Independent Professional Leagues

Independent Professional Leagues

For some the dream of getting called up to play in the MLB is more of a long shot than for others. There are proffesional teams around the country that have no connection to the organizations around them in Major or Minor League Baseball. These teams collect ball players who want to continue traning and developing their skills. 

I was fortunate enough to become close friends with a player from the Washington Wild Things of the Fronteir League. Through working for the team I was able to often interact with the players easily because of our age similarity and our common interest in baseball. CJ Batey plays outfield. He was oringinally drafted by the Chicago White-Sox organization, yet chose to come play for the Wild Things so that he could get more on field experience. Players rarely are called from independent leagues, but it does happen. CJ hopes to reenter MLB scouts thoughts and return to the minor leagues. 

The dreams of going to the big show will never die for a lot of players. It hasn'd yet left my heart and I havent played any serious baseball in years. I hope to make a career in baseball, marketing and communication, so that I can always be around the game. 

Blog Inspiration

Baseball is a childrens game. It is more mental than physical, yet it is simple enough for kids to understand. It is an innocent game, yet one that can force grown men to feel so much emotion that it brings them to tears, or in some cases fist fights. It makes sense that I would write a blog about baseball, as I have mentioned in another inspiration blog.

I have a special interest in young ball players. It is the ones who work hard every day, without having anyone know their names, that make the game great. Those who are at the top of the All-Star list in the MLB would not be there if they did not have rising stars pushing them to stay at the top of their game. Minor league baseball is an interesting concept. These are professional athletes, getting paid crazy money to play baseball, two or sometimes three levels below the MLB, and making a living through it. From working with a team in the Frontier league I have realized that a lot of minor league players have to leave their loved ones to go play baseball in some random small town in a place that is far from home for many of them. It is inspiring for people outside of baseball to work hard and follow your dreams when you consider what a lot of these guys are doing.

I am inspired by sports and by the stories of those who play them professionally. They give up their time to entertain us. Although they are getting paid heavily to do so, it must be a real challenge to be at the top of your game and have a constand spotlight on your life.

SPECIAL: Steven Matz..... Call-Up to WS Starter

Steven Matz

Seems like something out of a ficitonal novel that a kid with the name Matz from New York would eventually pitch for the New York Metz in the World Series. He was drafted the second round of the 2009 draft when he was only 19 years old. Matz signed with the Mets for a minor league contract just under a million dollars just ten minutes before the deadline for draft picks to sign. He had an MLB debut to remember, when he got his first victory and also recording four RBI's from the plate. His record was only 4 wins a zero losses in the regular season when he was placed into the spotlight of being the starting pitcher in the World Series. He did not recieve a win or a loss but pitched a solid five innings while only allowing two runs. 

Steven Matz

Southpaws to look out for

Southpaws to look out for 

Left Handed Pitchers

Twenty-two year old Sean Newcomb is built like a linebacker and is an intimidating presence on the mound. He is a part of the Atlanta Braves minor league system. He has posted consistently low Earned Run Average statistics throughout his minor league career. He has the velocity to be a great starter in the big leagues yet his command still has room to be improved. Newcomb is the number one ranked prospect in the Braves system and the third ranked left handed pitching prospect according to Major League Baseball.

Sean Newcomb

The second ranked pitching prospect who is also covered in our next special is Steven Matz. Matz is still considered a prospect because he is still signed to a minor league contract. His call up to the MLB during the 2015 season resulted in one of the best stories in the recent history of baseball. Matz is only 24 years old and in his first trip to the big leagues, he was blessed with a trip to the postseason. The New York Metz won their way into the World Series where Matz pitched game 4.

Steven Matz

The top left-handed pitching prospect is also the youngest among those featured on this page. His name that you will want to remember is Julio Urias. The 19 year old was purchased from the Mexican League to play in America. He throws a mid-90's fastball with two devestating off-speed pitches. The Los Angeles Dodgers signed Urias when he was only 16 years old. They are trying to keep his innings count low in order to preserve the youth in his pitching arm. Urias is one of the highest ranked overall prospects in baseball and certainly the hottest phenom.

Blog Inspiration Topic

Blog Inspiration Topic

The inspiration behind my blog is simple. Baseball has always been a top subject of interest for me. Researching who the next big names in Major League Baseball are going to be is exciting. As a big fan of playing, watching and learning as much as possible about the game of baseball, it was easy to choose this topic because I will not lose interest in it whatsoever. 

I have enjoyed following prospects ever since I was old enough to know about the structure of minor league baseball. It is an exciting time to watch a player with big league All-Star potential move through the ranks and build his baseball resume until scouts finally decide that he is ready to move onto the big stage. A ball-players debut can be one of the best days of their life. Careers can be 20 years long, and some players may only get into the MLB for a few games, but either way the excitement of what could be is one of the best things to experience along with the players. 

Blog Typography Inspiration

Blog Typography Inspiration

Typographic elements of the world create the most basic messages. Text that is read easily and has a look that provides feeling is most effective in creating a mood for what is being read. Some fonts may be more serious, while others will look more playful. Depending on the word or phrase being presented it is wise to choose a font that best fits the intended mood of the text. The same theory of application must go toward color choices. Colors provide a feeling to anywhere that they are applied. Typography arrangement must consider the color of a text so that it meets the desired feeling to a message. You wouldn't create a graphic using the word "Lucky" without most likely making it the color green. 

Inspiration for typographical design can come from anywhere. If a designer wants his message to have the mood of cold or night they may use a dark background and light color font and simple font to look like stars in the sky. If a message is intended to be scary or evil a design may be in a radical or crazy looking font with reds oranges and blacks to give a look like fire and smoke. 

Typography can take the form of different shapes. It can be very effective to shape a message in a way that it looks like something related to the theme of the text. For example a world map created by each country's typed out name. It is simple yet effective. In my opinion all typographic inspiration can be traced back to what feelings we have set as a culture for different messages and words. It is easy to create a design as long as you know the way that your audience will most effectively receive the message. 

Blog Colors Inspiration

Blog Colors Inspiration

Using the colors white and red for a baseball blog was a fairly easy decision. Baseball's themselves are red and white, and there are many teams in professional baseball that utilize the colors red and white in their uniforms. Baseball is America's most cherished game as far as national history goes, and in every stadium you'll see a large American flag on display, two of its main colors are of course red and white.

St. Louis Cardinals Uniform

Cincinnati Reds Uniform

Philadelphia Phillies Uniforms

Boston Red Sox Throwback Uniforms