Ty Cobb sliding into third base about 100 years ago.

 

Go to a professional baseball game these days, and you’re likely to see a baserunner slide with his hands first into a bag.

It’s the wrong way to do it, but it looks flashy.

The right way to do it is to slide feet first. It protects the hands and the head. All too many baserunners jam a finger sliding hands-first (commonly known as “head-first”), which is why you sometimes see a runner clutch his batting gloves in his hands when running the bases. If his hand is closed, he’s less likely to jam a finger.

Look at photos taken a century ago of Ty Cobb, arguably the best baserunner in the history of the game. You’ll never find a photo of him sliding head-first. You’ll find photos of him sliding feet first, sharpened spikes high, as he goes into a base. But never with his hands first.

There’s some belief that head-first is faster. But there’s no doubt that feet-first is safer.

When I was the Angels’ fall instructional league last October, I saw the coaching staff use a classic training technique to teach the players the proper way to slide.

Out came the sliding mats, a foam-cushioned rubber sheet placed on grass. Players remove their shoes and run towards the mat is if it were a base. They can flop on it and slide, like the Wham-O Slip ‘N Slide we slid on as children.

Not wanting to risk a tear to the uniform pants, the coaches broke out the old Angels road jersey pants worn during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Needless to say, not everyone had a fitting pant-size. Some couldn’t even button their waist bands.

Below are some photos from the sliding drill. You can find photos of fall instructional league players in the FutureAngels.com Digital Photo Gallery where reprints are available for purchase.

Angels minor leaguers await their turn on the sliding mat.

 

Travis Witherspoon.

 

Chevez Clarke.

 

Carlos Ramirez. (Who says catchers can’t run?)

 

Taylor Lindsey.

 

Jose Jimenez. (Another catcher shows his wheels.)

 

Rolando Gomez.

 

Kole Calhoun.

 

Wes Hatton.

 

Gabe Jacobo.

 

I spent five days earlier this month at the Angels’ fall instructional league, October 11-15. You’ll find photos from the first four days earlier in this blog.

Due to time and travel constraints, I was unable to post photos from the October 15 game, so some of those are below.

As mentioned on October 25, my computer crashed on October 23, and then my hosting service lost all the FutureAngels.com Video Gallery files. That’s been restored, so we can secure from Red Alert and start posting more photos and video from fall ball.

Fabio Martinez was the starting pitcher.

 

Pitching coach Trevor Wilson visits the mound in the first inning after a rough start by Martinez. Catcher Carlos Ramirez is to the right.

 

A throw to the plate is too late for Ramirez to block the Cubs’ base runner from scoring.

 

Abe Flores, the Director of Player Development, watches quietly from the far end of the Angels dugout.

 

Second baseman Wes Hatton snags a pop-up.

 

Ramirez directs the infield defense.

 

Andrew Heid leads off in the bottom of the first.

 

Matt Oye wasn’t scheduled to pitch until the fifth inning, but Martinez’s struggles forced him into the game in the second inning.

 

First baseman Kole Calhoun takes a pickoff throw from Oye.

 

Aaron Meade was the fourth Angels pitcher.

 

Meanwhile, in a parallel universe … Former Angels minor league coach Eric Owens and field coordinator Bruce Hines are now in Dodgers uniforms, coaching at their fall instructional league.

 

Eric Owens began fall instructional league as the Angels’ minor league outfield, baserunning and bunting coordinator.

He’ll end it as a Dodgers’ minor league instructor.

I’ve no idea how it happened, but E.O. got off the bus today with the rest of the Dodgers minor leagues for today’s instructional league game at Tempe Diablo.

With him was Bruce Hines, the longtime Angels minor league field coordinator. Hines left after the 2008 season to join the Seattle Mariners as their third base coach. A year later, he joined the Dodgers as Joe Torre’s third base coach.

Hines and Owens were warmly greeted by their former comrades, and it seemed a little weird to see them in Dodgers uniforms, especially at the Angels’ minor league complex. I’ve got think this is the first time a coach began the instructs with one team and ended it with another.

I filmed lots more video and shot lots more photos, but most of it will have to wait until I return home. I’ve had a problem all summer with elbow tendonitis, and it’s flaring up again, so any work at the computer is painful. Some photos from today are below, and you can click here to watch Andrew Heid’s homer.

