Questions

Hi everyone!!! I have moved and gotten all settled in so you can expect some more regular updates during the offseason now...First on a broadcast note I have added some dates to my schedule...Nov. 2 at 1pm, Nov. 7 at 4 and 7 and Nov. 9 at 1pm as well...Those are for the Horizon League Soccer Tournament...

For an update...I have been working at Tyndale House Publishers in Carol Stream, Illinois for four weeks now and it is going to be a nice offseason home...I am over my Cubs disappointment although the fact that the Rays made the World Series has renewed it a bit because the Rays have been one of the worst teams in baseball and are in the series before the Cubs...

I get questions often and keep them coming, I will try to address the most popular ones here...

What's the Manager situation?
A: Well, the third manager in franchise history will be announced on Nov. 5

Who is going to be back with the Beach Bums this year?
A: The first priority this offseason was to find the new manager, I would imagine player announcements will begin to follow once the new manager and Jason have an opportunity to discuss what kind of team they want on the field...My guess is that it will be a lot similar to last year with guys who can run and play strong defense, characteristics you can expect every year in Traverse City...Look for a similar setup to last season with a lot of players coming in for spring training...

As an addendum to that question - you may remember in the last game of the year my talking about the player status for 2009...Unfortunately not everyone will be back but I expect a good chunk to return...Below is a listing of every player from the last game of 2008 with what their status will be for 2009 as far as I know, The Frontier League does have some strict rules with regard to status so some changes will need to be made...For instance, there can only be a max of three veterans and you can't have more than five vet/LS-2 in a combo on your roster (1 vet/4 LS-2; 2 Vet/3 LS-2, 3Vet/2LS-2)...You can take more than the minimum players from the class below to fill open slots from another classification, ie taking an additional LS-1 instead of carrying the maximum LS-2...The classifications are all based on how many at bats or appearances you make in a season, 150 at-bats moves you up a class as does either 30 appearances or 60 innings...

Pitchers
David Nathanson - LS-1
Pete McEneaney - Rookie-2
Brett Bostelman - LS-1
Jared Locke - LS-1
Matt Trausch - Rookie-2
Ryan Gehring - Veteran
Ted Gjeldum - LS-1
Steve Roberts - Rookie-2
Nick Pepper - LS-1
Mike Takashima - Rookie-2
Jeff Williams - LS-1
Drew Taylor - Rookie-2

Catchers
Ryan Kottke - Rookie-2
Patrick Perry - LS-2

Infield
Steve Young - Veteran
Brad Miller - LS-2
Eric Newton - Rookie-2
Jeff Brown - LS-1
Damon Lessler - Rookie-2
Kyle Maunus - LS-2

Outfield
Brad Roblin - LS-1
Mike Epping - Veteran
Zack Kalter - Veteran
Reed Welker - Rookie-2

Full Roster from the End of 2008

Updates from Frontier League Land...

A couple of updates from around the Frontier League...

Let's start with Gateway catcher Charlie Lisk, who signed with the Tigers organization following the season...Lisk spent two season with Gateway as the everyday backstop and was the winner of the Catcher's Pop Time Contest at the 2008 Frontier League All-Star Festivites hosted by the Beach Bums at Wuerfel Park...He hit .313 this season for the Grizzlies and was arguably the MVP for most of the season for the Grizz, who returned to the playoffs by edging the Beach Bums for the fourth and final slot this season...He also played with Windy City during the 2006 season...

More on Lisk

Continuing on the Gateway front my good friend in the broadcast business and otherwise, Joe Pott, has been hired at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville as the Assistant to the Athletic Director for Broadcasting...I know Joe is excited and the move will not take him away from the mike for the Grizzlies as he will still work for Gateway in the summer...He will serve to develop the Cougar Broadcast Network...All the best!

Voice of the Cougars

Two managerial moves...First in River City, it was publicized before the 2008 season was over that Toby Rumfield would be out after the season...The Rascals finished 47-49 and in fifth place in the West Division...The Rascals went through their search to replace Rumfield and earlier this month announced a former manager from the South Coast League to replace him...Chad Parker managed the Macon Music in 2007 during the league's only year of existence in his lone season of managerial existence...

Meet the Rascals New Skipper

The Florence Freedom have announced that Jamie Keefe will not be returning in 2009...He was 47-49 this season...I always enjoyed talking with Jamie who was in the Frontier League with Chillicothe for three seasons before joining the Freedom in 2005...He has over 300 career wins and cited family as his reason for not returning...

Keefe Not Returning

And in personnel moves River City made a big deal under new manager Chad Parker, dealing C Andrew Sweet and OF Luke Barganier to Joliet of the Northern League along with a Player to be Named in exchange for two pitchers and a catcher...

Trade Details

Frontier League Bans Maple Bats

I know you saw it if you attended a game at any professional level last year...Shattered bats that go flying...Thankfully the Frontier League had no major incidents that I am aware of...River City set the standard by announcing a ban on maple bats and now the league has followed suit issuing a full ban for the 2009 season on maple bats...

So the question...What exactly is a maple bat...Well, bats are made of several different kinds of wood and maple has grown in popularity the past few seasons with extended use in MLB and was the primary bat for most Frontier League teams in 2008...While studies will tell you that there is no difference in what kind of wood you use (maple, ash, birch, hickory -- very early in baseball history but may begin a comeback), maple is a harder wood and is very durable meaning it has a longer lifespan...Plus the players feel like it jumps off maple quicker than ash which is the other popular variety.

However, they are very easy to break, and it is not often you see a cracked maple bat, they shatter and travel at very high rates of speed, the safety of them is something that MLB is also dealing with but a ban in the majors will be much harder to achieve...

Maple Bats Banned

Managerial Announcement Coming Soon...

The announcement of the third manager in Beach Bums history will be made at a press conference next Wednesday, November 5...Check here for full details when the day arrives or visit tcbeachbums.com...

Along with the press conference there will be a public meet and greet at Wilderness Crossing on Thursday from 6-8pm that includes autographs, giveaways, and special deals...Full details can be found by clicking below...

Details

Now I am already starting to get questions about the new skipper, I know who it is, but you'll have to wait and see...I know the hire brings a lot of optimism for the 2009 campaign...Stay tuned...I will have an exclusive interview with the new skipper to place on Calderwood's Corner shortly after the hiring press conference, if you have questions you want to ask the skip, send them my way...