Valera named Elkhart County Miracle’s first field boss

BY STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Wilson Valera was on the original South Bend (Ind.) White Sox in 1988.
Then known as Wilson Uribe, the Dominican Republic native was 18 when he played in 69 games for the Midwest League team managed by Steve Dillard.
Craig Wallin was a young broadcaster for that club.
Fast forward to 2023 and Wallin is founder of the Northern League’s Elkhart County (Ind.) Miracle. He introduced Valera as the first-year team’s field manager Thursday, May 4 at D-Bat Elkhart training facility.
“I’ve been around a little bit and I’m very glad to be able to share my experiences in baseball,” says Valera. “It’s very important for me to show them the right way to play professional baseball and see how they’re doing.
“As soon as you see the player you know what kind of potential they have.”
Opening week at NorthWood High School’s Field of Dreams Complex is May 31-June 4. Players report May 26 and will begin a series of workouts at Elkhart High School.
First pitch on Wednesday, May 31 is slated for 7 p.m. Michiana blues and rock band Hideous Business is to perform from 6 to 7.
Ben Zobrist, World Series MVP for the Chicago Cubs in 2016, is slated to throw out the first pitch on Saturday, June 3. It’s also Team Picture Night.
“One way or another, this inaugural week of minor league baseball returning to Elkhart County is going to be one our fans will never forget”, says Wallin. “We hope the entire area comes out to join us in celebrating our new team and its entrance into the Northern League.”
There are 30 scheduled regular-season home dates through Aug. 3.
The Northern League is a hybrid circuit with a mix of summer collegiate players and professionals.
Organized by former Notre Dame baseball/football player Evan Sharpley, a roster of 30 to 35 will feature players from around the country with some local talent.
Among those featured on the Miracle website are Nathaniel Garcia, Bryce Lesher, Bryce Miller, Jaden Miller, Dylan Rost and Brycen Sherwood.
Valera, who is also related to former South Bend Silver Hawks pitcher Greg Aquino, played eight minor league seasons in the White Sox, Cleveland Indians and New York Mets organizations. He was at bullpen catcher for the San Francisco Giants (1989-93) and Cincinnati Reds (1994-95) coached in the Dominican Summer League for the DSL Twins (1996) and DSL Diamondbacks (2008-11). He was with the Arizona Diamondbacks coaching staff in 2011 and moved down to the Missoula Osprey as hitting coach in 2013. He has championship rings from his time in the Carribean World Series.
Wallin calls Valera “as good a baseball guy as there is. But he’s a better human being. He is a wonderful man and he has such respect for this game of baseball.
“This is a rare breed when you can get a guy of this caliber with minor league experience and big league coaching experience in our inaugural season. It’s pretty special. We’re really, really pumped.”
Valera resides in Elkhart and is an instructor at D-Bat Elkhart, 4411 Wyland Drive, Elkhart, which is owned by Jason and Shelbi Baugh and Eric Miller.
“I see the enthusiasm from the kids over here and how they want to play baseball,” says Valera. “Elkhart needs to opportunity to have a real baseball team and now the opportunity has been given to coach the first team.
“I’m very, very blessed.”
Valera’s son — Mikey, 12 — is a talented player in his own right.
It was revealed Thursday that Elkhart County will wear white tops with red pinstripes and a red cap at home and red tops with a blue-skulled/red-billed caps on the road.
Scooter is the team’s mascot.
Tickets may be purchased at the team’s website or at the gate. Fans purchasing Reserved Seat tickets will be seated behind home plate while General Admission ticket holders will find other seating in various spots around the park and are welcome to bring their own lawn chairs and blankets to sit on.
To access the facility, take C.R. 150 east off S.R. 19 then follow the lane to the complex.
For more, email info@elkhartcountymiracle.com.

Wilson Valera (left) and Craig Wallin. (Steve Krah Photo)

Wilson Valera. (Steve Krah Photo)

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Elkhart County Miracle joins Northern League; first pitch slated for May 31

