WHL and fighting: What next? ... Doing some Scattershooting ... Rosetown gets Allan Cup

MLB became less watchable Monday when the Anaheim Angels put outfielder Mike Trout, the game’s premier player, on the DL with a thumb injury that will need surgery. He was injured on a headfirst slide into second base. Hopefully, at least some players will take notice and stop sliding in that fashion.

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On Oct. 7, 2014, in Game 1 of the NLDS, Bryce Harper of the visiting Washington Nationals hit a 445-foot bomb off pitcher Hunter Strickland of the San Francisco Giants. Harper stood and watched as the ball sailed over the right-field wall and into McCovey Cove. On Monday, the two met up again, and again it was in San Francisco. This time, Strickland drilled Harper in the right hip with a 97 mph fastball and a basebrawl ensued. Talk about carrying a grudge!

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I have lived in B.C. for more than 17 years and thought I had seen everything on the political front. Until now, that is. If you aren’t aware, we had a provincial election earlier this month. In that election, the ruling party won more seats than anyone else and got more of the popular vote. But it was close. The result is that a party that won three seats (out of 87) is calling the shots and is about to enter into a four-year deal with the second-place finisher in an attempt to take over. No word on whether the deal includes a no-trade clause. . . . Only in B.C., folks. Only in B.C.

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“Ringling Brothers has packed its tent after 146 years,” writes Cam Hutchinson of the Saskatoon Express. “Word is the Trump administration has hired the clowns.” . . . Any clowns still unemployed are free to visit B.C.

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Is there a political or sporting leader out there today who is better at putting lipstick on a pig than NHL commish Gary Bettman? . . . Bruce Arthur of the Toronto Star has a piece right here on Bettman’s state-of-the-NHL address that was given prior to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final.

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Craig Smith playing without a stick because he broke it...crosschecking a guy.

— Ken Campbell (@THNKenCampbell) May 30, 2017

In Gary Bettman’s NHL, a goal is disallowed via video review because a skate was hovering over a blue line a few seconds earlier, thus the play was ruled offside. Meanwhile, referees choose to turn a blind eye to numerous other fouls. Yes, it’s all a head-scratcher, or a forehead-slapper.

I have an idea - call the rule book no matter who player is. https://t.co/0nMwP06lAJ

— Ray Ferraro (@rayferrarotsn) May 28, 2017

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You know how the NFL protects its quarterbacks? When will the NHL start doing the same with its goaltenders?

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RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com reports: “Tom Brady is promoting an Aston Martin that starts at US$212,000. Yahoo Sports calls the price ridiculously expensive; Gisele Bundchen calls it chump change.”

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Headline on the front page of Tuesday’s New York Daily News and New York Post: DUI OF THE TIGER. . . . The headlines are accompanied by mugshots of Tiger Woods, of course.

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The 2018 Allan Cup will be decided in Rosetown, Sask., April 9-14. The Allan Cup goes to Canada’s senior AAA hockey champion. Rosetown is the home of the Red Wings, who play in the aptly named Chinook Hockey League. G Taran Kozun, who had a pretty good run with the Seattle Thunderbirds for part of 2013-14 and all of 2014-15 after being acquired from the Kamloops Blazers , played with the Red Wings this season.

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F Mitch Wahl (Spokane, 2005-10) has signed a one-year contract with Innsbruck (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). This season, with Ilves Tampere (Finland, Liiga), he had a goal and three assists in 16 games. He also played with Västervik (Sweden, Allsvenskan), putting up six goals and eight assists in 23 games, and had a goal and five assist in eight games with Oskarshamn (Sweden, Allsvenskan).

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Prior to the start of this season, the OHL issued another crackdown on fighting.

The OHL’s board of governors decided that a player would be suspended once he had been involved in three fights and again for every fight after that. That standard had been 10 since the start of the 2012-13 season.

The OHL didn’t have any players with more than 10 fights in 2014-15 or 2015-16. This season, the OHL’s pugilistic leader fought eight times. There was one player with five fights, 11 with four and another 24 with three.

According to hockeyfights.com, the OHL had 167 fights this season, down from 315 in 2015-16 and 359 in 2014-15.

The QMJHL had 288 fights in 2016-17, while the WHL had 394.

