Tagged: FWBL

Coast to Coast: Florida Today on FWBL Flop

Two articles in the November 23rd Florida Today about the collapse of the Florida Winter Baseball League.

Click here to read the article by sports editor Lee Nessel.

Click here to read the article by yours truly.

From what I’ve been able to find, Florida Today seems to be taking the lead on this story. Nothing in the Miami Herald or Orlando Sentinel, papers that are on top of this story geographically but so far seem to not know about it, or not care.

Another Halo in the FWBL


Chris Garcia spent two seasons split between Tempe and Orem.

 

I’ve been writing about the Florida Winter Baseball League and its former Angels minor leaguers. Three of them are here with the Space Coast Surge, and two are down in Miami.

I found a sixth. Chris Garcia, who played first base for Tempe and Orem in 2007 and 2008, is with the Seminole County Naturals. One week into the season, he’s second in the league in batting average at .391, 9 for 23.

I’ll see Chris this weekend. The Surge will be in Sanford, about 60 miles from here, to play the Naturals on Sunday. I’ll be doing photos and video for the league at the 1 PM EST day game.

The three former Angels with the Surge are Baron Short, Stantrel Smith and Anthony Sullivan. Tyler Johnson and Trevor Pippin are with the Miami Diamantes.

Coast to Coast: Familiar Faces


RHP Baron Short
OF Stantrel Smith
RHP Anthony Sullivan

 

As previously mentioned, out here in Florida they’re starting a new professional winter baseball league, appropriately called the Florida Winter Baseball League.

The local team is the Space Coast Surge, playing in Cocoa Expo Stadium, which was the Houston Astros’ spring training complex from 1964 through 1984.

The Surge players reported Sunday, and the next day they met for the first time. I was asked to do their head shots which you can see by clicking here.

Five former Angels minor leaguers have been signed by the league. All five played for Tom Kotchman’s Orem Owlz at one time.

Three are here with the Surge — Stantrel Smith, Baron Short and Anthony Sullivan.

The other two, Trevor Pippin and Tyler Johnson, are in Miami with the Diamantes.

A league official said to me yesterday, “So do you like all the Angels we sent you?”

I asked him to send Pip and T.J. to Cocoa too, but he said they have to spread the wealth. Oh well.

Anyway, the three seemed happy to see each other again, familiar faces in unfamiliar territory, and to have me around as a sort of Jiminy Cricket who already knows the area.

Baseball has an amazing ability to create families …