BY STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

For the better part of two decades, Craig Wallin and his partners have attempted to get pro baseball for the place where he lives.
The longtime broadcaster who called games for the South Bend (Ind.) White Sox and Notre Dame and has been the voice of NorthWood High School sports in recent years announced that the Elkhart County Miracle are finally going to take the field with games airing on Federated Media stations (mostly on 101.9 FM or 1340 AM with Saturday night games will air on 95.3 MNC according to News/Talk 95.3 Michiana’s News Channel program director John Zimney).
The franchise in the Northern League — a six-team wood bat circuit comprised of teams with rosters of amateur and professional players. Other clubs include the Griffith (Ind.) Generals, Indiana Panthers, Lake County CornDogs (Crown Point), Northwest Indiana Oilmen (Whiting) and Southland Vikings (Hammond).
Oil City Stadium in Whiting was host to the 2022 Northern League All-Star Game.
While the Panthers are a traveling team, the others are in Lake County with Elkhart County being around 80 miles to the east.
“What we’re trying to build from the (Illinois-Indiana) border to Elkhart and developing all the markets in-between in inter-city tourism,” Popravak said, noting that the footprint of the league is about 100 to 120 miles wide and 50 to 75 miles long. “There’s 1.5 million people that live within that geographic area.”
The inaugural Miracle season is slated to open Friday, May 31. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. on the turf at the new NorthWood Field of Dreams in Nappanee, where the team will call home for its first few seasons.
The regular season is to close Aug. 3.
“We’re pumped about this opportunity,” Miracle founder and president Wallin said at a press conference Tuesday, March 24. “(Ron Bedward) and I started talking 16 years about bringing a minor league team to Elkhart County. We’ve been working diligently on plans.”
Northern League president Don Popravak talked about the niche independent minor league baseball plays in 2023.
“It is very important because in 2020 Major League Baseball took control of affiliated minor leagues,” Popravak said. “It used to be run as an independent operation.”
The first month or so with MLB in charge, the affiliated minors were trimmed of 40 franchises down to 120.
“Forty franchises translates to 1,200 playing jobs along with managers, coaching staff and everything else,” Popravak said. “We felt that it creates a great opportunity for a league like us.”
The MLB First-Year Player Draft is now just 20 rounds. For years it was 40.
The Northern League (which has a linneage dating back to 1902) seeks to attract talent overlooked by MLB.
“It gives a young player another chance to prove himself and develop,” Popravak. “That’s what we’re all about — developing talent.”
The Miracle will carry a roster of 30 to 35 players with many staying with host families. Some will be professionals and college players may earn through Name Image and Likeness (NLI) agreements.
Popravak, who has a broadcast background, notes that the Northern League has sent many young person working on league productions on to ESPN and minor league teams all over the country.
“It’s another part of developing talent for the next level,” Popravak said.
Former Notre Dame football and baseball player and Seattle Mariners minor leaguer Evan Sharpley is Director of Player Operations for the Miracle.
Former Baseball America Executive of the Year John Baxter is senior advisor for the Miracle. As South Bend White Sox, he hired Wallin in 1988.
Wallin said the field manager will be introduced soon.
Popravak said the league has been exploring more than a dozen markets across northern Indiana for expansion.
According to Wallin, tickets will be priced at $10, $8 and $6.
“It’s all about affordable family fun,” Popravak. “It’s about families and putting smiles on the faces of younger people and having them come out to the ballpark.”
Bill’s Bar-B-Que in Elkhart will be a concession partner.
Wallin said a 10,000 seat facility with a retractable roof that can house baseball and professional soccer is being planned. It will be adjacent to a 5,000-seat arena for ice hockey and minor league basketball.
Wallin shared a rendering by the Troyer Group Tuesday.
At the present, the complex would be near on a tract near the C.R. 17 exit off the U.S. 20 By-Pass in Elkhart. It’s one of the places Wallin and his group have had land contracts off and on over the years as they have worked to bring baseball to the county.
Plans for a new stadium and team were revived in 2013 and a stadium was to open in 2014, but that never came to pass.
Why Elkhart County?
“We chose Elkhart County because it’s been home for me for (about 45 years),” Wallin said.
Bringing in the baseball team is a way of adding to the quality of life to the Elkhart/Goshen area.
The seven stars in the Miracle logo represent seven Elkhart County cities or towns.
It’s been more than a century since the county had a team with professionals. The 1910 Elkhart Blue Sox were part of Organized Baseball and played in the Class D Indiana-Michigan League.
The independent Indiana State League of 1888 and a reorganized ISL of 1890 featured teams from Elkhart.
For more information on the Elkhart Miracle visit elkhartcountymiracle.com, call (574) 309-7176 or email cttcom@aol.com.

Craig Wallin, founder and president of the Elkhart County Miracle. (Steve Krah Photo)

Rendering of proposed multi-use stadium. (Troyer Group Image)

Honored South Bend park has ties to Hall of Famer Coveleski

Four Winds Field in downtown South Bend, Ind., was recently recognized as the nation’s best High Class-A minor league baseball ballpark for 2022 by Ballpark Digest ater earning top honors among Low-A franchises in 2017.
While had its current name for a number of years, it started out as Stanley Coveleski Regional Stadium.
Most people called it “The Cove” and many still do. A statue of “Covey” has greeted visitors who come through the outfield gate of the park since 2014.
The stadium that has been home to the South Bend White Sox, South Bend Silver Hawks and South Bend Cubs.
Stanley Coveleski, who was born on this date (July 13) in 1889 in Shamokin, Pa., moved to South Bend and ran a filling station on the city’s west side after a pro pitching career that landed him in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y., in 1969.
Coveleski went into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 1976.
A right-hander with a mean spitball, he hurled from 1912-28 with the Philadelphia Athletics, Cleveland Indians, Washington Senators and New York Yankees. He went 214-141 for his career with five seasons of 20 or more victories.
Coveleski won three games with an 0.67 earned run average for Cleveland in the 1920 World Series — which also featured Terre Haute left-hander Art Nehf (who’s name is attached to the baseball facility at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology — Art Nehf Field) — and reeled off 13 straight victories with Washington in 1925.
It was just a few years (1984) before the park named in his honor that Coveleski died at 94. At the time of his passing he was the oldest living Hall of Famer. He is buried in South Bend’s Saint Joseph Cemetery.

A bronze statue of Hall of Famer Stan Coveleski has greeted visitors to Four Winds Field since 2014. The park opened as Stanley Coveleski Regional Stadium.

Rebound season cut short for USC lefty Gursky

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Brian Gursky’s bounce-back baseball season was getting rave reviews when the curtain came down much sooner than expected.

A left-handed pitcher at the University of Southern California, the Indiana native started against visiting Xavier University on Wednesday, March 11.

Gursky recalls the unusual atmosphere when he took the mound at Dedeaux Field.

“Only essential personnel were allowed in the stands,” says Gursky. “It was like a travel ball game. Only parents were there.”

Gursky tossed the first two innings, facing eight batters with three strikeouts and yielding one hit as the first of seven USC pitchers.

“The next day I wake up and my phone is blowing up,” says Gursky of what turned out to be a COVID-19 pandemic shutdown. 

Thinking the situation would blow over, he spent about a week at his uncle’s house in Orange County then came home to Granger, Ind.

“I had not been in Indiana in March in years,” says Gursky. “We were having a great start to the year then comes the sad news. We worked so hard in the fall.”

The Trojans were 10-5 when the 2020 slate was halted. Southpaw Gursky was 1-1 in four appearances (three starts) with a 0.00 earned run average. He fanned 12 and walked three in 12 innings. Opponents hit .105 against him. On March 3, he pitched the first six innings against UC Irvine and held the Anteaters hitless with seven strikeouts.

USC coaches talked about placing Gursky in the Cape Cod Baseball League in the summer. But that league canceled its season and with all the uncertainty, Gursky opted to take 15 weeks away from throwing and reported to USC this fall fully-refreshed. 

An online accounting class taken this summer will help Gursky on his path to graduating with a Business Administration degree next spring.

Gursky played three seasons for head coach John Gumpf at South Bend St. Joseph High School (2014-16).

