Random Thoughts

Time for a few random thoughts.

The Giants have signed their first rounder in Heliot Ramos with a slot value bonus of 3.1 million, and the Pirates signed Shane Baz fairly quickly to a slightly over slot bonus of 4.1 million,but the Indians have yet to sign Quentin Holmes,their first pick (2nd round) as of now.

Ramos was expected to be a relatively easy sign,but Baz was reported to be a tougher sell on the Pirates with a strong commitment to TCU and I'm a little surprised that it took just 800,000 over slot to land Baz and to do so well before the signing deadline.
Good for the Pirates for landing Baz,who was regarded as the hardest thrower among high school pitchers in the draft.
I haven't heard any rumors on Holmes and the Indians coming to an agreement or not.
Holmes has a college commitment to Mississippi State.

I'm not against the Houston Rockets move to challenge the Golden State Warriors by obtaining Chris Paul from the Clippers for a collection of odd parts and a first round draft pick,but as someone that has liked Chris Paul since his Wake Forest days,I have to question Paul for wanting to leave just two years after his meeting that ended with Paul,Blake Griffin (soon to be leaving as well) and others begging DeAndre Jordan to stay in Los Angeles rather than stick with an agreed to,but not signed contract with Dallas.
For the Rockets-I still think they are one player away from seriously pushing the Warriors even with Paul,while the Clippers may be at the end of their modest fringe contender status.
Unless the hated Sam Dekker can do as well on the court as well as he did in his love life...

Was asked recently about two recurring features on the blog and if they will be returning.
On the signing front will be around on an occasional basis,but especially as part of the road trip features and the PPM will be back again in late August with the start of the college season.
Who will be this years "host"? I have a few candidates in mind.
Previous hosts have been Heather Cox (ESPN now NBC),Jessica Korda (LPGA),Christi Paul (CNN) and last year Molly McGrath (ESPN) for two months before being replaced by Legate Damar of Star Trek fame.

Also was asked my opinion on the Tim Tebow promotion.
I think it's a joke.
Nothing wrong with minor league baseball being entertaining and I get that fans want to come out and meet Tebow,but for a 29 year old batting .220 in the SAL to get a promotion,couldn't teams draw a big house for a Tebow appearance rather than this exhibition on the field?
Tebow has handled this situation with grace,but he has to know what this truly is...

Wrapping up with thoughts on the release of Cubs catcher Miguel Montero one night after throwing pitcher Jake Arrietta under the bus for the Washington Nationals stealing seven bases against the battery Tuesday night.
Do I feel that Montero was totally wrong?
No,but you have to know your place in the pecking order and platooning catcher ranks far below top of the rotation pitcher.
Sometimes,people need to realize that they might not be wrong,but the prudent thing is try to grit your way through without making it easy for the team/employer to move you alone...

Tebow Mania is Runnin' Wild

I wanted to write a little about Tim Tebow mania in Hagerstown,but allow me to preface this with that I was only there for one night.
Cherie and Rachel were there for another day while I was on my whirlwind four games in two days tour of North Carolina.
That recap will dribble out over the next week as things slow down (baseball wise) and I return to work along with several posts from the knee-deep pile of the inbox that needs cleaning...

I have to be really honest (ever notice how that is used? Like I don't use brutal honesty here any other time) here-I thought the Hagerstown Suns did a pretty good job in keeping things in order as much as possible.
My expectations for the series were very low,I've been critical of the Suns,the city of Hagerstown (responsible for stadium maintenance) in the past and present for botching so many various issues.
However,I try to be straight up and I thought the Suns made themselves look credible in the eyes of the attendees.
They had security that was visible,but not obtrusive,they brought food trucks in,so the service could be upgraded in order to keep food lines moving,they were fair to the graphers and allowed them to stand down the line and try to graph,even with the seats being sold,until the fans in those seats arrived,which was very fair of them (I wish they would do more of that on other days,but I digress) and whether it was the team or the city-the hideous board that stuck up and caused me to fall had been replaced.
Not a bad job at all.

