Baseball in Fort Wayne

Jose Lobaton Makes MLB Debut, Plays at Second

2009-07-06T01:37:00Z

Wow. This has got to be up there in terms of the strangest of MLB debut scenarios for former Fort Wayne Wizards. Catcher, Jose Lobaton was called up from Triple-A Portland due to Henry Blano being inured. For those following at home, the Padres primary catcher is former WizardJose Lobaton, who is also on the DL. Lobaton’s debut comes one year and one day after Hundley’s.

But here’s where it gets strange. Having played the catcher position throughout his entire eight season minor league career, Lobaton entered the game at second base, having lost David Eckstein due to injure in the twelfth inning. The play involving Eckstein ended the bottom of the twefth, so Lobaton entered at second in the top of the thirteenth. Los Angeles would score in that inning. Former Wizard Kyle Blanks struck out to make the third out in the bottom of the inning and Lobaton therefore did not get an at-bat.

With the Wizards in 2006, Lobaton hit .279 with 17 hits in 61 at bats. Over 20 games, he collected three doubles, one homer and 11 runs batted in. He also drew 12 bases on balls. He’s got a great arm, handles the staff well and tends to hit in streaks (ending his Wizards run with an eight game hitting streak). He also appeared in 9 games with the Wizards the year before.

Lobaton is the 82nd former Wizards to make his MLB debut and hte sixth this season. In case you are wondering, we are one ahead of last year’s record-setting pace.

John Grantham, Wildcat Magnate Passes

2009-07-04T00:56:38Z

I’m a little slow in getting to this – and the public calling has passed – but I would be remiss to not post. John S. Grantham Sr. who served as president of the Wildcat Baseball League for 42 years until 2007, has passed away. He was 74 years old.

Grantham was instrumental in getting Sports Illustrated to publish an article on the league and NBC Nightly News to feature the organization on its broadcast, Derbyshire said.

“He was always promoting Wildcat baseball, its value, its worth to the community, to the kids, to the parents,” Derbyshire said.

Grantham also taught at Kekionga Middle School for four years and at Jefferson Middle School for 13 years. He retired in 1991 after being at North Side High School for 11 years, where he served as an administrator, counselor and assistant athletic director.

Grantham was bestowed a number of awards, including the Summit Athletic Conference Coaches Award; the Charles W. Wilt Sr. Memorial Award; the Hilliard Gates Lifetime Achievement Award; and Indiana’s highest civilian award, the Sagamore of the Wabash.

Former Fort Wayne Mayor Paul Helmke honored Grantham’s commitment to the youth of Fort Wayne and he was inducted into the Fort Wayne Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998 and into the Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame in 2001.

Memorials may be made to the Allen County SPCA. or SCAN.

BallParks.Com Reviews Parkview Field

2009-06-29T00:48:51Z

This has already been mentioned on AroundFortWayne and WhatsGoingDown(Town), but as I catch up with life, I feel it’s worth mentioning here: BallParks.Com recently reviewed Fort Wayne’s Parkview Field. And this is more than your standard fare. They go deep, taking a look at the park’s setting, exterior, design, parking, admittance cost, food and much, much more. In addition, there are many photos. Do yourself a favor and check it out.

This Week on Talkin Sports

2009-06-27T03:15:44Z

Tune in to Talkin’ Sports Saturday morning at 9:00 as we’ll be talking with Lifetime Sports Academy’s Tom Hogan..

We’ll also check in with TinCaps President Mike Nutter for our weekly segment as the TinCaps begin 2nd half play.

We’ll be naming our PSI/One Eleven Design Athlete of the Week in the 4th Quarter of the show.

Any athlete (youth, adult, high school, collegiate, neighbor) can be a PSI/One Eleven Design Athlete of the Week. Nominations for the PSI/One Eleven Design Athlete of the Week can be submitted to this e-mail address or: wkjg1380@yahoo.com.

Have an idea for a show topic or local guest? Let us know.