“That was a fun time,” says Gursky of his days with the Indians. “I have a lot of great teammates.”

Some of Gursky’s pals were Danny Torres, Tony Carmola, J.R. Haley and Carlos Matovina.

In his senior year (2017), Gursky played for former major leaguer Chris Sabo at a IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.

Gursky enjoyed a solid inaugral campaign at USC in 2018, but struggled in 2019.

“I had a good freshmen year and a disaster of a sophomore year,” says Gursky. “I was in a bad place.”

Playing for then-Trojans head coach Dan Hubbs, Gursky made 22 appearances (two starts) as a freshman, going 3-1 with a 4.93 ERA and 30 strikeouts in 34 2/3 innings.

His second college appearance was at Cal State Long Beach’s Blair Field, where played for the Brewers in the 2015 underclass Area Code Games and was named to the upperclass game in 2016 but did not play because of a forearm injury.

As a sophomore, Gursky got into 12 games (five starts) and was 0-1 with a 9.82 ERA. He struck out 18 in 22 innings.

“I thank (Hubbs) so much for getting to come to the school of my choice,” says Gursky.

In the summer of 2019, the lefty played for the Newport (R.I.) Gulls of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, where Kevin Winterrowd was the manager and pitching coach.

“I was kind of inconsistent,” says Gursky. “I working on stuff at the same time I was competing and trying to win games.

“But that was a the beginning of the turnaround. It set up a good fall and spring.”

Back in Los Angeles, Gursky had a new head coach (Jason Gill) and pitching coach (Ted Silva) in the fall of 2019.

“(Gill) has continuous energy,” says Gursky. “We all love playing for him. We feed off that energy.

“(Silva) helped me out. He saw something in me. He’s straight forward like Sabo.”

Gursky appreciates the approach of Sabo, the former Cincinnati Reds third baseman and current University of Akron head coach.

“He never sugar coated anything,” says Gursky. “He was a great guy to talk with in general.”

Another ex-big leaguer — Steve Frey — was the IMG Academy pitching coach.

“He was great communicator,” says Gursky of Frey. “We connected very well. 

“We’re both lefties  so we felt the same way.”

Back in northern Indiana, Gursky has gotten pitching pointers from Curt Hasler, who pitched for the 1988 South Bend White Sox and is now the bullpen coach for the Chicago White Sox. Son Drew Hasler has pitched in the White Sox system.

“He’s great with the mental game,” says Gursky of Curt Hasler. “I like that he’s been around guys who’ve pitched at the highest level possible.”

A 6-foot-2, 200-pounder who played basketball through his freshmen year at St. Joseph describes his aggressive athletic mindset.

“I’m an attacker,” says Gursky. “Either I’m attacking the basket or attacking the strike zone.”

Delivering the baseball with a three quarter-plus arm slot, Gursky throws a four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, change-up and curveball.

His four-seamer has a high spin rate and occasionally touched 94 mph in the spring.

His two-seamer sinks and run and was usually 88 to 91 mph.

“My change-up is very slow,” says Gursky of a pitch clocked at 76 to 78 mph. “It’s been my main strikeout pitch the last two years. 

“I grip it petty deep and pretty hard. It’s not in my palm.”

His sweeping curve comes in 79 to 82 mph and breaks left to right — away from left-handed batters and into righties.

Born in Bloomington, Ind., Gursky moved to Granger at 5 and attended Saint Pius X Catholic School. His first baseball experience came at 10 or 11 at Harris Township Cal Ripken.

He played for Rob Coffel with the Michiana Scrappers at 12U and for Ray Torres (father of Danny) with the South Bend Rays at 13U.

After that, Gursky was with a number of travel teams around the country.  Locally, he did a couple stints with the South Bend Cubs and manager Mark Haley (father of J.R.). 

“He knows the bigger picture,” says Gursky of Mark Haley, who played at the University of Nebraska, coached at the University of Tennessee and was a manager in professional baseball for 12 years, including 10 with the South Bend Silver Hawks (2005-14) before becoming general manager of the 1st Source Bank Performance Center and executive director of the South Bend Cubs Foundation. “He’s big on development.”

Gursky’s grandfather, Will Perry, was a pitcher at the University of Michigan. A broken leg suffered in a car accident kept him from a starting role with the 1953 national champions. He was later sports information director and assistant athletic director for the Wolverines.

Uncle Steve Perry played baseball at Michigan and was selected in the first round of the 1979 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 6-foot-5 right-hander advanced to Triple-A in 1983 and 1984.

“He taught things when I was younger,” says Gursky. “Now I get what he was saying.

“When you have a growth mentality, you take what other people are saying and apply it to yourself.”

Perry was one of three first-round draft picks for Michigan in 1979. Outfielder/first baseman Rick Leach and left-handed pitcher Steve Howe both went on to play in the majors. 

University of Notre Dame employees Matt and Susan Gursky have three children — Elena (24), Brian (22) and Natalie (18). Westland, Mich., native Matt Gursky is a mathematics professor. Ann Arbor, Mich., native Susan Gursky is a pre-medicine advisor. Elena Gursky played softball at St. Joe. Natalie Gursky is an equestrian.

Brian Gursky pitches for the University of Southern California.

Brian Gursky, an Indiana native who played high school baseball at South Bend (Ind.) St. Joseph High School and IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., has pitched for three seasons at the University of Southern California. (USC Photo)

Northridge, Evansville graduate Troyer to play independent pro baseball

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Sam Troyer has changed his swing to add more power and he’s taking it into pro baseball.

A graduate of Northridge High School in Middlebury, Ind. (2015), and the University of Evansville (2019), Troyer has been added to the roster of the independent United Shore Professional Baseball League’s Birmingham Bloomfield Beavers. The USPBL plays all its games at Jimmy John’s Field in Utica, Mich., a northern suburb of Detroit.

“I’m super-excited about going there,” says Troyer, a righty-swinging third baseman/shortstop. “I know I can get signed to an affiliated club.”

