This year’s Cardinals took the field Friday night following a day of pictures, opening ceremonies, and a parade.  The first Friday of the CMWS is a grind, and unprepared teams who happen to draw a Friday evening game always get trounced for not managing the day properly.  The host team has no excuse for this since they know exactly what to expect and rarely plays poorly on Friday night when they draw that game.  This Friday Dominic Moreno will take the ball, and he is no stranger to either the CMWS or opening ceremonies prior to a big start.  The annual Knothole Day event includes the last regular season meeting between rivals Farmington High and Piedra Vista High as well as the FABC opening ceremonies for the 12 and under age groups.

For the FHS and PV players, that typically means standing in line and high-fiving each of several hundred players as they run across the diamond at Ricketts.  It can take over an hour and has a way of delaying the game a couple of hours.  Moreno threw the Knothole Game in 2011 and won, so he’s dealt with distractions before and succeeded in doing so.  Dominic has had a stellar career here in Farmington, and, if Friday night is his last start at Ricketts, he will be remembered fondly.  Moreno was also a member of the 2010 Cards and started their 4^th round game against the Arizona Firebirds.  While he took the loss that night, he threw well enough to keep the game tight and flashed the quality stuff that ultimately led to his signing at Howard College in Big Spring, TX, one of the finest JUCO programs in the United States.

Moreno was not the only standout pitcher on the Cards CMWS roster, a staff that will go down as the finest a host team has ever produced.  Led by pitching coach and manager Griffin Phelps, the Cards’ Series staff also included Jake McCasland who was drafted by the Giants in the 38^th round and later offered second round money, which Jake turned down to attend UNM where he collected 15 starts as a true freshman.  The staff also included Eli Freese who signed at UNM out of FHS before transferring to NMJC where he threw 53 innings before injury ended his season.  Tim Bailey also attended UNM in 2011 and tossed 53.2 innings following a terrific relief appearance against the Firebirds after Dominic left the game.  Freese and Bailey both posted ERA’s in the 4.50 realm and both were considered weekend starters.  Adrian Houser, a regional pickup, won a state title in Oklahoma in 2011 after signing at the University of Oklahoma.  That commitment never materialized, however, as Houser was drafted by the Astros in the 2^nd round of June’s draft and signed a week or so later.  Houser currently has a 4.33 ERA in 6 professional starts and has a very bright future in front of him.  Joining the Cards out of the 2010 South Plains regional was Philip Wilson, who had a nice relief outing against DBAT in the third round.  Wilson is back for the 2011 Series and is projected to start the Cards 2^nd game.  Philip is signed at Oral Roberts and, with three effective pitches and quality command of all three, should be one of the better freshmen arms in the Big XII.  The Cardinals staff also had a strong lefty presence in 2010 with Robbie Ingram from Flagstaff, AZ.  Ingram started against DBAT and had a solid outing in a game the Cards eventually lost in large part due to not producing enough offense against Archie Bradley (7^th overall to the DBacks), a common problem nationwide.  Ingram pitched for Yavapai College in 2011 and was drafted in the 45^th round by the Pirates in June.  Starting catcher and 2-way standout and starting catcher, Andrew Castillo, did not step onto the CMWS mound, but he certainly was a huge reason they were there in the first place.  Castillo spent 2010 with Eastern Arizona, but was injured early on after a hot start as a 2-way guy.  Rounding out the staff were Castillo’s teammate at Eastern Arizona Jesus Carlos, Durango’s Austin Rochford (Trinidad State), and Shiprock’s Bryce Rockwell, the first Shiprock player to ever appear on a CMWS roster.

It’s not so much that this staff had more upside than other staffs individually.  For instance, the 2002 Sky Sox had Danny Ray Herrera who has reached the Big Leagues.  The 2003 host team, the Farmington Virus, featured Mike Dunn who is currently setting up for the Marlins.  Josh Karp (Bandits, 2008) was a first-rounder and tossed a shutout against East Cobb for Christ’s sake.  It was that the Cardinal staff had remarkable depth.  The Cards had 6 guys who had reached 90 mph, 4 guys who were 6’4” or taller, quality secondary offerings, good command, multiple draft picks and D1 signees, and past success against good opponents.  Their staff was very capable of getting the best hitters in the United States out consistently.  The CMWS is won and lost largely on the mound, and 2011’s Cardinals pitchers have big shoes to fill.  It’s a blessing to have players like Moreno and Wilson to hand the ball to at the beginning of the game who know what the CMWS stage is like, and we at the Sombrero are psyched to see how they do their second time around.

