Some Random Thoughts on Lexington

As most of you probably know, I spent the last few days in Lexington watching the Legends (Astros LoA) in person.  I was able to interview pitching coach Dave Borkowski, hitting coach Josh Bonifay, RHP Nick Tropeano, 1B Zach Johnson, RHP Mike Foltynewicz and LF Jordan Scott.  I also met several other players while I was there.  It will take a while to listen to and transcribe the interviews and make some sense of everything I heard, saw and learned, but I would like to leave you with some overall impressions.

Whitaker Bank Ballpark and the Legends organization is a first class operation.  The facilities are extremely nice and the staff could not have been more friendly and accommodating. Keith Elkins, the voice of the Legends, made the trek from the press box to the back field clubhouse on numerous occasions to set up my interviews and patiently answered my many questions.  Every worker at the ballpark took good-natured pride in what they did (except for one surly waitress who shall remain nameless). Dave, one of the ushers at the stadium, became my new BFF despite the fact that he's a Red Sox fan.

I got a much better understanding of life in the minor leagues from talking to some of the players and meeting several members of the Legends Booster Club (including Ryan, Heather and Clinton who may be familiar to you if you're on twitter) as they hosted a potluck dinner for the players on Sunday after the day game. (As a side note, watching some of these players eat is somewhat awe-inspiring.)  It is not an easy life, but booster clubs and host families certainly make it more bearable.

I was simply blown away by the amount of information that Coaches Borkowski and Bonifay were able to impart in such a short period of time and how in tune they are with each and every one of their players. I didn't get as much of a feel for Bonifay as a coach, but I watched a few minutes of Borkowski working with pitchers on bullpens and I thought that the way he handled them was simply outstanding.  In talking to some of the pitchers, it is evident that they have a great deal of respect for Borkowski as well.

There were several things that surprised me. I didn't expect Mike Foltynewicz to be as charming and easy-going as he was. He was incredibly easy to talk to. I also didn't expect Zach Johnson and Delino DeShields to be as quiet as they were. I was pleasantly surprised to hear how good Nick Tropeano's fastball is and how he's using it to his advantage. I was a little miffed to hear from everyone how funny Matt Duffy is since he gave me the driest interview in the history of interviews over the winter (but since he hit three home runs while I was there, he's forgiven). And I never, ever, ever thought I would or could enjoy a rain delay as much as I did.

And I discovered a couple of players to watch who weren't really on my radar before who bear watching. I was somewhat intrigued by Evan Grills but after meeting him, seeing him pitch and talking to Dave Borkowski about him, I will be following the 19-year old lefty much more closely.  Drew Muren hadn't really even registered with me at all before, but seeing the rail thin centerfielder in action was a true eye opener.  Josh Bonifay described Muren as "wiry strong" and had some other interesting things to say about him. Another player I'll be keeping an eye on is SS Alex Todd.

More information, interviews, profiles and the like will be forthcoming but I just wanted to give you a taste of what I experienced on the trip.

One final thing I learned in Lexington. When the hitting coach calls you "ma'am," you're officially getting old.

Drew Muren April 2012

All 6'6" 195 lbs of him