Posts Tagged ‘Jordan Henry’

Travis Fryman was fun to watch as a Detroit Tiger and a Cleveland Indian.  The Travis Fryman coaching the Mahoning Valley Scrappers is patient, clever, and a great motivator.  Having followed the Scrappers very closely this season, I can really respect the job that Fryman does.  Fryman took a few minutes from his hectic schedule to talk about anything and everything with me.

The name Squeaky Parker triggered a smile from Fryman’s face.  Parker was someone who helped Fryman’s development as a hitter.  “When I first signed, I struggled with the bat.  Squeaky Parker told me he would work with me by throwing me batting practice all Winter.  In return he wanted a new car when I signed my first big contract”, chuckled Fryman.  The Parker promise lasted for three years.  Parker would throw pitches to Fryman all Winter for three seasons to make him a better hitter.  The catch was that the type of car he would ask for when Fryman got that first big contract was upgraded and a little more luxurious each year.  When Fryman finally got that big contract, he delivered on his end of the deal and parked the new vehicle in Parker’s garage as a Christmas present.  That story told me some stuff about Fryman that I suspected but wasn’t sure about.  He is as honest and loyal as they come.  Without hesitation, here is my interview with Travis Fryman.

Paneech:  Tell me about a day in the life of Travis Fryman.

Fryman:  Well, when we are on a homestand, there is a pretty hectic and normal pattern to my day.  I usually get up at about nine and have my morning coffee on the deck.  I then start to play around with the starting lineups for that night’s game.  I make a couple of different starting lineups because sometimes the pitching gets switched up, so I want to be ready.  I spend time with my wife and kids.  We usually go to eat a good lunch and share some valuable family time at around noon.  I usually get here to the ballpark at around 1:30 or 2:00 and start working on other things.  We stretch and take batting practice, then we have a little downtime before the game.  At 7:00 we hit the field to play the game.  After the game is over, I talk to you, and then I can head home.

Paneech:  I know your three sons are in attendance showing the importance of family to you.  How important is it that you coach a short-season team compared to going for eight straight months?

Fryman:  Very important.  I feel baseball has given me plenty and I want to give some back.  We live in a house for the Summer not far from here and there is a good balance between the important time I spend with my family and the amount of time required to coach here.  The shorter season has enough flexibility to allow me more quality time with my family.

Paneech:  Who can we expect to see in an Indians uniform out of this year’s Scrapper team?

Fryman:  Well, I think if all of them didn’t have a shot, they wouldn’t be here.  I see good in all of these guys.  There is such a big learning curve in such a short period of time.  Jordan Henry is probably the best baserunner I have ever coached here, he also hits good deeper into a count. 

Paneech:  Is winning more important than individual statistics at this level?

Fryman:  Actually, player development is the most important thing at this level.  Winning games is always a good thing, but our job is to make these guys better players so that the Indians can win games, which is more important than us winning games here.  Individual statistics don’t always tell the story on how a player is doing.  To me, the development is the most important thing at this level.

Paneech:  I have learned by watching you that you don’t expect these guys to do everything right.  Where is the line between “He is still learning”, and “He should make that play”?

Fryman:  Again, they are learning things every day.  If a player makes the same mistakes over and over and over again, then it is our job as a coaching staff to work with that player to correct the problem.  Understanding that this is A-level baseball helps me get through mistakes a little easier.  Expectations at this level are not what they would be at higher levels because development is the key.

Paneech:  Tell me your thoughts on steroids in baseball and whether or not they exist at this level.

Fryman:  The steroid issues that Major League Baseball are dealing with are being monitored better than they were.  There was a year when Cal Ripken [Jr.] and I were the only two shortstops to hit 20 HR and have 90+ RBI.  Ten years later you see the numbers for shortstops and everyone is hitting at least that many home runs and you start to realize that there is a problem.  I don’t think there are problems at this level.  There are a bunch of safeguards in place to make sure that it doesn’t happen and I feel that baseball is doing better with the problem.