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Last year’s Connie Mack World Series featured perhaps the finest collection of amateur pitching the tournament has ever featured.  This group of horses included Lucas Jackson of the Florida Legends (Rangers-supplemental round, 2010), Jake McCasland of the Strike Zone Cardinals (UNM, offered and turned down 2^nd round money), Adrian Houser of the Strike Zone Cardinals (Astros-2^nd round, 2011), Dylan Bundy of the DBAT Mustangs (Orioles-4^th overall, 2011), Dillon Howard of Midland (Indians-2^nd round, 2011), Archie Bradley of DBAT (Diamondbacks-7^th overall, 2011), and Daniel Norris of the East Cobb Yankees (Blue Jays-2^nd round, 2011).  Last year’s pitcher heavy CMWS produced plenty of low-scoring games and a disproportionately high amount of strikeouts.  It was very exciting as a coach and fan to witness these talented arms knowing that a finer group of prep pitchers had likely never been in Farmington before.  Which players have the highest ceiling at this year’s CMWS?

As mentioned previously, the Legends return with new management and a new financial situation, but the talent level is still through the roof led by Albert Almora and David Thompson, both 2012 HS grads and both committed to Miami.  Almora is an easy plus hitter with terrific speed and an arm capable of a RF job professionally, where his foot speed will play up a bit.  Almora has a projectable frame and enough loft in his swing currently to hit for plus power in the future.  Long story short, I highly doubt he falls out of the first round come June.  Thompson is a tougher player to call because he likely will be a 3B in the pros despite playing a number of innings at both left-side infield spots as a prep player.  He may not have the arm to be on the left side of the infield professionally, but his hit and power tools are both good enough to slide to left.  Personally, I’d prefer that he gets a shot to stay at short until he absolutely must move, but that’s how I feel about just about everyone who has even a semblance of a shot to stay at short.  Thompson is easily one of the best rising seniors in the United States.

Midland is bringing a pair of giants who both project as top of the draft arms in 6’8” lefty Matt Smoral (committed to UNC) and 6’10” righty Taylore Cherry (also committed to UNC).  Cherry and Smoral can both reach the mid-90s with live fastballs with good bite on breaking pitches.  Cherry throws more of a 10/4 or 11/5 true curveball while Smoral throws a low to mid-80s slider due to a lower slot.  Both are good athletes who repeat their deliveries well, and those bodies are worth millions in signing bonus dollars, although Smoral has the more projectable build. Both pitchers will be heavily scouted this year prior to the draft, and Farmington is sure to appreciate their quality arms.

DBAT righty Jack Moffitt can reach the low-90s with his fastball with great arm-side action and good command.  His delivery is clean and consistent with an athletic ¾ slot.  His curveball is tight and more of the 11 to 5 variety.  His changeup is behind the breaker, and he tends to slow his delivery a bit with it, but it has a chance to be an effective third pitch.  Rising junior infielder Niko Buentello is also an exciting young player with a lot of upside in the field and with the bat.  He is the only 16-year old on the DBAT club and one of the few in the entire tournament.

The Strike Zone Cardinals possess a potential helium guy in Shilo McCall. McCall turned a lot of heads when he ran a 6.6 60 at the Perfect Game Nationals as a 6’1”, 205 lb. 16-year old.  He will be one of the youngest draft eligible players at the CMWS and nationwide.  His hit tool and power tool are very strong with a lot of projection.  Shilo’s arm is at least a 50 now with a chance at a 55-60 in the future, which means he could slide to right as well.  Shilo has quality makeup and the talent and head to achieve a lot in the game.  He is without question the best position player Farmington has produced since Casey Andrews (FHS 2001) and quite possibly the best yet.

