs though, just a few laps of a soccer field. Got the arm going twice already, it feels good and after 80 throws its feeling pretty good on its day off today.

The house is pretty quiet with me being the only soul within it. I'm house sitting right now for my folks until they get back from Europe where they are having the time of their lives.

Well not much to blog about recently, anyone got any Q's?

Aliens everywhere...

Shorty and I drove from Tulsa to Vancouver last year at about this time of year. Before we left we mapped out our trip, we marked down the cities, and sights we really wanted to see that were along our route. We were able to stop by every place we planned on except for one. That was Roswell, New Mexico. It was about 4 hours out of the way, not counting how long we would be there checking stuff out. For those of you who don't know, Roswell is world renowned for being the city where the most alien activity has been reported. From area 51 (a government restricted area) to all of the sightings and claimed alien abductions, Roswell is the extra terrestrial hot spot of North America.

So Shorty and I stopped on the way back from El Paso to Portales, we stayed the night in a little cheap-ass Days Inn so that we didn't have to make the 2 hour drive home that night, then back out the next morning. We awoke around 9, just in time to take advantage of the hotels little breakfast, and then head across the road to Starbucks for a little wake up juice. Around 11 we proceeded to head down to the "Alien strip", from the 1st to the 5th blocks of Main street in Roswell and checked out the situation. It was cheesy, and pretty much what we expected. A bunch of souvenir shops and little cafes, and the UFO museum. We paid our $5 each, and took the tour of the museum, they have all kinds of articles, pictures, here say, stories and movies. It was, well, interesting to say the least, not saying it swayed me to believe that they landed here, but gives you something to think about that's for sure.

We were glad after that we didn't go waaaay out of our way last year just to do this little trip, but we are glad we can check Roswell off of our list of places to visit!

2009 MLB playoffs

Well the division series are over, and the league championship series are about to begin. So far, every team that I was even remotely rooting for has fallen. Boooo... I've either watched, or listened on XM radio to all the games. They have been excellent playoffs so far, with some awesome games. Here's my take and a look back at the division series.

Yankees vs. Twins = I was rooting for the Twins because I tend to go for the underdogs, and Bert Blyleven (my pitching coach with NL) is their announcer. It was rough, the Twins squeaked in after beating Detroit in game 163, then just like had happened in every single game all season against the Yanks, they were ahead at some point in each game, and lost every game. It was so tough for them to get runs, and the yanks would come back every time so easily. Yanks look strong.

Red Sox vs. Angels = Red Sox were dead in this years playoffs, just seemed to have no energy in their dugout. Not to take anything away from the Angels pitchers, who did a hell of a job. Their always solid closer Jon Papelbon had a horrific outing in their last game also which didn't help. The Sox should definitely have had game 3 being up 6-1 at one point, but the pen blew it, just proving further that they didn't deserve it this season.

Rockies vs. Phillies = The only series to go more than the minimum 3 games, the Rockies put up a solid fight against the defending world champs, blowing the last 2 games in the 9th inning because their always reliable closer Huston Street had a very rough series. Tough time to be cold for a closer, but it happens, and unfortunately it cost the Rockies. I wrote a blog a few back about Colorado's game 3 starter.

Dodgers vs. Cardinals = Another sweep, some more great games. Down to their last strike in game 2 and down 2-1 the dropped fly ball by Cards left fielder proved very costly as the Dodgers rallied for the 3-2 walk off win, putting them up 2 game to none. That was the turning point, and the Cards couldn't come back in game 3 sending the Dodgers onto the NLCS.

Previews of the ALCS & NLCS...

Yankees vs. Angels = If the Angels pitching can continue it's dominance, it may have a chance to silence the all star lineup that the Yanks boast. Arod has quickly shaken off his reputation as a choke artist in the playoffs by hitting 2 pivotal bombs and knocking in 6 in the ALDS, if he stays hot, and Jeter and Damon get on base once in a while for him, they will be dangerous.

Dodgers vs. Phillies = The Phillies are coming into this series very hot. After some amazing games against the Rockies, and their whole lineup being fairly hot, their closer Lidge throwing well they are dangerous. I think the Dodgers need to play near perfect baseball, Manny needs to be Manny to be able to knock off the defending champions.