Since getting his business management degree in May 2019, Troyer has been splitting his time between work and honing his game. Joined by former Jimtown High School and Ball State University pitcher Nick Floyd, training is done in a friend’s barn. Troyer also works out with the Northridge team.

Troyer has been traveling regularly to the St. Louis suburb of O’Fallon, Mo., to work with hitting coach Kevin Graham, whose son, Kevin, was the 2018 Gatorade Missouri Player of the Year and now plays at the University of Mississippi.

“He’s the best hitting coach I’ve ever had,” says Troyer of the elder Graham.

Troyer met Graham through Ben Bailey, Troyer’s former Indiana Chargers travel baseball coach who now lives in Missouri.

Bailey, Joel Mishler and George Hofsommer founded the Chargers. Troyer played for the organization from 13 to 18, missing his 17U summer for Tommy John surgery.

“I considered (Bailey and Mishler) both my mentors,” says Troyer. “They’ve been there, done that

they have their connections.

“They know what they’re talking about.”

Troyer attended various tryout camps that went nowhere then in January and February, he went to Palm Springs to play in the California Winter League, a showcase for unsigned players. He impressed former big leaguer Von Joshua and the Birmingham Bloomfield manager invited him to join his club. Joshua was a coach for the 1993 South Bend (Ind.) White Sox.

USPBL spring training is scheduled for April 25-May 7 in Utica. The Beavers’ first game is slated for May 9.

Troyer appeared and started in all 53 games for Evansville as a senior in 2019, batting .249 with two home runs, 11 doubles, 25 runs batted in and 27 runs scored. He also stole 21 bases in 25 attempts. He usually hit first or second in the order to take advantage of his speed.

“I was getting on base and creating opportunities for everybody else to drive in runs,” says Troyer.

As a junior in 2018, Troyer played in 42 games (40 as a starter) and hit .220 with two homers, four doubles, 16 walks and 13 stolen bases in 14 attempts.

Wes Carroll is head coach for the Purple Aces.

“He’s very knowledgeable with an extensive background,” says Troyer of Carroll. “He made it to Triple-A.

“He brought a lot of energy, which I like.”

To get Evansville ready for the Missouri Valley Conference, Evansville played teams like Vanderbilt, Indiana, Boston College, Creighton, Florida Gulf Coast and Iowa.

Troyer chose Evansville after two years at Rend Lake College in Ina, Ill.

“It was my best scholarship,” says Troyer, who had a friend sell him on the academics at UE. “I enjoyed my two years (at Rend Lake).”

Troyer played for the Warriors in 2016 and 2017. Tony Etnier was his head coach his freshmen year and Rend Lake player and strength coach Tyler O’Daniel took over the program his sophomore season.

Etnier offered Troyer a full ride on his first day and O’Daniel was high energy.

“The thing I loved about going to Rend Lake, the competition out of high school was no joke,” says Troyer. “I immediately got better. It turns you from a boy into a man real quick.

“(The Great Rivers Athletic Conference with John A. Logan, Kaskaskia, Lake Land, Lincoln Trail, Olney Central, Rend Lake, Shawnee, Southeastern Illinois, Southwestern Illinois, Wabash Valley) is one of the better junior college conferences in the country.”

As a sophomore at Rend Lake, Troyer was hit by a pitch 22 times and ranked second among National Junior College Athletic Association Division I players in that category.

In two seasons at Rend Lake, he hit .285 with two homers, 59 stolen bases and was hit by 41 pitches.

Summers during Troyer’s college career were spent with the Great Lakes League’s Richmond (Ind.) Jazz in 2016, briefly with the Norhwoods League’s Mankato (Minn.) Moondogs and then-Prospect League’s Kokomo (Ind.) Jackrabbits in 2017 and South Florida Collegiate League’s Pompano Beach Clippers in 2018.

At 15 and 16, Troyer trained with former Notre Dame baseball and football player Evan Sharpley.

Troyer helped Northridge to the 2015 IHSAA Class 4A Elkhart Sectional title while playing for head coach Andrew Brabender.

“He’s intense, but in a good way,” says Troyer of Brabender. “He brought out the best in me.

“He was able to mold me to be ready for college.”

Troyer earned four letters for the Raiders and hit .429 with seven homers and 35 stolen bases as a senior while earning team MVP and best bat awards. He was a two-time all-Northern Lakes Conference honoree and was named all-state and to the Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association North/South All-Star Series (The North swept the three-game series in Terre Haute in 2015).

As an NHS sophomore, Troyer played alongside two future NCAA Division I players in Shannon Baker and Brock Logan.

Sam is the third of Steve and Shanna Troyer’s four children. Sean Troyer was not an athlete. Scot Troyer played baseball and football in high school. Sara Troyer is currently a diver at the University of Nebraska. In the recent Big Ten meet, she placed fifth in the 3-meter and 10th in the 1-meter.

Sam Troyer, a graduate of Northridge High School in Middlebury, Ind. (2015) and the University of Evansville (2019), is to play in the independent United Shore Professional Baseball League. He is a righty-swinging third baseman and shortstop. (University of Evansville Photo)

 

Hasler breaks down pitching delivery, long toss

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Chicago White Sox bullpen coach Curt Hasler was back at the place where he really got his professional baseball career going.

Back in 1988, Hasler was the starting pitcher for the first South Bend (Ind.) White Sox game at what was then known as Stanley Coveleski Regional Stadium. His battery mate that day was Mike Maksudian.

On Jan. 20, 2020 he was at Four Winds Field to talk about pitching with the South Bend Cubs Foundation Cubbies Coaches Club.

Hasler lives in South Bend, teaches youth players during the winter at the 1st Source Bank Performance Center and is the father of White Sox minor league hurler Drew Hasler.

The elder Hasler talked about the delivery and his belief in the power of long toss.

Hasler broke down pitching deliveries (some from the stretch and some from the wind-up).

“The best deliveries belong to starters in the big leagues,” says Hasler. “Relievers can get a little shaky.

“Relievers are only responsible for 15 to 30 pitches. Starters are responsible for 110 or 120. You’ve got to have good delivery to do that over and over again.”