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Here, from hockeyfights.com, is a look at the number of fights in the OHL (20 teams), QMJHL (18) and WHL (22) over the past five regular seasons, with the average number of fights per game in parentheses. . . .

OHL:

2012-13: 474 (.697)

2013-14: 473 (.696)

2014-15: 359 (.528)

2015-16: 315 (.463)

2016-17: 167 (.246)

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QMJHL:

2012-13: 408 (.667)

2013-14: 445 (.727)

2014-15: 406 (.663)

2015-16: 309 (.505)

2016-17: 288 (.471)

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WHL:

2012-13: 666 (.841)

2013-14: 679 (.857)

2014-15: 467 (.511)

2015-16: 393 (.496)

2016-17: 394 (.497)

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While fighting has declined markedly in the OHL, that hasn’t quite been the case in the WHL where there aren’t any OHL-like limitations.

This season, according to hockeyfights.com, there were 788 fighting majors handed out in the WHL, meaning that there were 394 fights, an average of half a fight per game.

This season, the WHL had six players with 10 or more fights, with a total of 112 involved in at least three scraps.

If you were wondering, 11 of the WHL’s 22 teams had at least 36 fights, led by the Vancouver Giants (48), Lethbridge Hurricanes (46), Spokane Chiefs (45), and Edmonton Oil Kings and Kelowna Rockets, each 44. The OHL leader, the Oshawa Generals, had 28 fights. The QMJHL’s Victoriaville Tigres had 46.

It’s worth noting that there were only five fights in the WHL playoffs this season, down from 11 a year ago. In the spring of 2015, there were seven playoff bouts.

This spring, the OHL playoffs featured 20 fights, while there were 22 in the QMJHL.

In the interest of player safety, fighting is slowly leaving the game. While it’s true that fighting isn’t the No. 1 cause of concussions in hockey, there no longer can be any denying that an accumulation of blows to the head can cause brain damage. So it only makes sense that a league comprising teenagers do as much as it possibly can to ensure their safety.

Perhaps some discussion on how to further reduce fighting will take place when the WHL holds its annual meeting in Vancouver, June 13 and 14.

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The Prince Albert Raiders have signed Ron Gunville, their director of player personnel, to a contract extension through the end of the 2018-19 season. . . . Gunville, a 47-year-old Prince Albert native, has been in this role since the 2015-16 season. He joined the Raiders in June 2013 as assistant director of player personnel, after having scouted for the Prince George Cougars. . . . Gunville is a former WHL player, having spent time over three seasons (1987-90) with the Raiders and Lethbridge Hurricanes. In 91 regular-season games, he had nine goals and 24 assists, along with 233 penalty minutes.

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Might F Tyson Jost end up with the Regina Pats next season as they prepare to play in the 2018 Memorial Cup as the host team? John Paddock, the Pats’ general manager and head coach, isn’t concerning himself with that, preferring to take a wait-and-see approach. . . . Jost, whose rights the Pats acquired from the Everett Silvertips, started this season with UND and finished it with the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche. . . . Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post has more right here.

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Frank Deford, the greatest sports essayist of our time, died on Sunday night at his home in Key West, Fla. He was 78. In the days before the Internet, as a Sports Illustrated subscriber, I picked up each magazine and hoped there was a Deford piece inside. He was beyond great, wherever that is. . . . Daniel Victor of The New York Times has more right here.

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If you’re a regular here, and even you aren’t, feel free to contribute to the feeding of the Drinnan family by making a donation to the cause. You are able to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.

BTW, if you want to contact me with some information or just feel like commenting on something, you may email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.

I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).

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Reports on Monday indicated that Joe Shawhan will be named head coach of the Michigan Tech Huskies today, taking over from Mel Pearson, who now is the head coach at Michigan. Shawhan spent the past three seasons as an assistant alongside Pearson. . . . The first place I saw with the story was techhockeyguide.com. . . . A goaltender, Shawhan played four seasons (1983-87) at Lake Superior State, then began his coaching career as a volunteer assistant under Frank Anzalone and then Jeff Jackson. . . . Shawhan later was the general manager and head coach of the NAHL’s Soo Indians (1995-2005), where he was a three-time coach of the year. After that, he was an assistant at Lake Superior State for three seasons before working as a volunteer assistant with the Northern Michigan Wildcats as he worked on completing a bachelor’s degree. He was named a full-time assistant in 2010, then headed to Michigan Tech in 2014.