Tune in Saturday mornings at 9 for Talkin’ Sports on WKJG-ESPN Radio 1380. Talkin’ Sports is brought to you each week by: INdigital Telecom, Perfection Bakeries/Aunt Millie’s, Wise Insurance, PSI/One Eleven Design and Kraft Foods.

Talkin’ Sports. Local Guests. Local Topics. Local Opinion.

Two Fort Wayne Alumni, Parker, Heading to Futures Game

2009-06-26T02:31:35Z

Two TinCaps/Wizards alumni were selected Monday to play in the Futures Game, which annually showcases the top prospects in all of Minor League Baseball. Right-hander, Mat Latos and outfielder Luis Durango are headed to Busch Stadium in St. Louis for the game which pits the top prospects from the United States against Team World, the best from across the rest of the globe

Latos played for the TinCaps earlier this season and breezed through the Midwest League. In four appearances with Fort Wayne this year, Latos went 3-0 with a 0.36 ERA, striking out 27 with just three walks in 25.1 innings. He has continued his dominance with the Double-A San Antonio Missions, where he is 4-1 with a 2.18 ERA in six starts and was also selected to play in the league’s All-Star Game. He sparked the Missions to a first-half division championship as they won 12 of 15 to charge into first place at the end of the half. Latos, a Florida native, will play for Team USA.

Durango, 23, is also a Texas League All-Star with San Antonio, batting .299 with 26 stolen bases and 46 runs scored in 68 games. Mostly deployed as a leadoff man, Durango played for Fort Wayne last year and hit .305 with a home run and 14 stolen bases in 93 games. Durango will play for Team World representing his homeland of Panama. He also played for Team Panama in this spring’s World Baseball Classic and went 3-for-5 at the plate.

“This is a testament to the type of talent we’ve had here in Fort Wayne over the last few years,” TinCaps president Mike Nutter said. “We thought Mat and Luis were on their way to becoming stars at the game’s highest level, and playing in the Futures Game only validates that thought.”

Fort Wayne native, Jarrod Paker, will pitch for Team USA in the Futures Game. The 20-year old right-handed Parker is 4-3 with a 3.04 ERA in 10 starts with the Mobile Bay Bears this season. He’s third on the club with 49 strikeouts in 47.1 innings.

Named as the number one prospect in the D-backs’ organization by Baseball America in the offseason, Parker was 1-0 with a 0.95 ERA in four starts at Visalia before his call-up to Mobile.

The 11th Annual XM All-Star Futures Game will be shown live on MLB.TV, ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD on Sunday, July 12 at 1 p.m.

Fort Wayne Represents Well in MWL All-Star Game

2009-06-24T03:48:26Z

The Fort Wayne TinCaps had six players invited to the MidWest League All-Star Game. Catcher Sawyer Carroll, infielder James Darnell, rigt-handers Anthony Bass and Brad Brach as well as lefty Zach Herr were on the winning Eastern Division roster tonight in the game played in Clinton Iowa. Jaff Decker had been invited after South Bend outfielder Brendan Duffy was promoted to Advanced-A Visalia, but Decker’s trip to the disabled list prohibited him from participating.

Carroll was awarded the Star of Stars Award after going 4-for-4 with two stolen bases and a run scored. Anthony Bass picked up the win. Over one inning, he struck out two while giving up one hit and a walk.

Darnell had a double, a walk and an RBI. Herr pitched a third of an inning and walked one. Brach also pitched a third of an inning. He gave up one hit and struck out one.

Note to Readers: Possible Downtime Coming

2009-06-20T13:55:05Z

For many reasons that I will not go into detail, I wanted to provide readers with advance notice that I am going to be pulling this blog completely off-line in the very near future so I can do some significant cleanup before bringing it back. My goal is to get this all down in a relatively short window of time, but anything can happen.

Additionally, my intent is to update the look to something more consistent with hw the site has evolved over the years. You’ll probably see more of a “magazine” look and feel when it returns. Obviously, I do not know how this will impact RSS feeds and the like. If you are a subscriber, you may see hundreds of new posts when I do bring it back on-line. I really don’t know.