From the stretch, White Sox right-handed reliever Jimmy Cordero begins with his feet shoulder width apart with most of his weight on his back leg.

“When he’s ready to go, all he’s going to have to do is transfer the rest of the 30 percent that’s on his front leg to his back leg and get to a balance position,” says Hasler. “This the simplest thing Jimmy can do. I can lift high. I can lift low. I can slide-step from this position.”

Hasler says that if a pitcher sets up too wide it takes an effort to get back over the rubber.

White Sox left-handed reliever Aaron Bummer’s delivery to very simple.

“He just lifts and goes,” says Hasler. “He comes set with feet and toes in line and slightly closed and more weight on the back leg.”

White Sox righty reliever Evan Marshall balances over the rubber and slightly rotates his hips while lifting his front leg.

“He’s in an athletic position,” says Hasler. “You’re not athletic with your feet and legs straight and your knees locked out.

“Eyes on target start-to-finish.”

The majority of major league pitchers do these things in their own way. Hasler says you can always find someone who’s different but those are the outliers.

“You want to make the guys that are good the rule,” says Hasler. “How high (Marshall) lifts (the front leg) is up to him. He has slide-step. He has a shorter one and has one with nobody on (the bases).

“Just as long as you get back to balance.”

Then Cordero was shown going toward the plate and in the process of separation.

“When your leg goes and your knees separate, your hands have to separate,” says Hasler. “They can’t be late. I’m not going to be on-time. My hand’s not going to catch up.

“He’s going to ride down the mound in a powerful position.”

Showing a photo of Max Scherzer, Hasler notes how the Washington National right-handed starter uses his lower half.

“He’s into his legs,” says Hasler. “The back leg is the vehicle to get you to where you want to go.

“I want all my energy, all my momentum, all my forces going (straight toward the plate).

“You’re using your glues and your hamstrings. You’re not really uses your quads.”

Houston Astros right-handed starter Justin Verlander is another pitcher who really gets into his legs and glutes and rides down the mound in a power position.

White Sox righty starter Lucas Giolito uses his hamstrings and glutes as does Los Angeles Dodgers left-handed starter Clayton Kershaw — the latter sitting lower than most.

Hasler says Giolito has one of the better riding four-seam fastballs and the correct way to grip it is across the four seams with the horseshoe pointing out (longer part of the finger over the longest part of the seams).

“It’s going to give you the most-efficient spin and the best ride,” says Hasler. “If that’s what you’re looking for.”

Righty closer Alex Colome gets into a powerful position with a slight tilt of the shoulders in his delivery.

Hasler says all pitchers, infielders and outfielders (catchers are a little different) have to step to where they throw.

“Being in-line is really important,” says Hasler.

Pitchers work back and front.

“I got over the rubber,” says Hasler. “Small turn. Upper half led. Lower half stayed back. I got into my legs. I’m going to the plate. I’m creating this power position. I’ve created created a little bit of tilt back with my shoulders.

“Now I’m going to work back to front, north to south, top top to bottom — anything you want to call it. I’m working (toward the plate).”

Hasler says pitchers who have a lower arm slot — like Boston Red Sox lefty starter Chris Sale — set their angle with their upper body.

In showing White Sox righty starter Dylan Cease and his “spike” curveball, Hasler noted that the wrist has to be a little bit stiff.

“You can’t be floppy over lazy with it,” says Hasler. “Dylan has spin the ball from 1-to-7 (o’clock). Nobody spins it 12-to-6. No one has an axis of 6 o’clock.”

For those without technology, Hasler says the best way to see if a player is spinning the ball the right way is play catch with them.

To learn to throw a curve, pitchers must learn to feel and spin the ball.

Hasler is a long toss advocate.

“Long toss is one of the most underrated and underused things out there,” says Hasler. “It’s a huge tool for kids.

“It can help arm strength. It will help you attain the best velocity you can attain. I’m not going to tell that it’s going increase velocity. It’ll give you the best chance to throw as hard as you can.

“It’s going to help you stay healthy.”

A problem that Hasler observes when the White Sox select a college player in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft is their lack of throwing on non-game days.

“They tell me they were a Friday night starter in college,” says Hasler. “What did you do Saturday? Nothing. My arm’s sore. What did you do Sunday? Nothing. We didn’t have practice. What did you do Monday. Nothing. We had an off-day.

“He’s pitching Friday and not playing catch Saturday, Sunday or Monday. That’s a mistake.

“You need to play catch. You need to use it to keep it going.

“If you’re hurt then don’t (play catch). If you’re just a little sore then do (play catch). You have to understand the difference between soreness and being hurt.”

Hasler showed a long toss sessions between Giolito and White Sox righty starter Reynaldo Lopez.

“(Lopez) doesn’t start crow-hopping until he gets about 120 or 150 feet away,” says Hasler. Lopey long tosses at about 220 feet and he can do it because he’s strong.

“He’s on his front leg. There’s no exiting stage left or stage right. When we’re playing long toss, my misses can be up. But my misses can’t be side-to-side.

“When I miss right or left the ball is screaming at me that something’s wrong.”

Giolito crow-hops from 90 feet and back. But nothing comes “out of the hallway” (no throws would hit the imaginary walls).

“His first step is pretty aggressive and he’s going in the direction I want to go,” says Hasler. “If my first step is small, weak and little then what’s my second step going to be?”

The tone is set for long toss and as the thrower moves back, the tone and tempo picks up.

“Pitching and long toss are violent acts, but they’re done under control,” says Hasler.

Cubbies Coaches Club meets at 6 p.m. the first Tuesday of each month during the baseball preseason. To learn more, call (574) 404-3636 or email performancecenter@southbendcubs.com.

South Bend’s Curt Hasler is the bullpen coach for the Chicago White Sox. He spoke at the Jan. 20, 2020 South Bend Cubs Foundation Cubbies Coaches Club. (Chicago White Sox Photo)

 

White Sox bullpen coach Hasler hands out advice on pitching mechanics

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

As part of the Chicago White Sox field staff, bullpen coach Curt Hasler wants pitchers to “throw to the best of their God-given ability.”