This past weekend...

I followed Shorty and her team down to El Paso, Texas this past weekend to take in her coaching for the first time ever. She was great. Being an assistant coach, the coach designated her as the first base coach, and she has a lot of leeway to do what she can to help out with the team, defensively, offensively and in base running. She knows a lot about softball, and I mean a lot, coaching is what she was groomed to do. She has played under some of the best coaches in the nation, including 2 years of college ball under the legendary coach Dicus when he was still a softball coach at Seminole State College.

They played a D1 school and lost 2 fairly close games on Saturday, but Sunday they crushed the local Junior College team twice. It was about 90 degrees (32 Celsius) down there, and very enjoyable to sit and watch some fairly solid softball. Obviously, for them, this is only fall ball, so they do have a lot to work on, but like Shorty keeps telling me, and I see, they have a lot of potential, and could possibly be a very big surprise team not only in their conference, but in the nation. The team has only 15 players, and are led by 7 seniors, and interestingly over the past 4 years, the program has had 4 different coaches. I have the feeling the staff they have right now will stick around at least a couple years, I know Shorty will be there for 2 years before getting her masters in sports science.

Anywho, I followed the team on the 5 hour excursion from the little city of Portales, NM down through a little mountain range, and right on into southwest Texas, where El Paso sits. The city lies right on the Rio Grande, the Mexican border. We would have made a little trip across the border just to say I had been to yet another country (Shorty's already been there) but she didn't bring her passport, so maybe next time. We drove along the highway that is literally 100 feet off the border. It was interesting to look across into Mexico, at all the little shanties and shacks they live in, they overall quality of the land and roads compared to what we were driving on and through in El Paso. It was a fun little trip, and shorty was able to drive back with me after the games, so we could check out the malls in El Paso, something I wasn't pumped for obviously (I have a strong hate for malls these days, they always seem to turn into spending time and money), but Shorty didn't get anything, actually I was the one that ended up picking up a shirt and shorts... dangit.

We have pics, and I'll add them to the computer later on tonight and post some on here when I can. Well, we headed home Sunday night, and made a little pit stop for the night which I'll write my next blog about.

Jason Hammel and our TVCC roots...

My college team mate Jason Hammel is starting for the Colorado Rockies in a big game 3 against the Phillies on Saturday. The Rockies and Phillies are all tied up at 1 game a piece in the best of 5 series, so game 3 is a big one. Rockies manager Jim Tracy had no question in his mind that he would start Hammel over 15 game winner Jason Marquis. Hammel had a good year in his first year with the Rockies. He was traded to the Colorado the day before the season started this year from the Tampa Bay Rays, who he has been in and out of the rotation with for the past 3 years after being their minor league pitcher of the year in 2006.

Hammel and I went to Junior College in the tiny city of Ontario, Oregon together at Treasure Valley Community College. Back in 2002 we were 2 of the 4 weekend starters in the SWAC (Scenic West Athletic Conference) Junior College conference for the 'Chukars'. That was an interesting year. Our offence battled injuries and a severe lack of power, batting a league (and probably national) low of .193, with 1 home run, all year. Yes, 1 home run, all year. We had a solid pitching staff of 8 guys, 3 sophomore starters all throwing in the low 90's, and me, a 6'6", 185 pound freshman throwing 82-84 MPH. The pitching stats we're interesting that year. I remember Hammel finished the season 4-7 with a 5.07 era and was drafted by the Devil Rays in the 10th round because he sat 93-95 with a filthy curve. I was 1-7 with a 3.69 era that year, relying on location and mixing up speeds.

Don't let him fool you tomorrow, even though he will obviously be in his game day mindset, he's a goofy fella. See if you can see his feet, he has size 9 shoes... which is about 3-4 sizes to small for a 6'6" guy. He was a great mentor to me while we were at TVCC. I looked up to him as a player and a person who I wanted to be like. I even imitated his mechanics to an extent the next year in college bumping my fastball up about 6 MPH. He was one of the positives in my first year out of high school, always being positive and helpful to me. It's no surprise he is where he's at as a big league starter, and in the playoffs now. I wish I had some pictures of us from that year, I would put some up here for sure, not from any of our ridiculous small baseball + softball party nights, but of us working our asses off, doing hours and hours of pitching drills, painting the fence and bleachers at the field, selling oranges as a fundraiser or hanging out in the dorms... damn that was a crazy learning experience of a year. I was lucky enough to be player to present him with a plaque at the end of the year as he was one of the graduating sophomores moving on to a D1 school (even though he signed a couple weeks later).