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Jane Renaud Mickey Renaud's Mom @SpitsHockey was in Mallorca with us @GoldMedalPlates I dedicated Big League to her well done @SpitsHockey

— Tom Cochrane (@TomCochraneMUS) May 30, 2017

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The crack of the bat . . .

We pause on what is a hockey-dominated blog to worship for a while at the Church of Baseball.
Opening Day! There’s still nothing quite like it. Even though it happens on a Saturday -- or was it Sunday -- in Sydney, Australia, and a Sunday in San Diego and a Monday in a lot of other cities. Hey, Bud, whatever happened to Opening Day in Cincinnati? Didn’t that use to be as American as apple pie and Chevrolet?
Anyway . . . Monday was Opening Day. Don’t let anyone tell you any differently.
And here are a few thoughts:

1. In his first at-bat of the new season, Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels drilled a two-run homer off Seattle ace Felix Hernandez. If Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers is worth US$292 million over 10 years, what is Trout, who is being paid $1 million for 2014, really worth?

2. In his six seasons with the Tigers, Cabrera has averaged 676 plate appearances per season. Under the terms of his new contract, he will make US$43,195 per PA. In Monday’s 4-3 Detroit victory in Kansas City, Cabrera got to the plate four times (1-for-3 with a walk). That means he made $172,780 on Monday. And you made how much?

3. This is the year of the Chicago Cubs. How do I know this? Elementary, dear sir. The Cubs were in Pittsburgh on Monday and got their leadoff batter on base. He then was picked off, with the first-base umpire emphatically signalling the out. Cubbies fans around the world went: “Arrgh! Here we go again!!” Except that the Pirates first baseman had dropped the ball, so the runner was safe. Never mind that the Cubs didn’t score that inning, or in any inning, it was still a positive sign. The Pirates went on to win, 1-0, on second baseman Neil Walker’s HR leading off the bottom of 10. . . . A great story? Walker is a native of Pittsburgh and this was his first Walker-off home run.

4. Opening Day also is the beginning of the end for Toronto Blue Jays’ fans. Sorry, but as much as I like R.A. Dickey, I don’t think a major league team can win with a knuckleballer at the top of its rotation. A team needs consistency from its No. 1 starter and the knuckleball is anything but that. . . . Toronto Sun headline after Blue Jays lost 9-2 in Tampa on Monday: DEJA BLEW.

5. The Jays also lost starting shortstop Jose Reyes in that one. He left after one at-bat with an apparent hamstring problem. He was on the 15-day DL before day’s end. A shortstop with range and a hamstring problem don’t exactly go together like bacon and eggs.

6. You have to think that Don Baylor was excited to begin his first season as the Los Angeles Angels’ hitting coach. That was before he got injured during the ceremonial first pitch last night. Former Angels DH Vladimir Guerrero signed a one-day contract that will allow him to retire with the Angels, and he threw out the ceremonial first pitch. Baylor, in the process of receiving it, suffered an injury to his right leg and needed help getting off the field. It turns out that he has a broken femur and will have surgery today. . . . (@TBrownYahoo pointed out that Baylor is a survivor of multiple myeloma, a cancer that weakens the bones and makes one susceptible to fractures). . . . BTW, Guerrero (2004) and Baylor (1979) are the only two players to have won AL MVP awards while with the Angels.

7. Seattle starter Felix Hernandez struck out 11 batters in six innings, and got the victory, as the Mariners drubbed the host Angels, 10-3. That is the sixth time a Mariners starter has whiffed at least 10 on Opening Day. . . . It was the second time for Hernandez. Randy Johnson also did it twice, while Mark Langston and Floyd Bannister each did it once. . . . Hernandez is the only right-hander in that bunch, although he does wear his cap like a southpaw.

8. In Milwaukee, right fielder Ryan Braun of the Brewers, who sat out the last 65 games of last season with a drug suspension, received a standing ovation prior to his first at-bat. He later went into baseball’s record book as he became the first player in MLB history to be called out on a call that was reversed by video review. The Brewers went on to beat the Atlanta Braves, 2-0.