Paneech:  Did getting traded from Detroit to Arizona in 1997 come as a shock?

Fryman:  Yes it did.  I was told by Detroit that I would be offered something to stay but it never materialized.  They [Detroit] brought in Cecil Fielder as a high-dollar free agent and didn’t want to have to pay too many guys large amounts of money.  I got a call out of the blue that said I was traded to Arizona, and then I got another call two weeks later out of the blue that said I was traded to Cleveland.

One Word Answers

Favorite Meal Of The Day:  Lunch

Favorite Music:  Country

Favorite Area Restaurant:  Yoder’s Amish Restaurant

Player You Got To Be Close With:  Paul Shuey

What Do You Watch On TV:  Fox News

Who Was Your Favorite Player Growing Up:  Dave Concepcion

I Love What I’m Doing -or- I Need To Move Up:  I Love What I’m Doing

Do You Play Video Games?  No

In conclusion, Travis Fryman has his life prioritized the way he wants it.  He is giving back to the game of baseball and able to spend quality time with his family.  The players know when it is time to work, and when it is OK to kick back and have a laugh.  He takes his position as a developmental league manager to heart and wishes nothing but the best for every player he has.

Fryman is a class act and the Mahoning Valley is lucky to have him here.  I hope he stays for many years because his mission is so well-spelled out.  He is a refreshing alternative to the arrogant athletes on display in so many sports.  He stays grounded and will make these guys better players, but more importantly, better people.

The Mahoning Valley Scrappers are happy to see Staten Island go home, especially Yankee prospect Neil Medchill.  Medchill homered for the third consecutive game helping the Yankees complete a three-game sweep of the Scrappers.

Medchill put Staten Island on the scoreboard in the second inning with a two-run bomb to deep right field.  “I thought he [Clayton Cook] was going to throw a change-up, he ended up coming with a fastball inside and I just reacted to it”, said Medchill after the game. 

The Scrappers got it going in the third as Jordan Henry and Kyle Smith singled to start the inning.  Henry scored on a Jason Smit sacrifice fly to cut the lead to 2-1.  A Ben Carlson single scored Smith to tie the game.   Chun Chen scored on a Kyle Bellows fielders choice coupled with a throwing error to give the Scrappers  a 3-2 lead. 

The Scrappers added a run in the fourth as Tim Palincsar doubled and later scored on a Kyle Smith double-play groundout to up the Mahoning Valley lead to 4-2.

In the sixth, Scrapper-killer Medchill doubled and scored as SS Kyle Smith mishandled a throw that would have ended the inning.

With the score at 4-4, Staten Island struck in the top of the eighth when Luke Merton delivered with an RBI single to give the Yankees the lead for good at 5-4.

“It’s frustrating getting beat by a team’s seven, eight, and nine hitters, and they have been coming through the whole series.  It [this series] gave me a feel for where we are at as a club”, remarked Scrappers Manager Travis Fryman after the game.

 

Smit-O-Meter:  1-4, 3B (4), RBI (14),   Currently batting: .311

The Batavia Muckdogs got the best of the Mahoning Valley Scrappers Saturday night in Batavia, winning the game 5-4.  As a result of the loss, the Scrappers five game winning streak comes to an end.  Batavia pushed all five of their runs across the plate in the bottom of the third and held on for the victory.

The Scrappers got on the board first in the top of the third inning on a Jordan Henry RBI single to make it 1-0.  Brett Brach, the Mahoning Valley starter,  then had a nightmare of an inning in the bottom of the third as the Muckdogs offense exploded for five runs.  The five runs given up by the Scrappers were the most scored in an inning this season against them.

The Scrappers tried to fight back, scoring two runs in the fifth inning on an RBI single by Jason Smit and a throwing error to cut the lead to 5-3 in favor of Batavia.  Smit added an RBI double in the seventh, his third hit of the game, driving home another Scrapper run and slicing the lead to 5-4.  Unfortunately, Mahoning Valley could not tie the game in their final two at-bats, and ultimately came out with a loss.

