Buster Posey et al

So, what have we here? I guess most of you would say I'm beating the "Ho Hum Drum" by writing yet another story about yet another up and coming professional baseball player.

Gerald Demp ("Buster") Posey, drafted fifth overall by the San Fransisco Giants in the 2008 Amatuer Draft is certainly another one of the up and coming young pro ballplayers that's worth writing about.

I missed the opportunity to photograph the catcher/first baseman in the 2009 Arizona Fall League, where he played after his stellar college baseball career at Florida State University, which included the Johnny Bench Award and lead to a good year in the Giants minor league system, leading to a brief call up to the big club at the end of the 2009 regular season.

My opportunity to photograph Buster during the 2010 Cactus League Spring Training games was as enjoyable as any other. That shot I took for this article, with him colliding with one of the Giant's infielders (I'm not sure who)while chasing a pop fly was one of my best and it came with good results as the out was recorded.

Beginning the 2010 season at Triple-A Fresno, Buster would soon receive another call to the big leagues on May 29, 2010. Playing first base and getting a hit in nine out of his first ten at bats is just one of the ways he proves that his career is definitly going in the right direction.

Well, a lot has changed recently for our national pastime. Ken Griffey Jr. has called it a career, Jason Heyward is still the top rookie position player, followed closely by Starlin Castro. Mike Leake continues to show dominance on the mound and at bat. Steven Strasburg made a spectacular Major League debut while his Washington Nationals, who once again had the top draft pick, took top prospect Bryce Harper, an up and coming young catcher. I've said it before and I'll say it again: "The best is yet to come."

Sealing the Leake

I once said "I like Ike," so I can also find an appropriate reason to say "I like Mike." That's Mike Leake, a former baseball standout at Arizona State University, in the role of a righthanded pitcher, as well as an infielder/outfielder who is also on the list of the great up and coming ballplayers that I recorded images of with my own cameras over the course of the last few years.

For Mike Leake, being selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the first round of the 2009 amatuer player draft as a pitcher, then going to the 2009 Arizona Fall League and working out with the Reds during 2010 Cactus League Spring Training as a non-roster invitee worked out much better than most had anticipated.

It would earn him a spot on the Reds 25 man roster as the fifth starting pitcher for the Reds, beating out Travis Wood and another highly regarded pitching prospect in Aroldis Chapman, as well as becoming another of many players to make the big league roster without having to play a day in the minor leagues.

I waited quite a while for a chance to watch Leake in action during the regular season and finally got the chance on May 20, 2010, when his Cincinnati Reds were broadcast on Major League Baseball Network for the "Thursday Matinee" game, when the Reds took on the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field in Atlanta that afternoon.

Mike and his team broke out with an 8-0 lead over the Braves by the 2nd inning and he would even help himself out going 2 for 3 at the plate, though not driving in any runs. On the mound, Mike would pitch 6 innings, allowing 5 hits, 1 base on balls and striking out 6 batters.

Despite Mike's good performance, he and the Reds were not able to hold onto their big lead and would lose to the Braves in dramatic fashion in the bottom of the ninth inning. Reds leftfielder Laynce Nix, who had hit a home run to pad his teams lead in the top of the fifth inning, had a high fly ball hit by Brave's pinch-hitter Brooks Conrad bounce off his glove to clear the fence for the game winning grand slam home run. Oddly enough, Reds first baseman Joey Votto also hit a grand slam home run, in the top of the second inning. You don't see two in one game very often these days.

Mike Leake, despite the disappointing loss for his team, was able to show playing prowess in many areas that day, to include at bat and in the field, often looking a lot like the good infielder he was when I saw him during his playing days at Arizona State University. For the Reds he wears jersey number 44, a number more common in baseball with big hitters, Hank Aaron and Reggie (Mr. October) Jackson just to name a few.

With Stephen Strasburg continuing to do well in Triple-A ball in the Washington Nationals organization, as well as Mike's former ASU teammate Ike Davis with the New York Mets, Jason Heyward with the Atlanta Braves, and recently Starlin Castro with the Chicago Cubs, I meant what I said when I mentioned the fact that the race for the NL Rookie of the Year award will be a tight one this season, just like what's expected of the races for playoff spots and division tiles can be.

My hat's off to all the up and coming young players who are on the verge of making good names for themselves and our national pastime. It's going to be an interesting 2010 season in that regard and hopefully, many others. It's still early in the 2010 Major League Baseball season. The best is yet to come.

