Friday Frivolity from Whimsical Wallee Wright

Since none of your Astros saw any action in the Arizona Fall League last night and only Danry Vasquez seems to have made an appearance in any of the Venezuelan Winter League openers (0-for-3, BB, R, 2K for the Leones del Caracas), our Whimsical Wallee Wright wanted to share an amusing anecdote from the AFL game on Wednesday ~

Major League Baseball’s Pace of Game Committee rules change test initiative is not without its moments … one such moment occurred last night in Scottsdale.

Last night, and the previous night as well, a young man playing for the Salt River Rafters insisted upon going through the same gyrations in the box as the biggest bangers in The Show … stepping completely out of the box between pitches, tightening his batting gloves, adjusting his crotch, digging the back foot very carefully into the back line of the batter’s box. Clearly this young man felt he was far more advanced than his time in the California and Texas League last year would indicate … though he had hit for the cycle in Cali in April.

The grandstand is very close to the lines at Scottsdale Stadium, so it is easy to hear the umpire’s calls and even the batter’s questions … the young man had a two-strike count on him as he went through his routine. The umpire instructed him ‘Get in the box’ … undeterred, the player made one final adjustment before stepping up to the plate.

The pitch was very nearly in the dirt … ‘Strike three’ bellowed the home plate umpire, walking away from home plate – end of an at bat and end of the inning. The young man was left alone removing all his MLB-star paraphernalia and gear at home plate, a stunned look on his face.

~ Wallee Wright ~