The Scrappers wrap up the short road trip with a 5:05 game in Batavia before returning home to the friendly confines of Eastwood Field.

Smit-O-Meter:  3-5, 2 RBI, currently batting .333

On a very busy night at Eastwood Field, the Mahoning Valley Scrappers completed a sweep of the Auburn Doubledays, winning 4-3 in 14 innings.  The four hour and twenty-four minute marathon was the longest in Niles since the Scrappers beat Staten Island, 3-2, on August 6 of 2005.

Kelly Pavlik was at the park signing copies of his book alongside authors David Lee Morgan, Jr. and Greg Gulas.  Pavlik also threw out the ceremonial first pitch (above).  The weather was perfect for the big crowd to enjoy “Buck Night”, as well as an appearance from the Cavs dancers.  There was something going on everywhere before the game started.

Once the game started, Auburn jumped out to an early 1-0 lead on a Yan Gomes double.  In the top of the sixth, Auburn tacked on another run as Jimmy Gonzales drove in Welington Ramirez with a bases-loaded RBI single with one out.  Scrapper reliever Jose Urena pitched himself out of the bases-loaded one out jam to keep the score at 2-0 in favor of the Doubledays.

In the bottom of the sixth, Mahoning Valley got on the board as Jordan Henry singled and advanced to second on Lurvin Basabe’s walk.  Jason Smit found the hole between short and third scoring the speedy Henry cutting the lead to 2-1.  After Ben Carlson walked to load the bases, Chun Chen was hit by a pitch forcing in the tying run to knot the contest at two apiece.

In the tenth inning, Auburn got a run when Welington Ramirez singled home Brad Glenn.  The Scrappers tied the game in the bottom of the tenth as Ben Carlson led off with a single.  Carlson was then lifted for pinch runner Kyle Bellows, who stole second base.  Chen came through again with an RBI double that scored Bellows tying the game at 3-3.

In the bottom of the 14th inning, Rafael Vera delivered with a two-out, two-strike RBI single that would score Chen lifting the Scrappers to their fourth straight victory.

After the game, Coach Travis Fryman commented  on the long game.  ” I don’t have a lot of answers for that ball game, I really don’t.  I thought it was a very poorly played game, but a very gutsy game.  Both teams played hard for 14 innings.  We had many opportunities to win that game and it should not have went 14 innings.”

Fryman was also very praiseworthy of his catcher, Chun Chen.  “Fourteen innings to catch, three steals, three or four hits, it was a very gutsy effort on his part.”

A new feature here will be the Smit-O-Meter, tracking the nightly efforts of Scrapper Jason Smit, one of the most charismatic athletes I have ever met.

The 7-9-09 Smit-O Meter:  3-7 with an RBI (10), currently batting .325.

Marty Popham (on mound in picture) seems to get better every start and the statistics are backing him up.  Popham threw a career-high 7 innings, struck out a career-high 9 batters and only walked one in leading the Mahoning Valley Scrappers to a 6-1 victory over the Auburn Doubledays.   

Popham threw 89 pitches before giving way to reliever Austin Adams.  Adams kept the no-hit bid alive but after a couple of Scrapper errors, Doubledays LF Chris Hopkins singled with two outs in the ninth inning.  There has never been a no-no thrown at Cafaro Field.  The Scrappers recorded a no-hitter in 2007, but that was in Vermont.

A vocal audience of 3,903 enjoyed one of the best pitching performances in Scrapper history.

Mahoning Valley wasted little time getting on the board in the first inning as Jordan Henry walked and would later score on a Brian Justice wild pitch for a 1-0 lead.

In the third, Kyle Bellows, who walked three times in the game, reached via the free pass with two outs.   Greg Folgia delivered with an RBI double, scoring Bellows,  to double the Scrappers lead to 2-0.