The CMWS has helped launch the careers of a lot of young players as they attempt to take their games beyond the prep ranks, and 2011’s tourney will surely be no different.  The Series is not typical of national recruiting events because the scores of the game actually matter.  The national showcase circuit has its pros and cons, but the biggest con is the fact that there exists no team atmosphere at many of these events.  Baseball is a sport to be won and lost as a team beyond anything else, and the CMWS reflects this more than any other club tournament in the United States, year after year.  These are just a handful of the most highly regarded participants in 2011’s Series with likely dozens of other top recruits and draft prospects also gearing up for the week ahead.  I’m psyched.

With the Connie Mack World Series slated to begin Friday night at Ricketts Park, the city of Farmington is once again beginning to stir with baseball anticipation.  The tournament is again loaded with a collection of national powerhouse clubs including the Legends from Miami, the Midland Redskins, South Troy Dodgers, and Arizona Firebirds.  The Series is also welcoming several newcomers like the Murfreesboro Diamondbacks, who accomplished the near impossible last week in the Southeast regional when they knocked off both the East Cobb Yankees and Florida Bombers.

The East Cobb Yankees organization has a tremendous following in Farmington, a product of the tourney’s host family tradition, and the fact that they have been here practically every August since the mid-90’s.  They surely will be missed, but Farmington always welcomes talent regardless of what uniform it is wearing, and the town is very excited to watch the group of 17-year olds from Tennessee that were able to win one of the toughest regionals in the country.  Also headed to the Series for the first time are the Arecibo Lobos from Puerto Rico, who open up Friday in the nightcap against the host Strike Zone Cardinals from Farmington and Farmington’s own Dominic Moreno, who will be on the mound for the home squad.

Moreno is no stranger to the World Series spotlight as he took the ball last year for the Cards against the Firebirds in an elimination game.  Moreno, signed at 2009 JUCO national champion Howard College, features a fastball that reaches the low-90s and two quality secondary pitches in the form of a breaker and changeup – the latter of which is the pitch to get excited about.  While the Legends take on South Troy in the early game Friday, there is a realistic chance that the best arm of Friday night will belong to Moreno.  Saturday’s match ups include Midland vs. the Danville Hoots, Murfreesboro against Sam Carpenter’s D-BAT Mustangs, and the Firebirds taking on the Ann Arbor Travelers, a newcomer but with a coaching staff that is no stranger to Farmington.

Travelers’ coach Jordan Banfield was a member of the Ann Arbor Braves, the last group from Ann Arbor to make it to Farmington, in 2005.  That squad featured 2005 Gatorade Player of the Year Zach Putnam, currently a reliever in Triple-A for Cleveland.  This Ann Arbor bunch features similar talent and several major conference signees, including three early commits in Daniel McKinney, Travis Maezes, and Jason Gamble.  Of these three, Maezes has the highest ceiling featuring at least three average or better tools in the form of his bat, feet, and arm as a position player, and a low-90s fastball on the bump.

Sam Carpenter is once again on his way to Farmington for his zillionth CMWS appearance despite missing last year’s event.  Instead the top 17-year old DBAT squad was able to win the tough 2010 South Plains regional.  That group featured Dylan Bundy and Archie Bradley, the 4^th and 7^th players selected in June’s MLB draft.  Neither has signed yet, but they will both make well over $5 million.  This year’s DBAT Mustangs are essentially last year’s team minus those two arms.  They still feature premier talent like CF Adam Toth, who is signed at Baylor.  They will not, however, be featuring last year’s SS, Mike Bernal.  Bernal of El Paso instead is the SS for the host Cardinals.  Bernal (signed at OK State) hits third for the Cards in front of CF Shilo McCall, who could very well also commit to a major conference university in the next couple of months.

The Redskins again feature a tremendous pitching staff of nothing but flamethrowers; three pitchers 6’8” or over (Chase Mullins, Matt Smoral, Taylore Cherry), who feature fastballs that reach the mid-90s, as well as Dillon Howard, Cleveland’s 2^nd round pick.  Danville is making its second trip in three years after qualifying in 2009, the first time a team from northern California had done so in decades at the time.  Since winning the West in 2009, Danville has emerged as a premier national organization with appearances in many of the top club events.  Their lineup features lefty and University of San Diego commit Robert Martinez, who got the win in the regional final against the 2001 West regional champs, the Orange County Renegades.  Martinez features excellent command of a high-80s fastball with decent arm-side action as well as a tight bender, which also can command well to both sides of the plate.  His changeup lacks fade, but he maintains arm speed with it, and a commandable changeup is a must to win in the high elevation in northern New Mexico.  He very well could take the ball against Midland at noon on Saturday.