The Angels won 4-1. Jeremy Cruz hit a solo homer to lead off the bottom of the 2nd, and scored three more in the bottom of the 8th, two on Heid’s dinger.

Today’s starting lineup:

1. Jean Segura SS
2. Travis Witherspoon CF
3. Jose Jimenez C
4. Jeremy Cruz RF
5. Roberto Lopez LF
6. Kaleb Cowart 3B
7. Kole Calhoun 1B
8. Carlos Ramirez DH
9. Wes Hatton 2B
P. Ryan Chaffee

Chaffee pitched four innings, allowing only one run in the 4th. I filmed the first three innings. Chaffee was followed by Brian Diemer, Max Russell and Loek Van Mil. Loek is the 7’1″ reliever acquired from the Minnesota Twins for Brian Fuentes.

Below are some photos from today’s instruction and game action. Tomorrow the Angels host the Giants.

Loek Van Mil is 7’1″ tall. Can you find him in this group photo? I thought you could.

 

Infielders practice a rundown drill.

 

Ryan Chaffee was the starting pitcher.

 

Jeremy Cruz homers to lead off the bottom of the 2nd.

 

Cruz rounds second as he circles the bases.

 

Cruz is congratulated by third base coach Brent Del Chiaro as he heads for home.

 

Third baseman Caleb Cowart was the Angels’ first pick in the June 2010 draft, and #18 overall.

 

Travis Witherspoon throws in the ball from center field.

 

Brian Diemer pitched the fifth and sixth innings.

 

Max Russell pitched the seventh and eighth innings.

 

Loek Van Mil pitched the ninth inning.

 

Angels Director of Player Development Abe Flores and minor league Field Coordinator Todd Takayoshi talk about … your guess is as good as mine.

 

If Forrest Gump had played minor league baseball, his mother might have said that life is like fall instructional league. You never know what you’re gonna get.

The instructs are in the final week, and the Tempe Diablo minor league complex has several scouts, both Angels employees and others, roaming the grounds. Apparently the Angels and other organizations are holding a tryout combine for independent players, evaluating them to see if they might sign someone for next year.

National crosschecker Ric Wilson and Western Supervisor Bo Hughes are here. Their names have appeared in media rumors as possible candidates for the Angels’ vacant scouting director job.

Five more games, and everyone goes home for the winter. Many of the players were drafted in June, but for others they’ve been playing ball since minor league spring training in March.

Also here is Loek Van Mil, acquired from the Minnesota Twins in the Brian Fuentes trade. Van Mil is very tall. 7’1″ and looks it. Also in camp are 6’7″ Johnny Hellweg and 6’7″ Alex Burkard. As one observer noted, it’s a good start for one heck of a basketball team.

I’m shooting a lot of photos and video, but much of it will have to wait until I return home to Florida this weekend. I’ve posted some photos below as a gesture of good faith. Hopefully I’ll see everyone before I leave.

Today’s starting lineup against the Oakland A’s:

1. Andrew Heid CF
2. Taylor Lindsey 2B
3. Eric Oliver 1B
4. Gabe Jacobo LF
5. Jose Jimenez DH
6. Kole Calhoun RF
7. Jeremy Cruz 3B
8. Carlos Ramirez C
9. Wendell Soto SS
P. Heath Nichols

Nichols was scheduled to pitch the first three. He was followed by A.J. Schugel, Kevin Johnson and Daniel Tillman.

Instructional league games don’t work like regular season games. Teams have the option to field 10-man lineups with two DHs, which the A’s did. A manager may call an end to an inning if his pitcher is struggling, which happened several times today. Even if the home team has won, the bottom of the 9th might be played to get in some extra work. That happened today too; the Angels had won 6-2 but Oakland wanted to play the bottom of the 9th. Okay. The Angels scored another run to make it 7-2, and their manager promptly called an end to the game. Take that.

Ryan Chaffee is the scheduled starter for tomorrow’s game against the Dodgers.

Here are the promised photos. Lots more, I assure you. They’ll show up eventually in the FutureAngels.com web site’s Digital Photo Gallery.

Starting pitcher Heath Nichols walks in from his bullpen warmup. Catcher Carlos Ramirez is on the left, and roving pitching coordinator Kernan Ronan is on the right.

 

Heath Nichols on the mound.

 

Gabe Jacobo makes a throw from left field. He was a first baseman for the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes during the regular season.