In order to do this — at the professional level on down — these pitches must be delivered with proper mechanics.

That was Hasler’s message as he addressed youth, high school and college coaches at the monthly Cubbies Coaches Club gathering Tuesday, Dec. 4 in the Pepsi Stadium Club at Four Winds Field in downtown South Bend, Ind.

Hasler, who pitched for the 1988 South Bend White Sox and is the father of White Sox minor league right-hander Drew Hasler, said spin rates, velocity and the use of weighted balls may be part of the equation, but it all starts with the execution of the delivery.

“The bottom line is the kid has to be mechanically sound,” said Hasler. “It will allow him to stay healthier and perform at his maximum ability longer and have command (of his pitches).”

Hasler echoed three steps that longtime White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper emphasizes: Stay tall, stay back and stay closed.

By staying tall, the pitcher can take a balanced ride toward the plate.

Staying back allows the hurler to create a power angle.

By staying closed — not flying open — pitchers will step where they’re throwing.

“We talk about balance and direction with young kids,” said Hasler, who teaches private lessons at the 1st Source Performance Center at Four Winds Field.

Examples of the best deliveries can be found with the top starters in Major League Baseball — stars like Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer.

Hasler said relievers can have flaws, but they make up for those with their power over a shorter duration.

Good arm action is smooth and the pitcher’s fingers stays on top of the ball at all times.

With “nose over toes,” his hands break over the mound and his delivery moves back to front — as opposed to side to side.

“We want them to go north and south and not east and west,” said Hasler.

Citing its ability to build strength and to maintain health and stuff a little longer, Hasler is a fan of the long toss — what he calls “pure throwing.” Some White Sox pitchers do distance throwing four or five days a week during the season.

“There are rules,” said Hasler of long toss. “You must have your eyes on the target start to finish. You use a four-seam fastball grip. You want to make the ball go straight. Do not let it tail.

“Stay behind and through the baseball. Give me a good crow hop. The first step should be aggressive with direction toward my target.”

Hasler wants long tossers staying in a “hall way” — an imaginary straight lane — while making their throws.

All of this is done while staying tall — no sitting or popping up — and hitting the catcher of the throw in the chest.

Hasler said the distance of the long toss can be determined by how far the player can throw and do everything mechanically correct. If he breaks down, he should shorten the distance.

Asked about weighted or heavy ball training, Hasler noted that it is a risk-reward proposition.

Some have increased their velocity through what Hasler calls an extreme training method. Some have gotten hurt while doing it. Not everyone is the same.

Hasler said one place to find independent research is the American Sports Medicine Institute in Birmingham, Ala.

Among the injury factors for pitchers are how much competitive pitching are they doing.

Max effort pitches and stressful innings take their toll.

Hasler sees pitching while sore, fatigued or already hurt as a recipe of disaster.

The likelihood for injury also goes up for pitchers in poor condition, including their arm.

Time off is very important.

“Rest is very good for pitchers,” said Hasler. “Err on the side of caution.

“We’d like you to take off a couple months in the winter. Some kids hardly ever stop throwing in high school (with practices, games, showcases and tryouts).”

Sideline days are to be used to accomplish certain goals, maybe working on part of the delivery, honing a certain pitch or increasing the ability to get first-pitch strikes.

In observing Verlander get ready for a start, Hasler watched him move back to 150 feet and then move back in to 90 feet and throw change-ups. The veteran right-hander then makes some throws from the wide-base position, using only his upper body. He also makes throws from the low-balance position.

“If these simple drills are good enough for him, couldn’t they be good enough for you?” said Hasler. “He has a routine.

“Routine makes you feel good. But remember, you run the routine. The routine doesn’t run you.”

In instructing pitchers, Hasler keys in on the positive. He tells them what they can do and not what they can’t.

“There are two ways to say the same thing,” said Hasler. “The first way is better. You can get a lot more out of it.”

Cubbies Coaches Club meets at 6:30 p.m. the first Tuesday of each month through March. To learn more, call (574) 404-3636 or email performancecenter@southbendcubs.com.

Chicago White Sox bullpen catcher Curt Hasler addresses youth, high school and college coaches at the monthly Cubbies Coaches Club gathering Tuesday, Dec, 4, 2018 in the Pepsi Stadium Club at Four Winds Field in downtown South Bend.

South Bend, Ind., resident Curt Hasler is bullpen coach for the Chicago White Sox.

 

 

South Bend’s Milovich has made a life in minor league baseball

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Andy Milovich was introduced to baseball in South Bend, Ind.

Andy played the game at Southeast Little League, South Bend Riley High School (graduating in 1987) and for South Bend American Legion Post 357 and then at Valparaiso University (graduating in 1992).

“I was raised on ball fields,” says Milovich. “It’s an important part of what I do and it’s what gets me up everyday.

“My baseball roots start in South Bend. It has everything to do with where I’m at now.”

He recalls fondly coming home after school and catching the end of the Chicago Cubs game on WGN-TV. The next morning, he devoured the box score and saw highlights on Ray Rayner’s show.

With Myrtle Beach being a High Class-A affiliate of the Cubs (one step up from Low Class-A South Bend), Milovich was beyond thrilled when he received a World Series ring when the big club won it all in 2016.

Back in 1987, Andy played for Post 357 against South Bend Post 50 in the first game at South Bend’s Stanley Coveleski Regional Stadium (now known at Four Winds Field).

Beginning with an internship with the South Bend White Sox in 1990, Milovich has made a life in the game with 2018 being his 28th year in professional baseball. He is both president and general manager for the Frisco (Texas) RoughRiders and president of the Myrtle Beach (S.C.) Pelicans.

A son of Ron and Judy Milovich and brother to Matt, Brad, Brian and Melanie, Andy learned baseball from his father who began coaching at the Little League level at 18 and continued in adult amateur baseball around South Bend until a few years ago.

Ron Milovich, an optometrist, started a team in the early 1990s featuring local players and some of Andy’s Valpo teammates.

“Dad was always making time for kids and the community,” says Andy. “That’s the way he was raised.”