The Dodgers from South Troy have become the premier organization in the northeastern United States, as have the Arizona Firebirds in the desert southwest.  The Dodgers won a nail-biter in the regional finals against last year’s CMWS representatives, the Ontario Blue Jays, 5-4.  The Firebirds won one of two national qualifier events in Phoenix, thereby bypassing the formidable West regional.  The other national qualifier took place in New Jersey and was won by the Florida Legends, who bypassed the Southeast Regional in the process.  The Dodgers, Legends, and Firebirds all know what it takes to play deep into the week here in Farmington as Arizona won the CMWS in 2006, South Troy played for the title in 2000, and the Legends have played into the semifinals three times.  This year’s Legends group is under new management and has a new financial situation, but the talent is still there.  The 2011 Legends feature 3B David Thompson, who is headed to Miami, and CF Albert Almora, who has a chance at the 2012 first-round and is also headed to Miami.

This is going to be a tremendously exciting week of baseball as it always is.  I can’t wait.  We here at the Sombrero will certainly miss Griffin Phelps managing the host squad.  He led last year’s Cardinals to the finest showing a host team had produced in a decade, but hopefully the Cardinals can continue to succeed in the way they did under Griff.  With players like Bernal, Moreno, and Shilo McCall, they certainly have the talent.  Best of luck to all of the tournament’s participants!

Go Cards!

Late last Wednesday night the Farmington Caridinals lost 4-0 to the Arizona Firebirds at Ricketts Park, thus ending their run in the Connie Mack World Series. The game was very even, very clean, and seemingly very quick. The following day I was on my way back to Dallas, where I had second-year orientation Friday morning. The following week was completely full with labs, lectures, and paper discussions, and it seemed like I had never really left the Baylor basement. As a dental student at Baylor, the only summer vacation that students get is the one between first and second years. Subsequent summers will be spent in clinic with patients, far from a baseball field and even farther from a team. The last two years of my life have very heavily involved coaching baseball back home in Farmington, both school ball and club ball, and the 18 or so years before that were spent playing. To the best of my knowledge, I am going to be away from the game now for the next three years at least. There are a lot of hopeful emotions and contemplation that I’m sure will take place between now and the next time I get to be a part of a team, but there will be an even greater amount of longing and frustration. The game has been very good to me, and I have spent a great deal of my life trying to be good to it as well. Aside from my family and very close friends, baseball has been the most important thing in my life since I can really remember, and it is difficult to accept that for at least a few years, it will take a backseat to my career in another field.

My relationships in the game have always been what I looked forward to the most. Countless friendships began on the baseball field for me. Many of these began in elementary school and have not and never will end. Just take a look at the list of folks who write for The Sombrero for a glimpse at the kind of friendships that baseball brought me in college and high school. The people who write for this site are brothers to me (as well as one sister-in-lawish-type person and my own girlfriend), and there are many more folks just like them who have never written but who mean no less to me.

My relationships with my coaches have greatly shaped the direction that my life has traversed, and I attempt everyday to make the coaches who penciled my name into the lineup proud of doing so, even though I haven’t touched a field for any of them for years. Tim Hollibaugh, the head coach at Grinnell, changed my life and will always be much more than just a coach to me. He made Grinnell and my life there better than I ever could have imagined, and I can’t wait for him to hold that MWC trophy one day. 2011 feels like the year to me. I’m not saying a place like Grinnell is right for everyone. What I’m saying is that it was right for me because of Tim Hollibaugh.

The game has provided me an opportunity to get to know Whitney’s family in a way that I never would have if the timing of my return to Farmington had been slightly different and if her brother, Eli, had been a different kind of kid. As it is, Eli’s baseball has been one of my favorite projects. He has developed from a somewhat duck-footed and gangly kid into one of the premier players in New Mexico. He has great friendships and the same kind of devotion to the game that takes all talented players to unique levels. I am incredibly proud of him and thankful to the Freese family for letting me be so closely involved in his development as a baseball player and as a young man. The bomb you hit off Burdi gave me chills, bro.

