UCSB Will Be Well Represented In Rockville!

The roster for the Rockville Express of the Cal Ripken Sr. League will look a lot like the roster for the University of California at Santa Barbara. There will be four Gauchos on the Rockville Express 2007 roster.

Matt Valaika is an infielder from Valencia, CA. He is currently sporting a .234 batting average with 2 homers and 18 runs batted in.

Mike Zuanich is a 6-4/220 junior outfielder from Torrance, CA. He is currently batting .305 with 2 homers and 25 RBI’s for the Gauchos.

Steve Domecus is a catcher from Novato, CA. He played his 2006 summer ball for the Solano Thunderbirds last season. Currently he is batting .217 with 23 at bats.

Brandt Hill has yet to see action for the Gauchos this season.

TCL Prospect Watch!

As a big fan of the Texas Collegiate League, and as a fan that averages going to 2 games a week, I really enjoy watching for the up and coming prospects in the league. I am looking forward to seeing one such prospect this summer.

Josh Dowdy is one of the star pitchers for the East Carolina University baseball team. Josh will be playing his 2007 summer ball for the Duncanville Deputies this year. Josh played his 06 summer ball for the Gastonia Grizzlies of the Coastal Plain League. So far, Josh is 1-1 with a 2.32 ERA. He has pitched in 42 innings this season.

Duncanville opens it’s 2007 season the road against Wichita Falls.

Great Interview of a Former Woodchuck!

As I get older, I would say that my list of favorite players dwindles every year. Sure, as a Rangers and Red Sox fan, I enjoy watching Micheal Young and Big Papi play, but having a favorite player is not as important to me today as it was when I was younger. All that changed when I first heard about and eventually met Pat Neshek. For those of you who might not be familiar with Pat, he is that pitcher for the Twins that throws a pitch somewhere between a sidearm and submarine pitch. He was lights out in his rookie season last year. He went 4-2 with a 2.19 ERA. He had 53 strikeouts in 37 innings pitched. This is not why he’s my favorite player though.

As an avid baseball card and autograph collector, I appreciate players who realize that the vast majority of people that collect cards and autographs DON’T SELL them on ebay. I grew up collecting with my father, and I am passing on our collection and love for the hobby to my son. I have always found something interesting and neat in having a player sign a card for me. Regardless if he is an established big leaguer or a college prospect. Sadly, this hobby is changing. Players are much more skeptical about signing, and the number of “rude” interactions with players increases every year. A lot of players just don’t want to sign. Which brings me to Pat. He not only LOVES to sign autographs, he collects them. He even runs his own site, where he provides addresses to send him your cards to be signed. He also provides a somewhat in depth look at his life. I’ve been a viewer of his site since he was a AA star. He loves to trade cards as well. I have personally made several trades with Pat.

He made his MLB Debut in Texas last year. My son and I were at the game cheering him on. He signed a couple of cards for us. He is just about the nicest ballplayer out there. In this day and age where most players are “Bigger than the game,” Pat is a breath of fresh air. I wish more players were like Pat.

Pat played summer ball in 2002 for the Wisconsin Woodchucks of the Northwoods league.

Pat was recently interviewed by ESPN. It seems the nation is startig to catch on to him. Read the full article here.