A Starlin is Born

Here we have again,this time for the Chicago Cubs, another young pro baseball player who's rapidly making his way up the ranks of the ladder of our national pastime, whom I also enjoyed the opportunity to photograph in action during both the 2009 Arizona Fall League and the 2010 Cactus League Spring Training games.

Starlin Castro, like many pro ballplayers of the past, present, and future, (I'm sure) is from the Dominican Republic, born in Monte Christi on March 24, 1990, the same day I was blessed with the daughter (Trenise) that I'd always wanted and now love very much, just as I love the game of baseball.

Starlin performed very well in both the Fall League and Cactus League for the Cubs, earning a spot on the roster of the Tennesee Smokies, the Double-A level minor league team for his parent club.

Starlin's call to his big league club, on May 7, 2010, gave him the distinction of being the first major leaguer born in the 1990's. He would celebrate that occassion with a three-run home run in his debut at-bat, followed later in the game with a three run triple. His 6 RBI's in that game are now a record for a major league debut.

Baseball America is calling Starlin the Chicago Cubs best prospect for 2010 and his fielding capabilities, with the possibility of a gold glove in the future, would be the eventual icing on the cake of his playing career.

The competition for the 2010 National League Rookie of the Year award may be a little stiffer than some of us first thought.Starlin, along with Jason Heyward, Ike Davis, and maybe even Stephen Strasburg, may take the race for that distinction right down to the wire, just like some races for playoff spots, division titles, etc. often go.

As for the Chicago Cubs, the addition of Starlin Castro may send them on the right path to break that World Series curse, maybe not anytime soon, but hopefully sometime in my lifetime.

Even Stephen

Stesphen Strasburg is another strong up and coming professional baseball player who's well on his way to the big show.

The number one overall pick of the 2009 Major League Baseball amatuer draft this right-handed pitcher had a memorable collegiate career at San Diego State University, under head coach and former major leaguer, now hall of famer Tony Gwynn.

His strong showing came in his sophomore and junior seasons with ERA's of less than 2.00 along with more than 100 strikeouts in less than 100 innings pitched. Stephen seemed unhittable at times with a fastball in the vicinity of 100 miles per hour and a curveball in the 80 mile an hour range on the mound for the Aztecs.

After being drafted number one by the Washington Nationals Stephen pitched a one-hitter vs. the Netherelands at the 2008 Olympic games in Bejhing for team USA and would soon make his pro baseball debut for the Phoenix Desert Dogs of the Arizona Fall League.

I had a nice time photographing Stephen in action during the Fall League season and was glad to hear that he would be assigned to the Double-A level Harrisburg Senators to begin his minor league stint in the Washington Nationals organization.

On May 4, 2010 Stephen was promoted to the Triple-A level Syracuse Chiefs, pitching six innings in his first start, striking out six, allowing only one hit and one base on balls.

Most people in the game predict his major league debut sometime this Summer, perhaps as early as June. Wether that happens or not, I see a great career ahead for the prospect named #1 by Baseball America for 2010.

K.J. Bowen

It's been a great opportunity I've had for the last two years, photographing the up and coming young atheletes at Peoria High School, but there weren't too many that were better than the 2009 season and senior wide receiver Keith (K.J.) Bowen Jr.

Week after week, K.J. was one of the players that I found being the subject of a lot of the good photo galleries featuring himself and his team during his final season of playing football for his Peoria High School Panthers. His style of play, both pass receiving as well as ball carrying gave me the feeling he had a chance to go a long way in this game.

A good player and a well mannered young man as I remember the game at Saguaro High School in Scottsdale on September 17, 2009. Sometime during that game, in the first half if I remember correctly, K.J. hurtled out of bounds, narrowly mising me, but knocking over a female photographer on the sideline, even delaying the game just out of personal concern for her. As I remember, she was slightly bruised, but OK.

K.J. would continue his superb performance during the course of the next month, giving me the chance to record some of the best images of a young athelete that I've ever gotten to this day. These images I have in my PC files and hope to preserve for a lifetime.

On April 19, 2010 K.J. was thrown another superb pass, this one not from his own team quarterback in Caleb Gillespie, but from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. K.J. caught that pass and took a long and final run to the goal line of the heavenly body. Our Heavenly Father stood up and raised both arms to signal the touchdown.

My heart will always be heavy for this young man and my thoughts and prayer will always be with his family and friends. Like everyone else, I can only wonder what could've been. His eye from above will always be on all of us just as my eye and camera will alway be on the talented young athletes like the one he was. K.J., thank you so much for the great opportunity. You will be missed.

I Like Ike!