9. In Arlington, Texas, Philadelphia shortstop Jimmy Rollins, who seems to have been in manager Ryne Sandberg’s doghouse for a lot of the spring, hit a grand slam as the Phillies beat the Texas Rangers, 14-10. That was the 200th HR of Rollins’ career. He also was making his 14th consecutive Opening Day start for the Phillies, tying Cal Ripken’s MLB record for most consecutive OD starts at shortstop with the same franchise.

10. If you are a baseball fan, you will be aware of the way defences shift depending on a hitter’s tendencies. Well, a Wall Street Journal story that I read on the weekend reported that “major league teams ‘shifted’ 8,134 times last season, compared with just 2,357 in 2011.’ ” . . . Obviously, there aren’t any statistics in the world of baseball that aren’t tracked by someone.

11. This, of course, is the debut for extended video review in baseball. Teams are allowed to have someone watching replays in their clubhouses. That person then signals to someone in the dugout. While this is going on, we are treated to a manager on the field chatting with an umpire, all the while looking into the dugout for a signal . . . to challenge or not to challenge, that is the question.

12. The Seattle at Los Angeles Angels game last night was an ESPN production and was available on TSN-2. Following the game, viewers got to watch ESPN’s Baseball Tonight, a terrific package of highlights and analysis. Here’s hoping that Baseball Tonight is on every night during the MLB season.
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Villach (Austria, Erste Bank Liga) has exercised an option for next season with F Eric Hunter (Prince George, 2002-07). Hunter started this season with Herning (Denmark, Metal Ligaen), putting up 13 points, including seven goals, in 15 games. He joined Villach in mid-January and had nine points, three of them goals, in 10 games. . . .
F Pavel Padakin, who played the last two seasons with the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen, has signed with Donbass Donetsk (Ukraine, KHL). No terms were released. This season with the Hitmen, he had 54 points, including 27 goals, in 66 games. Padakin, who is from Kiev, is to turn 20 on June 8.
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A trust fund has been established to assist the Bozon family with medical- and rehabilitation-related costs with which they now are faced.
You are able to make a donation at any BMO Bank of Montreal branch in Western Canada.
Should you live outside of that area and want to donate, please mail donations to:
Western Hockey League
c/o Tim Bozon
Father David Bauer Arena
2424 University Drive NW
Calgary AB
T2N 3Y9
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As the second round of playoffs begin this week, the Portland Winterhawks go in riding an 11-game winning streak. In fact, going back to the regular season, they have lost just once in 33 games. . . . Portland lost on Jan. 10 when it dropped a 3-2 shootout decision to the Royals in Victoria. . . . One night later, the Winterhawks beat the host Royals 2-1 and started a franchise-record 21-game winning streak that ended March 1 with a 4-1 loss to the host Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . In the four-game season series between Portland and Victoria, the Royals went 3-1-0, winning once in regulation time, once in OT and once in a shootout. That left the Winterhawks at 1-1-2. Three of the games finished with 3-2 scores, while the fourth was that 2-1 game. . . . The Royals and Winterhawks are to be second-round opponents, starting Friday in Portland. If you are a subscriber to Shaw-TV, you will be able to watch the entire series from the comfort of your living room. Enjoy!
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Late Monday morning, Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald tweeted that Silvertips D Mirco Mueller is joining the Worcester Sharks, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s San Jose Sharks, while F Jujhar Khaira will finish the season with the Oklahoma City Barons, the AHL affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers. . . . Mueller was a first-round selection in the NHL’s 2013 draft; the Oilers took Khaira in the third round of the 2012 draft. . . . Oklahoma City also has added D Graeme Craig, 20, who finished his WHL career with the Prince Albert Raiders. Craig missed some time late in the season with an undisclosed injury, and sat out the Raiders’ first three playoff games as they were swept by the Edmonton Oil Kings. He did play in Game 4, though, so perhaps will see some AHL playing time.
As well, Carlos Sosa of Turning Point Sports Management advises that Everett F Josh Winquist also is headed to Oklahoma City. Winquist, 20, has twice been passed over in the NHL draft. Winquist is coming off a monster offensive season, as he finished with 93 points, including 47 goals, in 67 games.
The AHL’s Abbotsford Heat announced Monday that it has signed Prince Albert Raiders F Collin Valcourt, who played out his junior eligibility this season. He started the season with the Saskatoon Blades, before being traded to the Raiders.
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The Kootenay Ice and Medicine Hat Tigers, who also are second-round opponents, evenly split six regular-season games. They didn’t play any OT games, nor did they need any penalty shot competitions to decide matters. Each team won three times at home. . . . They open the series Friday night in Medicine Hat. . . . Ice forwards Jaedon Descheneau and Sam Reinhart lead the WHL playoff scoring race, each with 17 points. Descheneau also leads in goals, with seven. . . . Kootenay D Jagger Dirk went into these playoffs without a point in 28 postseason games. In the six-game victory over the Calgary Hitmen, Dirk had nine points, including two goals. . . . Just for the record, his father, Robert, who also was an excellent defenceman, put up 21 points in 41 playoff games with the Regina Pats (1983-86).
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You may have noticed that Game 2 of the series between the Brandon Wheat Kings and the Oil Kings will be played on Saturday, starting at noon, at Rexall Place in Edmonton. . . . Why noon? That’s because the National Lacrosse League’s Edmonton Rush also is playing there on Saturday, with its game set to begin at 8 p.m.
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The QMJHL’s Victoriaville Tigers will have a new coach next season. They have dropped head coach Yanick Jean following a five-game first-round loss to the Drummondville Voltigeurs. Jean spent six seasons with the Tigres and is the franchise’s all-time winningest coach.
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THE SECOND ROUND (best-of-seven; all times local):
(x - if necessary)
EASTERN CONFERENCE

