“O”dds and Ends; A Collection of Orioles News

Familiar faces in different places, fresh faces in minor league places

Sakata a Star, but we always knew that

San Jose Giants Manager Lenn Sakata in California League/Carolina League All-Star Game

The San Jose Giants Coaching Staff will lead the California League in the bi-coastal showcase of the top prospects in Advanced Class-A professional baseball from 18 Major League affiliates. San Jose Giants skipper Lenn Sakata -- the Milwaukee Brewers first round pick in the 1975 amateur draft (secondary phase -- 10th pick overall) -- will be joined by San Jose Pitching Coach Jim Bennett, Coach Garrett Nago and Trainer Yukiya Oba.

Sakata link
Sakata link 2

One former pitcher who we miss talks about another who we don’t

"I always saw his potential, everybody did," said Yankee starter Mike Mussina, who was on the Orioles staff with Ponson for three seasons. "He was like 20 or 21 when he came up and everyone always thought he had a lot of potential."

Ponson story

Sugar Bear not always sweet; Rayford, coaching in the minors, vents

In an organization that prides itself on developing players - 16 members of the Twins' 25-man roster had stops in New Britain - the coaches were finally out of answers, tired of making the same excuses, and this time they laid it on the kids.

"Why don't you go ask the players [what the problem is]?" hitting coach Floyd Rayford barked. "Why don't you go ask Perkins?"

Floyd Rayford link

How Rayford got to the Rock Cats

A new face will arrive in New Britain as the Club's Hitting Coach in 2005. Floyd Rayford, a 47-year-old resident of Silver Springs, MD, succeeds Jeff Carter who served in this capacity for the Rock Cats in 2004. Nicknamed “Sugar Bear,” Rayford played Catcher and 3B for the Baltimore Orioles and St. Louis Cardinals over portions of seven major league seasons between 1980-87. He comes to New Britain after having served in a similar capacity last season for Ft. Myers in the Florida State League; immediately prior to that, Rayford served for four years as a Coach with the Swing of Quad City.

Roenicke’s son starts pro career in New York-Penn League

They are referring to the Jamestown Jammers of the short-season Class A New York-Pennsylvania League, a starting level in professional baseball. And because it is a short season developmental league that runs from mid-June to early September, the teams are filled with newcomers.

Except for a few returnees, the Jammers, along with every other team in the NY-P League, have an entirely new roster made up mainly of players drafted in June along with some players being moved up the Florida Marlins’ farm system. There are no sons of former major leaguers on the Jammers roster this season. But there were plenty in this year’s draft, including the sons of Don Mattingly, Dave Henderson, Candy Maldonado, Jesse Barfield, Carney Lansford, Chet Lemon and Gary Roenicke.

Roenicke link

Ellie’s son takes over at the helm of local high school team

"Baseball is one of those things where the more you are around it, the more you get the game," said Hendricks, a 1994 McDonogh graduate who has served as a varsity baseball assistant there for the last six years. "The stuff I learned from my dad you can't measure."

Hendricks link

O’s top pick gets started; Billy Rowell, he of the 500-foot home run, now in Bluefield

By the time he reached his sophomore year in high school, he was being noticed by pro baseball scouts.

"I started to do showcases. That’s really where I got my name out there," he said.

At a home-run showcase in Florida, he was credited with a 512-foot home run, said to be a new national record. Rowell batted .507 with 161 RBI as a four-year starter at Bishop Eustace Preparatory School in Pennsauken, N.J. In his senior year this spring he hit .571 and drove in 37 runs in 82 official plate appearances.

Rowell link