Watching Griff grow as a coach on the field and off of it has been another endlessly rewarding aspect of my time back home over the last couple of summers. I expect Griff to revolutionize the game in Farmington as long as he is there, and whenever or if ever he leaves, the baseball community that he enters will never look back. I’m really proud of what you’re doing with your life, dude. Arlo, The Sombrero is an inspiration. Griff, you might want to start trying to convince Arlo to pack and move to wherever it is you wind up so that you can win some championships in the next few years. Sam, you work in a front office. You’re a hero to all of us. Sometimes baseball brings two friends who for whatever reason stopped being so close back together. Jeff, the best thing that came from this summer for me was restoring our friendship. It means an awful lot to me that we are as close as we are today.

Lastly, and most importantly, the game has been a central part of my family since I can remember. Without it, I’m not sure I would know my father as well as I do, and for that I can never thank the game enough. The game has a way of making men into boys all while helping boys grow into men. The excitement and interest my dad took in my game and the tremendous sacrifices that both of my parents made for my play is the kind of gift that can never be repaid. Dad, you were always right.

I am forever grateful for growing up in the community that I did. I moved to Farmington when I was five, and a year later I was playing in my first games. The Farmington baseball community has a uniquely rich tradition and history of baseball excellence. A Farmington high school has won a state title in each of the last six decades. The community is unquestioningly supportive and proud of its young players. Every singly player who starts for a varsity in Farmington has a chance to play in college somewhere, and that is the kind of reputation that has taken half a century to earn. With a new generation of guys at the helm in the club and school scenes, I expect things to continue to progress in the positive direction. I consider myself very fortunate to have been in a position to coach and mentor kids from Farmington inside of that tradition. It is important for us as graduates within that culture to remind our kids where they come from and whom they play for. I can never arrive at or leave from Ricketts or the StrikeZone without having a conversation with someone from the baseball community in Farmington, and while most of these conversations are just baseball bullshit, they all begin from the perspectives of two or more people who grew up within that community. Guys like me remember stuff that happened decades ago like it just happened, and I don’t think that is as common in other areas.

Coaching has allowed me to pay off a number of debts that I accrued as a player. I was the kind of player that had the nerve to pick up the phone in the middle of the day, interrupt my coaches at their day job, and ask them to come throw me BP or hit me fungo. Most of the time, these coaches would drop whatever it was that they were doing to come help me out. As a coach I was honored when a player would call me and ask me to do the same. I always dropped everything and got to the cage or the field as fast as I could. My coaches taught me that no payment is ever enough to cover the cost of good BP or fungo. The debt is to the game, and players repay it by adopting the role of coach as soon as their last AB as a player concludes.

However, coaching is not always easy or kind. The politics and internal stresses, which go unnoticed as players, require time and careful words when you’re the guy making the schedule and lineups. Families who were our biggest supporters when their kid was starting would rather you didn’t exist when that same kid is not starting two weeks later. While I am a supporter of total transparency between the coaches and players, by the time The Series concluded, I at least understand the older generations of coaches and their cling to silence.

The game has brought me an endless supply of joy. Almost every important lesson I learned growing up could have been taught with almost nothing more than the game. Baseball is the most important piece of American culture. We are lucky to have it, and it needs to be treated as such. I personally think Derek Jeter should be instated as the President of the United States the day he retires. He should stay as long as he wants. The White House should be moved to Cooperstown…or Farmington…and a minimum requirement for a position in Congress should be a 5-year career in the Bigs.

In all seriousness, though, saying goodbye to the game has been a very emotional experience. Maybe I learned it from Coach Hollibaugh, but the last post-game talk of the season is always accompanied by a great deal of tears. The team probably thinks I am a huge baby. Maybe I am, but I always hate saying good-bye to a team. Nothing makes me feel like I am losing years more than watching players go their separate ways after a season or a career. This feels like that to me, but a duller and more drawn out version. The good news is that many of the players I coached will still be playing their college ball when I graduate, and I look forward to taking a road trip with Griff to wherever it is they are all playing at the time. He just found about that plan when he read that sentence. Anybody else who wants in is in. The trip ends in Appleton where Grinnell is going to win the National Championship.