EDMONTON (1) vs. BRANDON (7)
Season series: Edmonton, 3-1-0; Brandon, 1-2-1.
Thursday: Brandon at Edmonton, 7 p.m.
Saturday: Brandon at Edmonton, noon
Tuesday, April 8: Edmonton at Brandon, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, April 9: Edmonton at Brandon, 7 p.m.
x-Friday, April 11: Brandon at Edmonton, 7 p.m.
x-Monday, April 14: Edmonton at Brandon, 7 p.m.
x-Wednesday, April 16: Brandon at Edmonton, 7 p.m.
INJURIES
Edmonton: F Brandon Baddock, 3-5 weeks; D Blake Orban, indefinite; F Reid Petryk, day-to-day.
Brandon: None.
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MEDICINE HAT (4) vs. KOOTENAY (6)
Season series: Medicine Hat, 3-3-0; Kootenay, 3-3-0.
Saturday: Kootenay at Medicine Hat, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday: Kootenay at Medicine Hat, 6 p.m.
Wednesday, April 9: Medicine Hat at Kootenay, 7 p.m.
Thursday, April 10: Medicine Hat at Kootenay, 7 p.m.
x-Saturday, April 12: Kootenay at Medicine Hat, 7:30 p.m.
x-Monday, April 14: Medicine Hat at Kootenay, 7 p.m.
x-Wednesday, April 16: Kootenay at Medicine Hat, 7 p.m.
(NOTE: Kootenay plays home games in Cranbrook, B.C.)
INJURIES
Medicine Hat: F Anthony Ast, indefinite; F Gavin Broadhead, day-to-day; F Hunter Shinkaruk, indefinite.
Kootenay: F Tim Bozon, indefinite; F Ryan Chynoweth, indefinite; D Tyler King, day-to-day; D Tanner Faith, 3-5 months.
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WESTERN CONFERENCE