Andy played at VU for head coach Paul Twenge and at Riley for Ralph “Peanuts” Pienazkiewicz.

Both men instilled in Andy the notion of balancing athletics, academics and personal life and overcoming life’s obstacles through hard work.

“Nothing is given to anybody,” says Milovich. “You have to learn it.

“You take that approach into the business world and you’ll have success.”

As a baseball executive, Milovich has faced the grind of a long season while helping to entertain customers.

“We want to put on a great show and give them a three-hour vacation,” says Milovich. “To use baseball as an opportunity to change communities the way we do is a really rewarding.”

Greenberg Sports Group, founded by Chuck Greenberg, manages minor league baseball franchises in Frisco, Myrtle Beach and State College, Pa. Greenberg is general partner and chief executive officer in Frisco, chairman and managing partner in both Myrtle Beach and State College.

Before joining GSG, Milovich spent 18 years with Palisades Baseball. He has served as assistant general manager and general manager of the Erie (Pa.) SeaWolves, GM of the Mahoning Valley (Ohio) Scrappers, vice president and GM of the West Virginia Power and became president and GM in Myrtle Beach in January 2013.

Milovich says the key to success in Myrtle Beach was “investing in people” and “built on affordability and fun.

“It’s the way we’ll grow it here (in Frisco),” says Milovich, who has turned over the Myrtle Beach GM reins to Ryan Moore.

Milovich went going back and forth between South Carolina and Texas before settling with his wife Cher (the couple met when Andy was working in Mahoning Valley) and daughters Addison (9) and Dylan (7) in Frisco in mid-July.

Frisco, Texas, which has an approximate population of 175,000, has been one of the fastest-growing cities in the country. It is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex (population over 7 million).

The RoughRiders consider north Dallas their primary market and the DFW Metroplex as a whole as their secondary market.

Milovich has been working to get an understanding of the operation and diverse market in Frisco. About half of his staff of 60 or so employees work in ticket sales. Using data, they target the various smaller manageable segments of the market.

“We’re measuring many kinds of groups,” says Milovich.

Frisco and surrounding area is home to many large corporations and there are several other near-by entertainment options, including the Texas Rangers (baseball), Dallas Cowboys (football), Dallas Mavericks (basketball), Dallas Stars (hockey) and FC Dallas (soccer). The RoughRiders are a Double-A affiliate of the Rangers.

Myrtle Beach (with a metropolitan population of around 450,000) is different than Frisco, with its smaller market and staff catering to the needs of both residents and tourists.

The main draw of the area is the beach and the Pelicans are trying to get their share of the entertainment dollar.

Running a minor league team has changed quite a bit since the 1990s.

“It used to be you could have your giveaways and a fireworks show and you could count on the community responding,” says Milovich. “Media consumption is now so fragmented. There are so many entertainment options we didn’t have back then.

“The ability to build promotions that resonate and connect with the masses is a lot tougher.”

To help him grow his network of friends and contacts and to advance the industry, Milovich serves on the steering committees for both the National Sports Forum (scheduled for Feb. 10-12, 2019 in Las Vegas) and Minor League Baseball Promotional Seminar (slated for Sept. 24-27, 2018 in Des Moines, Iowa).

Andy Milovich, a graduate of South Bend (Ind.) Riley High School and Valparaiso (Ind.) University, is in his 28th year of professional baseball. He is president and general manager of the Frisco (Texas) RoughRiders and president of the Myrtle Beach (S.C.) Pelicans. (Myrtle Beach Pelicans Photo)

 

Reinebold spreads baseball knowledge in Indiana, Jamaica

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Sharing baseball with those who may not otherwise get a chance to play it.

That’s what South Bend’s Joel Reinebold has been doing in Indiana and the islands.

On behalf of Rounding Third, a non-profit organization he helped start with former South Bend White Sox/Silver Hawks front office man John Baxter and others, the son of late Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Famer Jim Reinebold has helped young players at The Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in South Bend and with building and improving fields at area Little Leagues.

Reinebold recently returned from his seventh trip to Jamaica.

On most of those Jamaican visits, Reinebold has helped distribute equipment and baseball knowledge to youngsters.

“The kids are always very interested in learning,” says Reinebold, who is also head baseball coach at South Bend Clay High School. “(Jamaica) is the hub of the Caribbean. They have baseball all around them (in Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Venezuela), but they are lagging behind. (Jamaica) has athletes that can definitely play the game.”

The level of athleticism is higher than many kids from northern Indiana and southern Michigan Reinebold observes as a high school coach and director of the Jim Reinebold Fall Baseball Camp.

Reinebold said a lack of bats, balls, gloves etc., plus few natives with coaching knowledge and a scarce amount of land for baseball fields makes it tough for the game to get a toehold in a country where they love their sports.

“It gives the kids another sports option,” says Reinebold. “Pockets of baseball are so spread out. It’s not like here where every community has a Little League and travel teams.

“We’d love to build a baseball field, but land is so valuable down there.”

Young Jamaicans who do pick up the game usually stop by the time they go to high school because their are no school teams.

During his visit, Reinebold got to share baseball and smiles with players aged 7 to 13. He got to see how they observed Jamaica Day in their own-air school and how school was dismissed early so they could hustle on grounds usually reserved for cricket or soccer. All equipment was donated (it’s not like there’s a sporting goods store in every town or village). There were no $500 bats or $200 spikes.

Kids proudly rocked caps sent from Mississippi College (where Joel Reinebold played) by Dr. Jeannie Lane.

“It’s a different world from what kids around here are used to,” says Reinebold. “I wish I could take (Clay or camp) kids down there and say, ‘appreciate what you have. Look what these kids have to play with.’”

In his last two trips to Jamaica, Reinebold got to work with former U.S. minor leaguer Rainford Harris, who has his “boots on the ground” as a resident living in Negril and teaching the game to young natives. There’s also Damon Thomas is Buss Bay, near Ocho Rios.

He’s also worked with former minor leaguer Donovan Duncan and former Midwest Leaguer Andrew Dixon, who also live in the U.S., and occasionally come to the island to spread the message of baseball. Reinebold met Dixon at Treasure Beach a couple years ago.