Here's to hoping he dominates the former world champs, doesn't hang any pitches, and keeps the ball in on Ryan Howard...

ps- I just read that Pedro Martinez will be going for the Phillies.He was my childhood idol, and a guy I was fortunate enough to chat with during the WBC. Should be a great game to watch.

Joe inquired=

I love your posts about what life was like living with your fellow pitchers this season. I'm curious now, what was life like on the road? Living in hotels, transportation to road games in places far away like Akron, if you have free time and what you do in it?Also, what is it like having basically a revolving door at the bullpen with guys going up and coming down? Do you keep in touch with guys like Zep and Bubbie or is it more of a temporary bond you all share?

I actually wasn't part of the trip to Akron, as that never ending drive happened to fit in over the 3 week period I was in Dunedin, too bad. Other road trips are all basically the same. On the road the average day goes like this= After a typical 10-11 am wake up, you head to an eatery establishment (usually the hotels are right across from malls, making the food court a tempting place to eat with many choices). After a lunch, back to the hotel, chill for a while then head off the the field to prepare for the game. Usually 11 pm is about the time we would arrive back at whatever hotel we were staying in, so about an hour or two, talk to the loved ones and off to sleep. I think I may have written a blog somewhere throughout the season about our normal day game schedule. It shouldn't be tough to find, because I slacked most of the year on the blog and only posted about 3 a month.

About the revolving door in the bullpen question, it's hard to say. I've never been a part of a pitching staff that was like this before. I take it it's like this every year, with every team, but it's just something to get used to I guess. I tried to get along with everyone as much as I could while they were there, you never know when someone is going to be moving. There were some moves we saw coming, and some moves that really caught us off guard. Yes, you make the most of the relationships you have while you have them, hang out with the guys that are around when they are around, that's all you can do. For some of the guys, the friends are temporary. I do talk to Zep still, we were roommates both in Manchester, and on the road for the first couple of months until I got moved. He's a great guy with a great arm, and I expect to see him on TV for a while to come. I have also stayed in contact with most of my roommates from the reliever house also we had some good times.

Playoff baseball

Is there anything better? I would have to say march madness in college basketball is about as close as it comes, but still can't touch the allure and enchantment that the MLB playoffs bring to the table.

Alright, so weather wise, no, October sucks pretty much everywhere. It rains about 29 of 31 days in Vancouver, same for Holland. Here in New Mexico it went from 30 to about 13 degrees in a matter of 30 minutes today, then started pouring. But all this is made bearable because yesterday kicked off this years playoffs, 8 teams all competing for the crown of World Series Champion. There have already been 5 games, and I'm listening to #6 on my headphones in the library right now. The mystique of baseball in October is what draws me to watch the games. Every game is put under the spotlight, every player is bigger than life. Heroes are born, and a great game can either make or break a city and a region.

Today the Cardinals lost in the bottom of the 9th with 2 out on a dropped line drive by the left fielder, he is now the goat of the entire Midwest because they had the game in the bag... until the ball hit him in the sack (literally). Every pitch is important, and it's real baseball; seldom do you see a blowout at this stage of the season. I try and watch as many games as I possibly can, because until they have a 12 month season in the majors (which won't ever happen) this is the last baseball I can see for about 4 months (which is a long time when you're in love with the game the way I am). I am a visual learner, and learn a great deal just by watching some pitchers, how they throw, what they throw in what counts, locations, movement and plenty more. I have been able to watch the World Series with my dad for the past few years, which is great because we both share the same love for the game, and talk strategy the whole game. I've even made a fan out of my wife over the past few years. She enjoys watching the games and has a very healthy respect for the players and the game (especially the close ones). Oh, and she can name off almost every single Red Sox over the past 5 years... That's right, she's part of the Red Sox nation.

I have no predictions, I have a couple of favorites, but I mainly root for close games, and long series'. Enjoy the playoffs...