As far Tim Tebow goes,I didn't really have much interaction with him.
I didn't try before the game,I just sat above the fray with Fred Landucci and watched.
After the game,I went to the parking lot to try to get him for Rachel (a big fan) on his book and the bus was surrounded by a portable gate.
Tebow did sign,but signed at another part of the gate-breaks of the game and he did sign,so just one of those things.

Wrapping up,I do have a few thoughts on this mess that is Tebow Mania.
First-I have just one problem with this whole thing,mainly that Tebow's attempt knocked two guys down a level and likely one lost a job for a lark.
However,Tim Tebow has done some good for the SAL and the teams in it as they are making a lot of money off his visits-money that could keep a team like Hagerstown afloat for a little bit,but more importantly give a town a chance to see what fun at the ballpark can be.

I get Tim Tebow wanting to try and I get teams being more than happy to make money off the attempt,but where does it stop?
Would it be just as fair to see more athletes from others sports try? Any singers or actors?
I'm sure one could find someone that could make just as much dough by appearing in the Hagerstown's of the minors.

Jason LaCanfora (normally a football writer) writes far better than I about Tebow's visit to Hagerstown here.

I'll be back plenty over the next few days.
I have game three of the suddenly tedious NBA finals (missed game two while on the road),notes from said road and all those inbox notes!

Tebow Time

Today's the day that many in town have been looking forward to and the day that graphers have been fearing-Tim Tebow and the Columbia Fireflies are headed towards the Muni.

Now,I'm sure the Hagerstown Suns are thrilled as they'll be drawing the type of crowds not seen in Hagerstown in years,but this could be a double edged sword for people that have not been to Municipal Stadium in years.
The Suns are getting a four game chance to expose their product to fans that they (past management teams included) have lost and to people that have never sampled minor league baseball and it'll be interesting to see how they handle this opportunity.
I would hope that the "staples" of entertainment of late get shelved,but it'll be interesting to see what the Suns sell to attempt to hook the crowd in order to get them to return.

It'll be a tough sell with a stadium best described as old yet charmless without almost any modern amenities at all,but not one insurmountable,if  things don't go over the top,
One of the things that I always thought that the Mandalay group did wrong during their run in Hagerstown was the mentality of "hey,kids let's put on a show" with too much dancing and worrying too much about the entertainment side of things.
What I like about the Frederick Keys and the Harrisburg Senators as far as the in between innings entertainment is that it doesn't happen in every inning and when they do,they manage to do it at a sound that can distract if you wish,but can be ignored easily as well.
I'm hoping that the Suns use a similar plan and use a low key manner that gives the fan the option of enjoy or ignore.

As for Tim Tebow,I'm not really interested in him.
Nothing against the former quarterback,but I wasn't a fan (I didn't think he was anywhere near an average NFL quarterback) or a hater (he seems like a nice guy that needs to stick to what he's good at-football commentating on the SEC network),so not collecting current football cards,this is an annoyance more than anything because it is going to be difficult to do what I normally do-graph the rest of the team.
Tim Tebow is certainly the draw,it'll be interesting to see just how the fans root-you have to figure Tebow will get lots of cheers,but will the fans coming to see him root for Hagerstown,Columbia or could care less and just cheer Tebow?

This weekend could show one more thing that could be unexpected-if all goes well and if enough people have a good time and want to come to more games,this might show once and for all,that if Hagerstown wants minor league baseball,that Municipal Stadium needs a massive overhaul at minimum and a new stadium at maximum.
My fear is that the stadium might be the big downside to the weekend as fans see just how inadequate the Muni is.
Will that be the crushing blow towards the future of baseball as fans refuse to enter a downtrodden facility?
Or could it be the first step in a new facility as people finally realize just how decrepit things have become and begin the drumbeat to give the Suns and the SAL the stadium we deserve?

It'll be an interesting weekend for sure and the pressure is on so many to produce a good outcome-few of those are on the field playing the game.