 

Kole Calhoun hits a double.

 

A.J. Schugel relieved Heath Nichols with two outs in the top of the third.

 

Andrew Heid triples to drive in Carlos Ramirez.

 

Carlos Ramirez scores on the triple by Andrew Heid.

 

Carlos Ramirez is greeted by his teammates after scoring on the triple.

 

Kevin Johnson was the third Angels pitcher in the game.

 

Daniel Tillman pitched the final two innings to close the game.

 

Angels minor league catching coordinator Tom Gregorio works with Roberto Lopez during the 2009 fall instructional league.

 

‘Tis the season for fall instructional league, one of the most overlooked and least understood annual rituals of the baseball calendar.

Instructional league is often confused with the Arizona Fall League, but one has nothing to do with the other. The instructs end around the time the AFL starts. The instructs are held at a major league organization’s minor league training complex, while AFL is played in major league spring training stadia. And while the AFL usually has many of the top prospects in the upper levels of minor league baseball, instructional league rosters feature mostly players who were drafted or signed last June.

The AFL was created as a finishing school of sorts for top prospects, an opportunity to showcase them and accelerate their progress to a major league roster the next year. The instructs are more like extra homework for selected students.

Official stats are kept by the AFL, although how much they mean is debatable. The AFL is a part-time job as everyone plays a couple times a week, but few play every day. The dry desert air turns these games into high-scoring affairs — Coors Field with cactii. Some players try harder than others, and quietly everyone hopes they don’t get hurt. Although the original concept was to feature top prospects, in reality many organizations send players who project as setup relievers, utility infielders, or backup catchers. Each team has players from five teams, so to field a normal lineup a team needs “niche” players.

No official stats are kept or reported at the instructional league. The reason is the games are more like a glorified practice. Rules are loosely enforced. If a young pitcher falls behind in pitch count, his manager can simply call an end to the inning and the other team takes the field. It’s not uncommon to see ten-man lineups with two designated hitters. The DHs might take the field mid-game, with two position players becoming the DHs. Although the home team has won, the bottom of the 9th might be played anyway to get extra practice.

Yesterday I was at the Washington Nationals’ complex in Viera, Florida for their first instructional league game against the Atlanta Braves. Major league catcher Jesus Flores underwent shoulder surgery last fall and missed all of 2010. He was in the lineup yesterday but was scheduled to play only three innings. He homered in his first at-bat, but going into the bottom of the 3rd it appeared unlikely his slot in the lineup would bat in the inning. So the Nats simply sent him to the plate again with two outs, to get him an extra plate appearance.

This year, the Oakland A’s are fielding two teams in the Arizona instructional league, the first time I’ve seen an organization field two squads. That’s another reason not to put any value in statistics. What happens when they play each other? Certainly players can move back and forth between the two rosters.

Stats are kept internally, of course, but under the above circumstances you can understand why they wouldn’t be “official.” Another reason is more basic — no official scorer is present at these games. There’s no neutral party to keep score and report it to Major League Baseball Advanced Media, which now keeps official stats for MLB and the minors.

The emphasis is on instruction, as the name implies. For many of the players, this is their first opportunity for intense instruction in the ways of professional baseball. Most organizations have their own unique style of baseball. Angels manager Mike Scioscia has implemented a regimented developmental philosophy and process throughout the organization. It begins with instructional league.

I’ll be at the Angels’ camp for the October 11-15 games. October 11 is against “A’s #1”, October 12 is the Dodgers (the first time I’ll see them since they moved to Glendale from Vero Beach), and October 13 is the Giants. October 14 and 15 are home-and-away games against the Cubs in Mesa.

As always, I’ll bring back plenty of photos and video, not just of the games but also of instruction. Click here for the roster; it will be my first opportunity to see 2010 draft picks such as Kaleb Cowart, Chevy Clarke, Taylor Lindsey, Ryan Bolden and more.

But older players are there too, for one reason or another. Some are making up for lost time due to injury. Others are learning a new position, a new pitch, or trying to fix bad mechanics.

The experience is fascinating for a baseball fan, because a player’s day isn’t focused on winning the game that afternoon. It’s about teaching how to win. And it’s here on the minor league fields of an organization’s complex that the teaching begins.

For a fan, you can walk in for free and watch the training up close. Nearly every Angels player currently on the parent club roster spent at least one fall at instructional league. You can learn as they do.