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Arizona Fall League

MLB could try instant replay in Arizona Fall League
2008-05-23 15:11:00
Following a four-day stretch in which umpires blew three different home run calls — two at Yankee Stadium — it appears as if Major League Baseball is looking into the possibility of testing out instant replay in the Arizona Fall League this year. ESPN.com, citing a baseball official, reported Thursday that MLB could then test the replay system during the World Baseball Classic and in spring training games in 2009, potentially paving the way for it to be used as soon as next season. It is unclear whether the plays would be reviewed by an official in each ballpark, or whether the calls would go through someone in the league office in New York, similar to the system used in the NHL. "I'm a supporter of it either way, whether you want to try it out in a sterile environment or go with it in a major league environment," Yankees GM Brian Cashman said. "I'm a proponent of using technology to improve the situation. It's not a complaint against umpires. I think umpires are doin...

By: The RotoFeed

5 Outfielders Whose Stock Rose While Playing Arizona Fall League Baseball
2007-11-29 20:56:00
Playing in the Arizona Fall League is an honor most major league prospects cherish and look forward to. Usually, it’s just prospects that are close to the big league level who get a shot to play in the AFL. And while the AFL isn’t quite as much of an audition as Spring Training is for securing a spot on the big league club, if you excel in Arizona you can increase your chances for promotion. Here are five outfield prospects that opened the eyes of scouts in the AFL and might have unlocked the door to a promotion in 2008. Caleb Stewart | New York Mets - Stewart had a very unique fall season playing for the Scottsdale Scorpions. He came barreling out of the gate with 4 home runs in his first 4 games. Then an oblique injury caused him to miss nearly two weeks of play. Upon his return he belted two more home runs to share the lead in AFL home runs with 6. His numbers in the AFL were .318/.400/.773 with 2 doubles, 6 home runs, 11 RBI and a 12:6 strikeout to walk ratio in 12 ...

By: The RotoFeed

AFL?s Dogs Make It Four Straight
2007-11-18 19:24:00
BY BILL MITCHELL Phoenix righthander Nick Blackburn didn’t earn the victory in the 2007 Arizona Fall League championship game, but the Twins prospect was unquestionably the key to the Desert Dogs winning its fourth straight AFL championship with a 7-2 win over the Surprise Rafters in front of nearly 1,500 fans at Scottsdale Stadium. Named the ...

By: The RotoFeed

Phoenix Desert Dogs, 2007 Arizona Fall league Champs!!!
2007-11-18 06:26:00
Phoenix Desert Dogs 7, Surprise Rafters 2 Box Score Scottsdale, AZ (AGM) - For the fourth season in a row and fifth time in seven years, the Phoenix Desert Dogs are champions of the Arizona Fall League. In front of a healthy AFL crowd of 1,433 and behind six strong innings and one run allowed by

By: A Wikia Wiki

Arizona Fall League Pitching Update #2
2007-10-31 15:35:00
I am back for my second installment about hot pitchers in the Arizona Fall League. Matt Harrison | Surprise Rafters (Texas Rangers AA) - Matt Harrison is 3-0 in 4 starts with a 1.93 ERA in Arizona this fall. He’s sporting a 2.00 K:BB (8:4) ratio and batters are hitting .216 against him. Sean Thompson | Peoria Javelinas (Colorado Rockies AA) - In two starts and two relief appearances Sean Thompson has a 4.66 K:BB (14:3) ratio and hitters are batting .121 against him in 10.0 innings pitched. After bouncing between 3 different organizationsin 2007, Thompson may remainwith the Rockies if these numbers continue. Calvin Medlock | Scottsdale Scorpions (Tampa Bay Rays AAA) - Calvin Medlock has pitched 11.2 innings in relief in the Arizona Fall League keeping hitters struggling to hit .154 against him. He also has a 7.00 K:BB (14:2) ratio. Technorati Tags: Matt Harrison, Sean Thompson, Calvin Medlock, Arizona Fall League

By: The RotoFeed

Arizona Fall League Hitting Update #3
2007-10-31 14:23:00
Once again, here we are for my weekly update on the Arizona Fall League hitters who are having a good showing. Chris Dickerson | Surprise Rafters (Cincinnati Reds AA/AAA) - Chris Dickerson is enjoying some nice power numbers as he’s hit 4 home runs in 15 games and his slash stats look like .294/.345/.608. One of the knocks on Dickerson is his strikeout rate as he’s struck out 13 times in 15 games and only walked 3 times, which was a problem he showed in AA Chatanooga and AAA Louisville striking out 162 times in 134 games. Sergio Santos | Scottsdale Scorpions (Toronto Blue Jays AA/AAA) - Also showing some power in Arizona is Sergio Santos one of the Blue Jays top shortstop prospects. Santos has 4 home runs and is hitting .286/.308/.612. Santos belted 20 home runs this year in the minors, but looked overmatched after his promotion to AAA. He will need to cut back on strikeouts and prove he can hit AAA pitching before he’s moved above third on the organizational dept...