I apologize to you in advance for any confusion and inconvenience this might cause you. Thanks for your patience and support.

Kyle Blanks MLB Debut

2009-06-20T13:50:43Z

Former Wizards first baseman and designated hitter, Kyle Blanks because the fifth former Wizard on the season to make his Major League debut last night. He is the the eighty-first overall.

Blanks entered the game in the bottom of the ninth as a pinch hitter for another former Wizard, Mike Ekstrom. Blanks struck out looking.

Kyle Blanks Promoted to MLB

2009-06-19T21:47:59Z

According to Baseball America:

Baseball America has learned the Padres have promoted their No. 1 prospect, first baseman/left fielder Kyle Blanks, to the big leagues. A corresponding move regarding the 40-man roster was not yet announced.

Blanks, 22, was hitting .283/.393/.485 at Triple-A Portland in the Pacific Coast League, with 12 home runs, nine doubles and 38 RBIs. The 6-foot-6, 285-pounder has shifted in part to left field this season, playing parts of 15 games in left while still primarily playing first base.

From MLB.com:

Blanks, a first baseman and outfielder with Triple-A Portland, is expected to have his contract purchased by the Padres on Friday when he will be added to the 40-man roster.

The left-handed-heavy Padres open a three-game series against the Oakland A’s on Friday and will be facing three lefty starting pitchers in the series. The Padres are hitting .215 as a team against left-handers this season.

Blanks, the Padres 2008 Minor League Player of the Year and Texas League Player of the Year, is a right-handed hitter and was hitting .283 with 12 home runs and 38 RBIs for Portland.

More Blog Chatter:

The Callup: Kyle Blanks (FantasyBaseball365)
Matsui, Ortiz expected to lose at-bats (ESPN)
Hot Prospect: Kyle Blanks (Advanced Fantasy Baseball)

Related BBIFW Posts:

San Diego Padres Host Open Tryout at Parkview Field

2009-06-19T21:28:11Z

High School and College players invited to Parkview Field to be evaluated by Major League Baseball personnel

The San Diego Padres will be hosting an Open Tryout at Parkview Field, home of the Fort Wayne TinCaps, on Tuesday, July 21st. Registration will begin at 9:00am at Parkview Field and the tryout will begin promptly at 10:00am. Attendees are encouraged to use the south entrance, located on the corner of Ewing and Brackenridge. Free parking is available in the team’s Silver Lot, located just south of Parkview Field.

Undrafted high school juniors through college seniors, between the ages of 15 and 21, are invited to showcase their skills and talents at the tryout camp conducted by area scouts of the Padres organization.

“We receive quite a few questions about people wanting to try out for the TinCaps team,” said TinCaps Team President, Mike Nutter. “We explain that all of the players on the TinCaps team have either been drafted, or signed as free agents, by the San Diego Padres. That’s one of the benefits of being affiliated with a Major League team, they have a full staff of evaluators and scouts watching players across the entire country to provide the talent on the field in Fort Wayne, Indiana.”

“What the Padres offer with this Open Tryout is the opportunity for local players to showcase their skills. The personnel that will be at Parkview Field evaluating talent have seen the best high school and college players in this area for years. This Open Tryout is an opportunity for the Padres to get another look at local talent and it is also a chance for players in this area to showcase their abilities and receive some constructive feedback. There’s never a guarantee of being signed, but there’s a chance and that’s all I think most players are looking for.”

Scouting officials and personnel directors of the Padres system will handle the entire tryout camp. No player signing decisions will be made by the Fort Wayne TinCaps organization.

Players are not required to pre-register for the open tryout through the Fort Wayne TinCaps. All players under the age of 18 will need to have their approved registration waivers signed by a parent or legal guardian. Players trying out will need to bring the following items – uniforms, gloves, shoes and/or cleats, and if needed, catching equipment. All baseballs, wood bats and batting helmets will be provided.