KELOWNA (1) vs. SEATTLE (4)
Season series: Kelowna, 2-1-1; Seattle, 2-1-1.
Thursday: Seattle at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m.
Saturday: Seattle at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m.
Tuesday, April 8: Kelowna at Seattle, 7:05 p.m.
Wednesday, April 9: Kelowna at Seattle, 7:05 p.m.
x-Friday, April 11: Seattle at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m.
x-Sunday, April 13: Kelowna at Seattle, 5:05 p.m.
x-Tuesday, April 15: Seattle at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m.
(NOTE: Seattle plays home games in Kent, Wash.)
INJURIES
Kelowna: F Myles Bell, day-to-day; D Jesse Lees, indefinite.
Seattle: F Connor Honey, indefinite.
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PORTLAND (2) vs. VICTORIA (3)
(Series televised by Shaw-TV)
Season series: Portland, 1-1-2; Victoria, 3-1-0.
Friday: Victoria at Portland (Veterans Memorial Coliseum), 7 p.m.
Saturday: Victoria at Portland (Moda Center), 7 p.m.
Monday: Portland at Victoria, 7:05 p.m.
Tuesday, April 8: Portland at Victoria, 7:05 p.m.
x-Thursday, April 10: Victoria at Portland (Moda Center), 7, p.m.
x-Saturday, April 12: Portland at Victoria, 7:05 p.m.
x-Monday, April 14: Victoria at Portland (Veterans Memorial Coliseum), 7 p.m.
INJURIES
Portland: None.
Victoria: None.
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From Nick Patterson (@NickHPatterson) of the Everett Herald: “#Silvertips F Ivan Nikolishin says he's headed to Finland to play for Russia at the U-18 World Championships.”
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From Ed Tait (@WFPEdTait) of the Winnipeg Free Press, after the Jets blew a 4-0 lead and lost 5-4 in OT to the host Anaheim Ducks last night: “#NHLJets Paul Maurice on the third period: 'Too much clinching of the cheeks.' That pretty much sums it up.”

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Gillies excited about being added to Phillies' 40-man roster

GILLIES

By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor

Tyson Gillies’ run in baseball’s Arizona Fall League is over.
The outfielder, who is from Kamloops, didn’t put up outstanding numbers with the Scottsdale Scorpions, but he finished what he started and that, more than anything else, was the key.
And the Philadelphia Phillies thought enough of what they saw to add Gillies to their 40-man roster on Friday. That was the deadline for teams to add players to the roster, which protects them from the Rule 5 Draft on Dec. 8.
“It’s very exciting, that’s for sure,” Gillies, 23, said Friday from Missouri, where he will spend the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday with friends before moving on to Clearwater, Fla., the home of the Phillies’ minor-league complex.
Gillies hit only .178 and struck out 24 times in 90 at-bats over 27 games. But the numbers weren’t as important as how he felt and how his legs did. His game, in centre field and on the base paths, is built on speed.
“It was good,” he said. “I had a lot of fun being out playing again every day. That was my main focus . . . stay on the field, stay healthy and make sure my body felt good.”
The Phillies acquired Gillies from the Seattle Mariners in a deal that involved left-hander Cliff Lee almost two years ago. Since then, however, Gillies has been plagued by hamstring and leg problems that kept him off the field for most of two seasons. He got into only 26 games with the Double-A Reading Phillies in 2010 and was to return there for 2011. However, the Phillies shut him down after just three games with the Florida State League’s Clearwater Threshers.
That’s why he was so thrilled to run out onto the field in Arizona a few weeks ago.
“Everybody could tell how happy I was . . . just running everywhere,” he said. “I was happy and having a good time just being out there.”
It also was great to be able to stay out there, something he hadn’t been able to do since the 2009 season when he was with the California League’s High Desert Mavericks.
“Besides the offensive part of it, not getting the hits and things I wanted to . . . that wasn’t my main focus,” Gillies said. “But I still had some frustrating times because you always want to do well, no matter what.
“But I had to look at the bigger picture. I’m happy, running everywhere, feeling good. Just being able to play the game was very important to me.”
The Arizona Fall League is where major league teams place many of their top prospects, wanting them to get a little extra work before winter. The Scorpions’ roster also included outfielders Bryce Harper, 19, of the Washington Nationals, who is considered perhaps the best prospect of them all, and Mike Trout, a highly touted prospect with the Los Angeles Angels.
While Gillies struggled at the plate, he felt he more than held his own on defence.
“I played well. I thought I played really well,” he said. “I got really comfortable. I got reads on balls and made some great plays. That’s a big thing. My defensive side of the game is really important to me. I was happy I was able to feel comfortable.
“I think I’m pretty much where I’ve always been. I’m feeling good. I’m starting to feel more like me every day.”
When he returns to Clearwater late this month, he will work with hitting instructors on recreating his swing. He did hit .341, with 17 doubles, 14 triples, nine home runs and 44 stolen bases, with High Desert.
“There were times where I came back to the dugout after lining out or hitting a ball hard,” he said of his AFL stint, “and was telling myself, ‘I’m seeing it, I’m feeling good.’ But when you’ve been away from something for so long, the consistency doesn’t come back right away as you would like it to.”

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca     
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