That may sound like a campaign slogan for President Eisenhower from a few generations ago, but it's for another up and coming Major League Baseball player that I've been watching for the last few years, even before he turned pro.

My first sighting of Ike Davis came while he was playing college baseball at Arizona State University a few years ago, playing not only his most familiar first base, but pitching and outfield as well.

As a first baseman, where I saw Ike most often, as well as where he's playing at the start of his pro career, he looked a lot like a Mark Grace prototype in the making, with a slick glove and other superb defensive skills on the field. Ike is also a pure hitter, who looks like he could hit for good power and average combined. Ike was drafted by the New York Mets in 2008 after his junior year at Arizona State.

Ike is also a second generation player as his father, Ron Davis, was a relif pitcher, playing most of his career with the New York Yankees and Minnesota Twins, with stops in Los Angeles and San Francisco toward the end of his career.

Ike played in the 2009 Arizona Fall League, where I continued to follow him with my cameras and like Jason Heyward, whom I also photographed in the Fall League, he moved rather quickly through the New York Mets minor league system.

It was great to hear the news that Ike's contract was purchased by the NY Mets from his Triple-A Buffalo Bisons on April 19, 2010 and that he was able to arrive at Citi Field in Flushing, NY in time for that evenings game.

Ike got a two base hits in his Major League debut, the second of which resulted in his first Major League RBI and he put some good fielding in at first base to top it all off. That ball and broken bat that were part of his first Major League hit, in his first major League at bat, will look good in his trophy case.

The icing on Ike's cake came on April 23, 2010, vs. the Atlanta Braves at Citi Field when he hit his first Major League home run, a 450 foot shot over the head of the Braves rightfielder and fellow rookie sensation Jason Heyward, adding some slick fielding with his glove as well. Is there a Gold Glove in his future, a la Mark Grace? It was great that the ball Ike hit for his first home run was retrieved for his trophy case as well.

That was an unusual game in many ways, to include two young rookie sensations going up against one another. I'm glad I've gotten to watch both Ike and Jason and record digital images of these sensational young ballplayers. Maybe the two of them will put up a race for the National League Rookie-of-the-year award that is just as interesting as some division title races have been.

True Blue Blood

Since making the move to Los Angeles in the summer of 1969, there was nothing I liked better than Los Angeles Dodger's baseball, and yes, there was no better place to watch baseball than Dodger Stadium.

During all those great years of watching our national pastime at Chavez Ravine, there couldn't have been a better Major League manager than Tommy Lasorda. Since taking the reins from Walter Alston in 1976, there was no statement that Tommy could've made better than: "I bleed Dodger Blue!"

The "Ambassador of Baseball" guided his "Blue Crew" to eight division tiles, four National League pennants and two World Series titles during his hall of fame managerial tenure and holds the distinction of one of, if not the longest tenure as a manager of one major league team, leading him to a much deserved spot in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

With all that enthusiazim and excitement that Lasorda brought to the Dodger team and organization as a whole, I know for a fact that he will go down in the history books as one of the best in his postion. He treated his players--well, let's say he loved them like his own sons. The whole Dodger organization has been his second family for more than 60 years.

It was so pleasing for me to see Mr. Lasorda, as I often feel I should call him, up close again at the Dodgers Spring Training facility, Camelback Ranch Stadium, in Glendale Arizona this year. He looks as good as ever, even in his advancing age.

That was a repeat in history of sorts as the Dodger's current manager, Joe Torre, was the manager of the Atlanta Braves back in the 1980's timeframe, when I was living and working in that city, which at the time the Braves were geographically nonsensably one of the Dodgers division rivals in the NL West. Did I hear someone say that Joe Torre is also an actor and comedian in Los Angeles? No, that's Joe "Torry," notice the difference in the spelling of the last name.

It's been quite a while since I last saw the whole Dodger team up close and in person. I don't know what it is about those home white uniforms, but they've always looked whiter than most whites. Snow white, bleached white, whatever you want to call the "Dodger Home Whites," they're like no other and some players have a way of looking so distinctive while wearing them.

Some of Tommy Lasorda's former players have gone on to big league managerial careers themselves. Two of them, in the names of Dusty Baker and Mike Sciocia even went head to head with each other in the 2002 World Series, with Sciocia's Angels winning over Dusty and the Giant's.

Now that the Dodgers an Angels both represent "Los Angeles" and wear the rival colors (red and blue) it's time to start thinking of the possibility of a "Freeway" World Series. As is the case with the Chicago Cubs winning the Fall Classic, I hope the Freeway Series will take place sometime in my lifetime, and Tommy Lasordas too.