Thanks to the game. Let’s not make it a goodbye. Let’s make it a see you soon.

These events are designed to provide an entertaining distraction for people who generally don’t have a whole lot to get excited about. Here in Farmington, New Mexico, our distraction is baseball and our festival is the Connie Mack World Series, the best amateur tournament in the game.

Connie Mack, as it’s known around here, is the culminating event for the American Amateur Baseball Congress’ (AABC) 16-18 year old division. For most teams, a spot in Connie Mack is earned by successfully grinding through city, state, and regional tournaments. Additionally, the winner of the Farmington City Tournament gains hosting rights and there are also two spots awarded via open-invitation tournaments. To get an idea of what it means for teams to come play in Farmington, watch this reaction by the Ontario Blue Jays after they won the North Atlantic Regional tournament last week.

Farmington, New Mexico has hosted the Connie Mack World Series every August since 1965 and over the decades it has become an integral piece of Farmington culture. Known mostly for its natural gas and racial tensions between whites and Native Americans, this is the one time for the little town tucked into the Four Corners to really roll out the red carpet and show itself off. And show off they do; on arrival teams are greeted by performances from the two high school dance teams and opening day includes a parade right down Main Street, where players are treated like celebrities, waving to smiling fans while riding floats through the heart of downtown.

In a town without a lot of headline stories happening, the local paper begins building hype for the World Series as soon as the city tournament ends and the host team has been decided. Yesterday there was even a captivating front page article about the team getting a tour of the local jail as part of its World Series preparation. This is something that defines the city of Farmington and that its citizens care dearly about. But Connie Mack isn’t just a nifty little gimmick to give some podunk town a reason to get out and celebrate; it’s a gathering of baseball’s amateur elite and something any true fan of the game should care about as well.

The level of play at this tournament is tremendous. Every year there are kids that have just been drafted and are on the verge of signing contracts well above Farmington’s median income. As of July 31, 2010, there were 41 CMWS alumni on Major League rosters and countless more throughout all levels of the minors. This competition has seen the likes of Manny Ramirez, Cal Ripken, Jr., Edgar Martinez, Ivan Rodriguez, Barry Larkin, Ozzie Smith, and Ken Griffey, Jr., who according to local legend possibly fathered a child during his Farmington stay. There are representatives from every Major League organization scouting players and hundreds of kids swarming them for autographs after games. Connie Mack, unlike the much more recognized Little League World Series, is a tournament whose level of play actually matches the hype behind it.

To top it all off, the contest is held at the immaculate Ricketts Park, a 6,100 seat stadium that routinely packs capacity crowds throughout this magical week. For a town of only about 40,000 people, this is no small feat. The place is a gem of a yard, and the city volunteers who handle the tournament keep it in pristine condition for every game. The atmosphere is unlike any other amateur baseball contest, and when a rally gets going and fans start stomping their feet those metal bleachers echo for blocks. Opening night for the Connie Mack World Series is this Friday and I could not be more excited.

I have to give special mention to this year’s host team, the Farmington Cardinals, who are coached by my older brother, Griffin, and two of my best friends. Historically host teams have not fared too well at Connie Mack, and this year will prove another enormous challenge as they take on the Florida Legends, a team boasting multiple draft picks including this year’s third overall selection, Manny Machado, in their opening round match-up. Other teams to watch out for include the perennial contender East Cobb Yankees of Georgia and the always fan favorite Midland Redskins from Ohio. But underdogs as they may be I’ll be rooting for the hometown boys and wish the Cardinals the best of luck.

Early in the year I began writing pieces about my city’s spectacular baseball field, Ricketts Park.  As the start of August runs near, the FABC Connie Mack League embarks on a journey.  This journey leads to the holy grail of Amateur baseball, the one and only Ricketts Park.  As the local teams of the Farmington league do battle, every last one of them has one common one thought in their brain; “If we win this thing, I get to be in the Connie Mack World Series!”  I write this piece with a special piece of my heart, for I grew up and still reside in Farmington, NM.  I grew up watching first round draft picks play on the field that I hoped to one day play on myself.  As a 17 year old I lost in the championship round after throwing a complete game 1 hitter (that can still be argued today as a no-hitter) and lost.  As an 18 year old, I was beat on Championship Night by Mike Dunn, who just recently got called back to the show by the Braves.  Last year he even won a ring with the Yankees.  Not a bad guy to lose to at 18 years old.  Then, last year, fellow writer Barfy and I lost on championship night; as coaches.  I was actually picked up my 18 year old summer by Barfy’s team, the Sky Sox.  But I digress.  There will be time for a trip down memory lane later.

