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2002 season September 29, 2002
The six Arizona Fall League teams began workouts over the weekend in preparation for this Tuesday's season opening three games. While not all players have reported to their AFL teams, with several dozen still finishing the major league season with their parent organizations, upwards of 20 players per team were on hand for the daily informal drills. Among the early players reporting to camp are highly rated prospects Rocco Baldelli (Devil Rays - OF), Choo Freeman (Rockies - OF), Ken Harvey (Royals - 1B), Chad Tracy (Diamondbacks - 3B) and Jerome Williams (Giants - P). Williams is a late addition to the Grand Canyon roster. Other players reportedly coming to Arizona (although not yet confirmed) are Marcus Thames (Yankees - OF), Adrian Hernandez (Yankees - P) and J.J. Hardy (Brewers - SS). Marlins' top-rated first base prospect Adrian Gonzalez has apparently been scratched from the Mesa roster.
While the players need the workouts to get back in shape since the minor league season ended nearly a month ago, the six managers and 12 coaches assigned to the Arizona Fall League face the difficult task of familiarizing themselves with not only the six players from their own parent club, but also those from the other four organizations making up each AFL team. "The aspect of this league is that you have four other organizations that you're involved with," said Grand Canyon Rafters' manager Lenn Sakata. "You try to see how those players develop, too." While this unique element of the Arizona Fall League makes it a challenge for the managers and coaches, they also find it rewarding and a good career-enhancing opportunity.
Sakata, a former major league infielder who in 2002 managed the Giant's AAA team in Fresno, continued, "Each player brings with them their organizational philosophies; sometimes you're learning from them as well. It's a good experience." Mesa Solar Sox hitting coach Leon "Bull" Durham agreed with Sakata's assessment. "If I've got a guy that really takes off as far as becoming able to get established or to get an idea, then maybe he'll take that back to his organization and talk to their hitting coach," commented Durham about working with batters from other teams. The former starting first baseman for the Chicago Cubs, now in his second stint as a coach in the Arizona Fall League, hopes to use this experience to further his coaching career.
"First and foremost, I'm here for the young ballplayers," Durham stated. "Second of all, I'd like to accomplish my goal of getting back to the major leagues as a hitting coach, first base coach or whatever ... I know I can handle that level. It's just a matter of getting the opportunity." Durham believes that working with other teams' players could help him eventually land a major league coaching job. He explained, "They may say, 'This is what I did with Bull Durham when I was in the Fall League. I was relaxed with him, he made things simple.' So the word of mouth is better than me trying to advertise myself to get at the major league level." Like Durham, Sakata's number one goal is to help the players prepare for an eventual major league career rather than improving his odds of landing a major league job. He said, "I don't think this is totally about individual accomplishment from a coaching standpoint. We're here to help the kids improve. It's not about us." The 11th season of the Arizona Fall League kicks off this Tuesday with afternoon games at Mesa and Phoenix and a night game at Scottsdale. Play ball! --- Bill Mitchell All photos on the Arizona Fall League Report are credited to Bill Mitchell, unless noted otherwise, and are not to be used for any other purpose without express permission.
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