By: The RotoFeed

Arizona Fall League ?07 Update
2007-10-28 17:04:00
Arizona Fall League ‘07 Update Evan Longoria, Travis Snider and Sergio Santos are powering a Scottsdale Scorpions surge while two international teams have been added to the AFL Team China and Team USA have been added to the AFL schedule. Team USA will play 6 games against Arizona Fall League opponents before heading to Taiwan for the IABF World Cup from Nov. 6-18. That international tournament will provide a tuneup — and a core group of players — for the most important competition: the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Team China is playing in the AFL for the same purpose. Team USA features such rising stars as Colby Rasmus, Delwyn Young, Andy Laroche and Jeff Karstens. 22 year old Longoria and 18 year old Snider are absolutely raking. Longoria is second in the league in total bases, leads the league with 4 jacks, and has an OPS of 1.017. Snider on the other hand has 2 homers and an OPS of 1.045. He has 12 strikeouts in 44AB which is a little high, but he does...

By: The RotoFeed

By: Mop Up Duty

Arizona Fall League Notebook: Oct. 25
2007-10-25 06:03:00
MESA, Ariz.–Astros’ righthander Brad James cruised through the high Class A Carolina League at Salem with nary a problem in 2007. James, a 2004 29th-round pick out of North Central (Texas) Junior College–the same school as Astros’ catcher J.R. Towles–often relied on nothing but his sinker during his stint with the Avalanche and rarely focused on ...

By: The RotoFeed

Arizona Fall League Notebook: Oct. 23
2007-10-23 08:20:00
SURPRISE, Ariz.–Right after Elvis Andrus showed up for instructional league at Rangers’ camp before heading to the Arizona Fall League, Texas director of player personnel Scott Servais and director of professional and international scouting A.J. Preller took the Venezuelan teenager to dinner. One of the major pieces the Rangers received back in the Mark Teixeira deal ...

By: The RotoFeed

Arizona Fall League Hitting Update
2007-10-22 19:28:00
Back for my weekly update in the Arizona Fall League, here’s three hitters who are doing well. Kila Kaaihue | Surprise Rafters (Kansas City Royals A/AA) - Kila Kaaihue hit 21 home runs between single A Wilmington and double A Wichita in 2007. However, his slash stats of .248/.359/.447 left some unimpressed. He’s off to a fast start in Arizona hitting .412/.583/.882 and shows 20+ home run power. He needs to keep up the hot hitting this fall and find ways in the spring to bring his weak ‘07 slash stats up. Eugenio Velez | Scottsdale Scorpions (San Francisco Giants AA/AAA) - Eugenio Velez is a speedy outfielder who already has 9 stolen bases in 10 games this fall in Arizona. Unfortunately, he’s also struck out 10 times and is hitting .238. Last year, Velez stole 54 bases while hitting .297 in the minor leagues. If he can bring his batting average up, the Giants may find a way to keep him in the majors in 2008. Brett Gardner | Peoria Javelinas (New York Yankees ...

By: The RotoFeed

Arizona Fall League Notebook: Oct. 21
2007-10-21 05:51:00
SURPRISE, Ariz.–Mesa Solar Sox hitting coach Sandy Guerrero stood around the cage and waited for Matt LaPorta to begin his batting practice in the final group of hitters before Saturday’s game against the Surprise Rafters. Except that wasn’t a fungo Guerrero was holding–he was waiting to get his licks in Group Four against Chad Epperson as ...

By: The RotoFeed

Arizona Fall League Notebook: Oct. 20
2007-10-20 05:59:00
PHOENIX–Rangers outfielder John Mayberry Jr. was the talk of the town today . . . and not just among scouts at Phoenix Municipal Stadium watching the Surprise Rafters take on the Desert Dogs. Every scout and front office person hanging around the Brewers’ final instructional league game against the Dodgers in Maryvale wanted to discuss Mayberry ...

By: The RotoFeed

Arizona Fall League Notebook: Oct. 19
2007-10-19 03:25:00
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.–Most mornings, the future of the left side of the infield in Tampa can be found at a little breakfast spot in Old Town Scottsdale, just around the corner from the string of shops where you can buy anything from homemade salsas to snake oil. But for as close as third baseman Evan Longoria and ...

