RAWHIDE TO BE REPRESENTED AT ALL-STAR WEEKEND

From rawhidebaseball.com:

St. Louis will have some Visalian flavor on July 12th, as current Visalia Rawhide reliever Leyson Septimo and former Rawhide starter Jarrod Parker will both represent the Arizona Diamondbacks at this year’s Futures Game.

The Futures Game is held annually prior to the Major League All-Star Game, and pits top emerging talent from around the Minor Leagues.

Ironically, the dynamic duo will be facing each other, as Parker will pitch for the U.S. team while Septimo will throw for the World squad.

Pitching for Visalia this season, Septimo has improved dramatically from last year’s ERA of 5.29. The hard-throwing southpaw is having a terrific 2009 season for the Rawhide with a 2-0 record and a 2.70 ERA, and opponents are hitting just .184 against him.

Parker was briefly with the Rawhide at the start of the season. The 2007 1st Round draft pick dazzled crowds in just 4 starts in a Rawhide uniform. Before being promoted up to AA Mobile, the right hander had a b0.95 ERA, with opponents hitting just .179 against him.

The Futures game rosters were selected by a combined effort of Major League Baseball, the Major League Baseball Scouting Bureau, MLB.com, Baseball America, USA Baseball, and the 30 Major League Baseball Clubs. There are representatives of each Major League team and the World team features players from 11 different countries and territories.

The 11th edition of the Futures Game will be broadcast on MLB.tv, ESPN2 and ESPN2HD at 2 p.m. ET.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to our RSS feed!

REC PARK LOVE

Ballpark Digest, one of the leading connoisseurs of professional baseball facilities, gave the newly renovated Recreation Ballpark high praise in a feature article earlier today.

“It has taken the better part of two years…for the extreme makeover of Recreation Park to be complete,” BD’s John Moist said. “It was worth the wait.”

Calling the ballpark “The Wrigley Field of the Cal League,” Moist goes on to give high marks to all aspects of the new stadium. You can read the full review here:

http://ballparkdigest.com/visits/index.html?article_id=1518

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to our RSS feed!

THE PRICE IS RIGHT

There have been two constants for the Rawhide so far this season; winning and the Price family.

By Megan Poindexter
VSP Senior Writer-

VISALIA-John and Norma Price have been married for 54 years and one thing that has never changed in their relationship is their love and passion for not only each other, but for baseball.

The two hold the title for the biggest Visalia Rawhide fans, earning ‘Fans of the Year’ honors for the commitment to the team last season. As a result, they received a three day trip paid for by the franchise to watch the Arizona Diamondbacks at spring training.

For the last 16 years they have come to nearly every home baseball game to keep score.

And guess what?

They keep score just for fun, not to get paid big bucks but just out of pure love for America’s national pastime.

“We’ve been sports fans all our lives,” said Norma. “It’s just amazing to see what has been done here after all these years.”

Both have become even more dedicated fans since their retirements, and their loyalty has, and will forever remain with the Diamondbacks Single ‘A’ team in Visalia. For over 11 years, the Prices’ have housed the team’s players and families and have since continued to follow their careers.

“Shawn Green is the last guy we had stay at our home,” said John, who taught at Redwood High School for 38 years before retiring. “It’s been really neat watching his career.”

For almost his entire tenure at Redwood John coached the J.V. baseball team, while Norma, who worked the Tulare County Office of Education for 19 years, was the scorekeeper.

Baseball has served as a common ground for these Visalia residents, and is finally growing thanks to the recent renovations to Recreation Ballpark. The 63-year-old park now seats 1,800 people, but on opening day it was forced to standing room only with over 2,600 in attendance.

“This has been a long time coming and I didn’t think it was ever going to happen,” said John. “But it is a great thing for the city of Visalia.”

Sunday afternoon the trend continued as the stadium wasn’t sold out, but definitely had more than the average of 300 people for a day game.

In addition to new stadium seating there is plenty of grass area with picnic tables and newly remodeled restrooms and ticket offices. Players now have a 3,500 square foot clubhouse alongside new grass throughout the entire field. But possibly the best renovation is the addition of a new concessions stands and a souvenir store on located on the right side of the stadium.

And while the stadium means a great deal to local baseball fans, it has the potential to uplift a city looking to update its’ image.

“With the new renovations to the ballpark this has to be the number one spot to be on game day,” said Norma.

She couldn’t have said it better.