Growing up in Farmington means spending years as a youngin’ in the game, sitting in the stadium bleachers watching the greats play.  Greats are the other teams that come here for the week.  By greats, I mean one of the greatest ever played the exact same centerfield grass that I played in years later.  That’s right, Ken Griffey Jr. roamed that outfield at as a 15 year old kid, for the Midland Redskins, before he became The Kid we would all fall head over heels in love with.

As a young kid I dreamed of playing in the Series.  I remember when I was 12 and got my first real baseball glove, the famous Rawlings Griffey trapeze model in 12”, and it was described to me as being “the exact same glove as the ones the guys use in the Connie Mack World Series.”  It was everything to me, to be in this CMWS thing.  As I grew older, I began to see the tournament in a new light.  Turns out, not just any old ball player is in this tournament.  Every single one of those guys is playing college in baseball, I tell myself.

Every year, after AABC leagues across America and Puerto Rico have finished finding winners from different, predetermined regional areas, the 10 teams left standing convene on little, old, oil and gas town, Farmington, New Mexico for one week of the summer in August.  This year’s dates are Aug.6- 13^th.  The Connie Mack World Series is the greatest thing that this town (Farmington) has to offer.  It has helped the city turn a baseball field into a baseball stadium that rivals any high school field in the nation.  Some places have their county fair to help mark the end of summer.  In Farmington, we have the Connie Mack World Series.

The weeklong extravaganza hits the ground running as the first teams begin to arrive from their various destinations at the Farmington Civic Center for sign-ins.  Before they enter the building they are given a private viewing of the local high school dance talent.  Those boys eat it up.  After that show is over the ballplayers find themselves inside the actual Civic Center.  Many different things are going on inside.  This includes filling out proper paperwork and signing in, or maybe an interview with a local reporter coving your first game, and finally, meeting your new host family for the first time.  There are also booths set up and each booth is selling memorabilia with your team logo.  It’s a trip.  It really is the first time, as a baseball player, a kid feels like they have made it in their sport.  This is the exact feeling upon arriving at the Civic Center (via police escort by the way) and seeing all of this going on.  Once inside, the players and coaches are ushered in to the auditorium for their pre-tournament meeting with all the heads of AABC and FABC.  They talk about rules.  They talk about how you are not to be throwing baseball games for anybody.  I know it seems a bit drastic, but they really want you to understand how big of an event this actually is.  They even have to talk to us about not talking to agents or accepting any gifts from people besides our host families.  Because of the level of talent that is in this one tournament, people are on high alert for anything.  The whole charade is over in 15 minutes, max.  The whole time they talk to you, the championship trophy is sitting on a table in front of them.  With your eyes finally getting to see the prize, players then head out and head home with their respective host families.

All night games are sellout crowds.  I’m not talking hundreds either.  We are talking a few thousand fans, sitting in a stadium setting around this ball field.  They are especially packed for the opening game of the home-town Host team.  The support gives you the idea that you are not just playing for your team anymore.  It is the first time that the team actually have fans who are paying to see them.  Yet just another new level of respect a player reaches, and receives, during the greatest week of a Farmington summer.  If you play great in the CMWS, you our considered top notch talent.  I refuse to name drop anymore than I have already and will only say that many of the guys you see during this event reach The Show and have a meaningful impact.

Plain and simple, the week of the CMWS is tits.  You play national, top level, talent in front of thousands.  If you are from Farmington, it means more than that.  It means you have to now represent an entire city.  People are paying money to watch you, and have never met you.  It’s a beautiful thing.  Amateur baseball at its finest and Farmington pulls it off year in and year out.  So if you ever get a chance to swing through little, old, Farmington, make sure you check out the city’s gift to baseball.  The one.  The only.  Ricketts Park.