By: The RotoFeed

Details from the Arizona Fall League (2007-10-18)
2007-10-19 02:56:00
Arizona Fall League action is rolling, Good Ole' Uncle Manny pulled some strings and secured himself a season-long media pass and now it's time to tell the stories from Arizona Fall League. What is AFL? Arizona Fall League was created in 1992 as an off-season "graduate school" for baseball's top

By: A Wikia Wiki

Arizona Fall League Update
2007-10-19 00:09:00
The Arizona Fall League has gotten underway and there are a few Giants' of note participating this year. Daniel Ortmeier, Nate Schierholtz and Eugenio Velez are all getting an extension to their 2007 season. Ortmeier and Schierholtz are getting the most attention as both have a shot at starting somewhere for the Giants in 2008. The Giants' longterm plan of moving Ortmeier to first base has carried over into the fall and it's looking more and more likely that the position will be his next season. He's gotten of to a hot start in the AFL, leading the league in hitting with .406 avg. through his first 6 games while playing a flawless first base. He's also been getting a lot of mentoring from J.T. Snow during the process. I am very curious to see how this experiment works out. I never had high hopes for Ortmeier, but He kept getting better and better with the more playing time he got towards the end of the season. 6 home runs, a .287 average and .819 OPS over 157 big league at-bats...

By: The San Francisco Giants Blog

Arizona Fall League Game Review: Scottsdale @ Surprise 10/15
2007-10-18 18:59:00
The first place Surprise Rafters (5-1) defeated the winless Scottsdale Scorpions (0-6) Monday by a score of 9-6. Lefthander Dusty Hughes, the Kansas City Royals Minor League Pitcher of the Year with Double A Wichita, tossed four perfect innings, on just 36 pitches, to pick up the win. For the

By: A Wikia Wiki

Arizona Fall League Notebook: Oct. 17
2007-10-17 05:54:00
PHOENIX–It almost seemed like Pat Overholt’s second inning of work at Phoenix Municipal Stadium would never come to an end. After battling his way out of a fourth inning that included Overholt’s catcher–the Peoria Saguaros’ Brett Hayes (Marlins)–throwing out speedster Andrew McCutchen (Pirates) after a leadoff walk, the Phillies’ righthander cruised through the remainder of the ...

By: The RotoFeed

Arizona Fall League: Early Hitting Stars
2007-10-15 18:29:00
The Arizona Fall League has been running now for about a week and I wanted to look at a few of the hitting stars so far. John Mayberry Jr. | Surprise (TEX) - Mayberry has three home runs in 13 at bats and is showing the power that notched him 30 home runs between high A ball and AA last season. Home runs come naturally to this 2005 first round pick by the Texas Rangers, but he’ll need to work on plate discipline (126 strikeouts in 489 at bats with only 16 walks) before he’s handed an All-Star outfield spot for the Rangers. Evan Longoria | Scottsdale (TB) - Longoria also has 3 home runs in 18 at bats and Rays fans are frothing at the mouth awaiting his arrival at 3B next season. Longoria also has 8 strikouts so far, a number that’s going to have to slow down soon. Matt LaPorta | Mesa (MIL) - LaPorta has a triple and 2 home runs in 17 at bats this fall. After belting 12 home runs in 30 games in Rookie ball and Single A, this first round draft pick (seventh overall)...

By: The RotoFeed

By: Mop Up Duty

Arizona Fall League 2007
2007-09-20 01:23:00
Arizona Fall League 2007 With my team (the Jays) without any hope of making the playoffs, I still need to feed my baseball hunger on top of MLB playoffs. Since I would rather stab myself in the eye than listen to updates on the Leafs’ training camp, I focus my attention on the upcoming Arizona Fall League season which showcases the hot prospects of today and future stars of tomorrow. I present to you the Arizona Fall League primer for 2007. Makeup of the AFL There are six teams in the Arizona Fall League: the Scottsdale Scorpions, Mesa Solar Sox, Peoria Saguaros, Phoenix Desert Dogs, Peoria Javelinas and Surprise Rafters. The teams are broken into two divisions, East and West. Each Major League Baseball team sends six top prospects to the Arizona Fall League, 180 players in all. The games are played in the Spring Training stadiums used by the Giants, Mariners, Padres, Cubs, A’s, Royals and Rangers. Each August, Major League clubs hold a position draft to determine t...

By: The RotoFeed

Arizona Fall League Rosters Announced
2007-08-29 16:47:00
The Arizona Fall League, the premier development league for Major League Baseball's top prospects, released preliminary rosters on Monday in preparation for its 16th season. From future Hall of Famer Mike Piazza in the inagural season in 1992, to Ryan Braun in 2006, the AFL has been a destination

By: A Wikia Wiki