THIS AND THAT: The Rawhide improved to 11-1 this season with a 9-7 win over the Bakersfield Blaze. Sean Coughlin hit a two-run homer and scored twice. Reliever Tom Layne got the win and Jeff Dietz recorded his fourth save of the season. Dietz has yet to allow a run. Visalia hosts the Blaze for two more games; tonight at 7:05 and Wednesday at 1:05. After Wednesday, they will not play at home until May 1.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to our RSS feed!

RAWHIDE IMPROVE TO 6-0

Collin Cowgill homers for the second straight game; home opener Thursday.

By George Takata
VSP Senior Writer-

The Visalia Rawhide haven’t even played their home opener yet, but they’re one win away from a 7-0 start.

Outfielder Collin Cowgill homered for the second straight game and Bryan Shaw allowed just one run in five innings in Visalia’s 4-1 win at Rancho Cucamonga. Ed Easley drove in a pair with a run scoring single in the eighth to give Visalia some breathing room.

Jeff Dietz pitched two innings for his third save of the season. He hasn’t allowed a run in 4.2 innings.

The Rawhide play at Rancho Cucamonga tonight before their home opener Thursday night at 7:05 against the Modesto Nuts at Recreation Park.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to our RSS feed!

RAWHIDE’S GOT RAW TALENT

The 2009 season starts tonight in Lake Elsinore with big leaguer Max Scherzer on the mound.

By Andrew Marden
VSP Senior Writer

VISALIA, Calif- Another year, another crop of fresh-faced, eager-eyed youths with the optimism that they can do no wrong.

That’s single-A baseball for you.

And that’s exactly what second-year manager Mike Bell notices about his players.

“Guys on this team have a ton of energy and it’s kind of spreading throughout the clubhouse,” smiles the son of former major leaguer Buddy Bell. “I just think the excitement of the players and the energy that they have is our biggest plus.”

Of the 25 players on this year’s roster, eight saw time in Visalia last season. Of course, the team was known as the “Oaks” in 2008. Now it’s the “Rawhide.”

“I heard there were some mixed emotions early on,” said Bell. “I don’t blame people, I’m a traditionalist too. But I think with the stadium and everything they’ve done here, I think it gives us a fresh look.”

In addition to the new red-and-black color scheme, there’s the barn in right center field (which is in play) as well as a brand-new brick building down the right field line. That houses the new Dugout Club.

“You come down Giddings Street and last year you could almost see all the way to our clubhouse through the field, the structure wasn’t up,” adds Bell. “There’s a lot of excitement with the new facilities and with the hard work they put in.”

Now it’s time for the players to put in their own hard work.

The team arrived in town earlier this week and has a quick turnaround: the season opens Thursday at Lake Elsinore.

“Playing professional baseball is a grind. Every day in, every day out, you just gotta stay positive and stay strong throughout the season,” says outfielder Ollie Linton. “This is my first full season, I’m excited to get it going.”

Adds Bell, “I think everybody’s just excited to come here and play some games that count and start competing.”

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to our RSS feed!

BLADES OF GLORY

Installation of new playing surface begins at Recreation Ballpark

By Donny Baarns
Visalia Rawhide Director of Broadcasting-

With Spring right around the corner, Recreation Ballpark saw an influx of greenery last week, as the installation of a new grass playing surface began.

Crews stripped the old layer of grass, which had been in place for multiple decades, and evened the underlying surface using state-of-the-art laser leveling technology. The process marks the first time that Rec Park has ever been laser leveled.

After multiple days of grading, workers began laying row after row of new turf. With several weeks to take root, the sod will be ready for full action by Opening Day on April 16th.

With the completion of the new playing field, fielders can expect better bounces and a safer surface, which, coupled with Triple-A Tucson’s relocation to Reno, will make Visalia an even more attractive destination for rehabbing Diamondbacks.

The revamped grass is just the latest in a series of improvements bringing Recreation Ballpark in line with MLB facility standards. New clubhouses, lights, bullpens, and dugouts have all been installed over the last three years. These measures were mandatory in order to keep professional baseball in Tulare County.

With new seating areas, new concessions items, new dugouts, and a new grass field, the future of baseball in Visalia now appears secure. Players and fans alike will be thrilled on Opening Day.

Be sure you have your seat for all the action this season! Call 732-HIDE or visit RawhideBaseball.com for more information.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to our RSS feed!