A goal for Reinebold is a clinic sponsored by Rounding Third and the Jim Reinebold Fall Baseball Camp.

“I’d love to tie it into education,” says Reinebold. “The potential for those kids is amazing.”

Major League Baseball umpire C.B. Bucknor was born in Jamaica and lives in New York and also teaches the game to children in the land of his birth.

Youngsters play baseball in Jamaica. (Joel Reinebold Photo)

Jamaicans are eager to learn about baseball. (Joel Reinebold Photo)

The joy and hustle is evident in these Jamaican ballplayers. (Joel Reinebold Photo)

Joel Reinebold enjoys the beach on his seventh visit to Jamaica. (Photo Courtesy of Joel Reinebold)

Places to play baseball in Jamaica are few and far between. (Joel Reinebold Photo)

South Bend’s Haslers doing their part for White Sox pitching efforts

By STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Two generations.
One common purpose.
South Bend’s Curt and Drew Hasler are both in the business of getting hitters out in the Chicago White Sox organization — father Curt as the bullpen coach for the parent club and son Drew as a right-hander in the minors.
Curt Hasler, 52, is in his 30th year with the White Sox in 2017 — the first as a full-timer at the big league level.
Curt was drafted by Chicago in the 21st round of the 1987 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft out of Bradley University and made stop with the South Bend White Sox in 1988. The 6-foot-7, 220-pound right-hander pitched until 1991, making it to Triple-A Vancouver and a became pitching coach in 1992.
A roving coordinator of all White Sox minor league pitchers from the Dominican Republic through Triple-A the past few years, Curt will now serve the needs of manager Rick Renteria and pitching coach Don Cooper (who was Hasler’s coach for two seasons).
“We’re family,” says Curt of the Sox organization, noting that chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, executive vice president Ken Williams and senior vice president/general manager Rick Hahn are very loyal people. “You go out and do your business, do the right thing and keep your nose clean and you’ll have a job.”
Curt will be charged with many duties — from getting pitchers ready in the bullpen and creating gameplans to attack opposing hitters. He will let Sox hurlers know things like what pitch they like to swing at in certain counts and what the best put-away pitch is for a certain pitcher against a particular hitter.
“It’s a lot of little things behind the scenes,” says Curt. “Hopefully, I’ll be able to take a little of the load off of Coop.”
Having worked with many of the current big leaguers as they came up through the White Sox system, Hasler can provide insight for his MLB bosses.
“It does help to have a working knowledge of these guys from the start,” says Curt.
Drew Hasler, 23, pitched for Marian High School and Valparaiso University before being taken by the White Sox in the 34th round of the 2015 MLB draft. The 6-6, 240-pounder toed the mound at Great Falls, Mont., in 2015 and then Kannapolis and Winston-Salem in North Carolina in 2016.
“I started out wanting to be a catcher,” says Drew of his early diamond days. “Then I got older and smarter and wanted to pitch. My dad was coaching me all the way through. Recently is when he kind of backed off and let the pitching coach take it.”
Father and son went on several trips around the minors when Drew was younger and he got to meet players like Jon Rauch, Joe Crede and Aaron Rowand.
But being on the road so much, Curt did not see Drew pitch as much in Little League, high school or college as much as people would think.
“When I was there, I cherished it and I enjoyed watching him pitch,” says Curt. “Last year, I got to see him a lot. I saw him every time I was (at Kannapolis, where Brian Drahman was the pitching coach or Winston-Salem, where Jose Bautista was the pitching coach). In five days, everyone is going to pitch at least once.”
Used as both a starter and reliever at Valpo U. by head coach Brian Schmack (a former White Sox minor league pitcher), Drew has made all 55 of his professional appearances out of the bullpen.
He claims comfort in either role.
“To me, the mindset doesn’t change whether I start the game, come in halfway through the game or close the game, I want to get the guy at the plate out,” says Drew. “You might have to bear down a little more straight out of the bullpen to get your team out of a jam.”
Curt, who is planning to leave for spring training in Glendale, Ariz. Monday, Feb. 13 with Drew reporting to minor league camp in early March, says the White Sox don’t use label minor league pitchers as starters, long relievers, short relievers or closers.
“We want them to see different scenarios,” says Curt. “Roles get defined as they move up the ladder into Triple-A and the big leagues.
“You really need to develop to become big leaguers. To define someone as a closer and hold them to one inning all the time, that’s probably not to his best interest. He’s better off going two or three innings. He has to get outs. He has to use all of his pitches. He has to have command.
“Our goal is not to have a kid pitch 40 games and have 40 innings. It’s to pitch 45 games and have 75 innings. That’s better development.”
Roles at the majors are often defined by need as much as the talents of a particular arm.
“It’s constantly evolving for each individual pitcher,” says Curt, noting that Mark Buehrle and Chris Sale were used as relievers when they first came to The Show.
Both Haslers have been teaching lessons at the South Bend Cubs Performance Center, run by former White Sox minor league coach and manager and longtime friend Mark Haley.
The message given to young pitchers is the same that Curt heard from Cooper, Dewey Robinson and Kirk Champion when he was in rookie ball and it’s the same that Drew has heard from his father, college coach and professional coaches.
“Coaching and teaching is a steps process,” says Hasler. “The ABC’s of pitching, in my mind, will always be the ABC’s, whether it’s for Nate Jones or Drew Hasler or for Evan who’s 12 years old that I’m coaching at the Performance Center. Once we take care of the ABC’s, will can move on to the DEF’s.”
Those ABC’s include staying tall over the rubber and throwing first-pitch strikes and getting ahead of hitters in the count by attacking the (strike) zone. The White Sox want their pitchers throwing fastballs, breaking balls and change-ups for strikes at least 65 percent of the time and driving the ball down in the zone.
Drew is pretty good at following these tenants.
“Drew goes from the stretch only because he’s a reliever,” says Curt. “He repeats his delivery very well. He throws a ton of strikes. That’s goal No. 1.”

South Bend’s Drew (left) and Curt Hasler are both a part of the Chicago White Sox organization.