Anyways, on to what the article is really about, Ricketts Park.  As I helped as an assistant to the varsity squad in May, I took notice of how special Ricketts was.  This was not the first time I had felt this way, but it was the same feeling from a different perspective.  I had casual conversations with graduating seniors about what it meant to have played at such a great field.  I also had conversations with younger guys who have their whole high school career in front of them.  There were as many similarities in their answers as there were differences.  No matter who I was talking to, I started each conversation the same way, “So what has it been like to play as a Scorp at Ricketts?’  Older guys answered with comments like, “It’s fuckin’ awesome, man” or “It’s so badass” and one kid, who will remain unnamed, responded with “It’s the fuckin’ shit.  There is nothing else like it.”  The second half of this last quote is what stuck with me, mostly because there really is nothing like playing at Ricketts Park.

In a previous article I took a brief moment to inform you about Ricketts.  For a Farmington High Scorpion, it means even more.  When you finally head to Ricketts for 7^th hour class and after school practice it means one thing…you’ve made it.  For me that moment came as a sophomore.  For others it didn’t come until their senior year.  And even more, there are those few who make it on the varsity squad as young freshmen.  Now making the varsity squad that very first time is something special for all aspiring baseball players.  But the first time you step foot on the luscious grass of Ricketts, you become keenly aware of just how sweet the grass is on the other side of the fence.

Ricketts park is a field owned and maintained by the city of Farmington, as all the ballparks in Farmington are, and has one of the greatest grounds crew outside of Division one and professional baseball.  Sure, they become lazy as shit during the summer, when they don’t have the high school season or the Connie Mack World Series to worry about, but when they are on point the field begins to twankle and glisten thanks to their efforts.  Once you make the varsity team, this all becomes clearly apparent.  There are no more shitty hops on the regular, or grass so tall it makes even the hardest hit GB a slow roller.  Being able to play and practice on that field for the first time is similar to stepping on to a pro field for the first time (I was fortunate enough to experience this during a pre draft workout for the Brewers at Miller Park.)  Some people might think about when they first put on the varsity white uni, or when they first get their legendary varsity boathouse jacket.  But they would be wrong.  The first time they feel like they have made it is when their feet feel the crunch of finely raked dirt; the first time they step foot in the grass and it feels like they are walking on clouds.  Simply put, this feeling is purely euphoric.  For most of us who have come up through the ranks of FHS baseball, it is the closest feeling we will ever have of “making it”.

Another thing about Ricketts is the on-field equipment.  It is the only place where BP is taken inside of a true turtle shell cage.  It is the only time that the shag group has a net to protect them from batted balls.  It is also the only team in the program that gets to practice with real baseballs.  Now I don’t mean real as in balls that exist in fact.  I mean real as in balls that have not been used for the last 6 years straight.  These baseballs are white.  These baseballs have seams.  These baseballs have their covers firmly attached to the insides.  Now these may seem like small things to some.  But as the C-team coach for the program, I know what a difference it makes.  When I came up as an assistant to the varsity after my C-team season ended, I even felt like I had made it as a coach.  Throwing BP felt like a dream.  So you have a nice field surface and some good equipment for the first time; so what?  How does that make Ricketts so special to a high school baseball player?  Let me tell you about the best part of Ricketts.

If you recall, I mentioned that Ricketts has stadium seating and holds up to a few thousand fans.  This is what fellow blogger Dee and myself call tits.  When those seats are filled to capacity it is harebrained.  And it fills up this way twice a season, for the showdown between cross-town rivals FHS and PVHS.  The stadium is overflowing with passionate, semi-intelligent, wild and crazy fans for these games.  The first time that you walk up to the plate with all the noise going on in the background, it feels as if you are playing in a World Series atmosphere.  Ricketts literally begins to shake and bake with such abundant energy.  Put simply, it is cooler than the ice on any rapper’s wrist.  There is just nothing that can compare to playing in front of thousands of fans as a teenager who can’t even buy porn or tobacco legally.

Anybody who has played high school sports aspires to become a varsity player.  They long to be able to say they made it.  This is no different for FHS baseball players.  The only difference between you and us is one thing.  Ricketts Park.