AFL Impressions

As I sit here in the airport eating a rather bland turkey sandwich, I had a few moments in which to detail a few of the more interesting tidbits that I was exposed to while in Arizona for the yearly Arizona Fall League.

The biggest disappointment of the trip was not getting a chance to see Stephen Strasburg throw a couple of innings. He was supposed to pitch in the Rising Stars Game, but he came up with some mysterious neck issue that kept him out of the contest (he should return to action before the AFL season ends). Maybe he hurt himself getting a tan at the pool.

I could work with one of the best crews in the business if you just read their work. When you get a chance to spend time with them, you realize that not only are they braniacs in the world of sports, they are great people as well. Good stuff.

Jemile Weeks is listed at 5’10″. He is lucky if he is 5’8″. Reminds me a lot of Chone Figgins with his size and approach.

I know they say Buster Posey is old enough to drink, but I swear the guy looks like he could be the kid in the Jerry Maguire movie – minus the glasses of course.

Grant Desme may have set the AFL on fire with his stretch of 10 bombs in 10 games, but he didn’t impress me at all at the dish. Gotta say as well that his arm is a mystery. On Friday he two-hopped the infielders on a couple of throws, though on Saturday night at the Stars’ game he unleashed a powerful toss to nail a runner that had me second guessing my initial impression.

Domonic Brown has got that tall lanky body that will lend itself to comparisons with a guy like Chris Young. While he may have that kind of all-around talent, he needs to add about 20 pounds to his frame while at the same time learning to keep his balance at the dish. He was all over the place with his cuts.

Tanner Scheppers brings the cheese. He has an odd set position on the mound where he starts in almost a sprinters type setup in the blocks in the 100-meter dash. No matter how he starts out, that is one electric arm.

Mike Moustakas has what was called by fellow Fanball employee Ted Carlson a “Royals’ body.” It worked out for Billy Butler, but for a guy who was drafted as a shortstop I just don’t get it. That lower half of his is straight out of the catcher’s handbook. He didn’t impress me at all.

Josh Fields doesn’t cast a large shadow with his size, but he looked pretty darn sharp attacking hitters in the contest.

Ike Davis may be a first round pick, but he has a long ways to go. He drops his hands about 12 inches as he enters the “launch position” which would seem to leave him terribly vulnerable to high heat and anything off-speed. He also has an odd throwing motion, albeit a smooth one, where he hooks his hand as he takes it back ala Barry Zito.

Dustin Ackley didn’t make much of an impression, but he clearly has the look of a big leaguer – sooner rather than later.

And finally, the future might be bright for the Reds. Chris Heisey looked sharp while Yonder Alfonso was hitting like it was an arcade game.

No telling just how many of these fellas will make their mark in the bigs, but it was nice to see the young talent that will likely be gracing ball fields in the majors for years to come.

By Ray Flowers

Livin’ the Life

I wake up everyday, alright maybe not everyday but most days, and think to myself ‘I wish I could sleep for another half hour’ followed by ‘what am I gonna eat for breakfast?’ Unlike millions of people, I don’t ever have the thought cross my mind that, crap, I have to go to work today. Why is that? Well it’s because I have a wonderful job, that’s why.

As part of my job for Fanball, I’m heavily involved in helping the team put together the myriad of magazines that we put out for football, baseball and basketball (I’m trying to convince the “powers that be” to do a hockey one too for those of you that are fans of the ice). To that end, when the calendar roles around to November that means it’s Arizona time. Why Arizona? The staff gets together, spends all day working, diligently mind you, putting together our multiple baseball magazines and our strategy for in-season baseball coverage. We also try and catch a few Arizona Fall League games at night, and all the while sprinkle in some fun and general merriment. So as we prepare for Arizona this weekend, here are some of the things that I’m looking forward to.

(1) Seeing Stephen Strasberg pitch. After all, the guy is supposed to be the second coming, and I’d love to see that after studying theology in school (what, you thought I was just some meathead?). I touched on he magnificence of Strasberg the other day in The More Things Change. You can also read Seth Trachtman’s blog on Strasberg for some additional thoughts on the man with the gifted right arm.

(2) Speaking of Mr. Trachtman, if you haven’t heard the guy is one hell of an athlete. If you run into him on the street ask him to demonstrate his amazing kicking ability. He’ll know what you mean. Can’t wait to get a gander at that kicking action in Arizona.

(3) I gotta see this Grant Desme character swing the lumber. A farmhand of the Athletics, Desme had a terrific season hitting .288 with 31 homers and 89 RBI in 486 at-bats. If that wasn’t enough of an effort to garner some serious interest, how about his amazing work in 17 games in the Arizona Fall League: .386 average, .857 SLG and a 1.320 OPS. How has he produced those numbers? How about on the back of an astounding total of 10 homers in 17 games. Looking forward to seeing that power stroke.

(4) I’m looking forward to getting a few laps in at the pool. We might be knee deep in fall if you look at the calendar, but it’s still 90 degrees in Arizona, so don’t think I’m gonna miss the chance to flaunt this sublimely toned body of mine for all the ladies poolside. Oh, don’t think it will be all exercise either. After swimming those laps I’m pretty certain I’ll find someplace that offers fruity drinks, preferably those with the little umbrellas, and pull back on a couple of them.

(5) I’m fairly certain we will be doing a few mock drafts for the magazines, and I gotta tell you all that the best part of my job just might be getting the chance to do copious amounts of drafts. Nothing beats the rush of the clock running down to your selection as the anticipation builds as you draw ever closer to rostering that “sleeper” candidate that you are certain will make your team a winner. OK, there are a few things that might beat it for sheer thrills – something that combines fruity drinks and a workout with a beautiful woman certainly would – but it’s still great fun.

So there it is, my rough approximation of what the next five days will be like. Don’t worry, we’ll all police each other and make sure that no one ends up in the clink, and despite what will certainly be some truly funny moments, don’t think for a moment that you could ever find a group of guys who are more dedicated to their craft than our assorted cast of characters. We’ll manage to get plenty of work done for sure, and those of you who are looking for something to read in front of the fireplace come the holidays, rest assured you will be mighty thankful when our first baseball magazine hits the newsstands in December – even if some of the work was done while I was sipping a pina colada poolside.

By Ray Flowers