Back-to-back singles by Henry and Kyle Smith set the stage for Jason Smit’s RBI double in the sixth.  Ben Carlson’s sac fly plated Smith to push the lead to 4-0.

In the bottom of the seventh, Lurvin Basabe’s double to left scored Folgia.  Besabe came home to make it 6-0 on Jordan’s third single of the night.

Marty Popham was throwing a perfect game into the seventh inning.  His walk to Eric Eiland squashed perfection possibilities, but he did leave with a no-hitter still intact.  After the game, Popham commented on his effort, “I had everything going for me tonight – all of the pitches, good catching behind the plate, and great defense in the field.  Going seven almost perfect, it was a hell of an outing.  I haven’t started since college, when I first got drafted they put me in the bullpen for the whole year and I just started coming back as a starter.”

Coach Travis Fryman praised the performance that Popham had, ” Two in a row, back-to-back performances that we expect from Marty.  At this level the guys are on pitch limits, obviously your not going to see an individual throw a no-hitter.  To get seven innings, frankly, this early in the year is a testament to how efficient he was from inning-to-inning.”

The Mahoning Valley Scrappers continued to struggle offensively for most of the game and ultimately lost to Williamsport 4-3.  The Scrappers paid tribute to the Negro Leagues and had three former players on hand who were honored before the game.  Mahoning Valley also wore uniforms paying respects to the Negro Leagues.   The Scrappers showed some heart with a ninth-inning rally that fell a bit short.  The loss moves the Scrappers to 8-6 and Williamsport goes to 9-5 with sole possession of first place.

Williamsport wasted little time scoring in the first inning.  Jiwan James singled and moved up to second base on a wild pitch.  James scored on Sebastian Valle’s RBI triple to put the Crosscutters up 1-0.

In the top of the second, Alan Shoenberger hit a solo home run to right field to double Williamsport’s lead to 2-0.

Jeremy Barnes walked and would score on another Valle hit, this time an RBI double in the top of the third making the score 3-0 in favor of the visiting team.

The Scrappers finally got on the scoreboard in the sixth inning.  Greg Folgia walked and would later score on a Jason Smit RBI triple, cutting the Williamsport lead to 3-1.

Sebastian Valle again hurt Mahoning Valley in the top of the seventh with his third hit, an RBI single, which scored Jeremy Barnes from second who doubled earlier in the inning.  Valle finished the game with three hits and three RBI.

In the bottom of the ninth trailing 4-1, DH John Allman walked and stole second base.  Smit singled to right putting runners on first and second with nobody out.  The next Scrapper batter, Chun Chen, reached base on a throwing error by Barnes, allowing Allman to score and cut the lead to 4-2.  Tim Palincsar hit a sac fly to right scoring Smit to make it 4-3.  Jordan Henry struck out to end the game with Scrappers ultimately falling 4-3.

Jason Smit, a native Australian, had a good game for the Scrappers, but was freezing in the 60 degree range after playing in the Gulf Coast League for a couple of years, “I can’t stand the cold weather, it’s a hundred and something every day in Arizona.”  Smit  has been moved around and used different ways since injuring his shoulder.  ” I was in rehab about four or five months.  I made a move to the outfield and I’m playing some first base, I’m doing whatever to get at-bats right now.”  Smit smiled throughout being questioned and said he doesn’t mind taking verbal abuse about Outback Steakhouses and Crocodile Dundee jokes from his teammates.

Coach Travis Fryman knows his team has to be more consistent at the plate to win more games.  ” We have struggled over the past week to score runs.  Some of it is losing (Bo) Greenwell and a good left-handed bat in the lineup.  If you don’t hit the ball out of the ballpark you’ve got to string together three or four hits in an inning, and if you are striking out, it’s a bad combination.  We didn’t handle their lefthanders well tonight.”

A decent crowd of 2,967 saw a pretty good game on “Buck Night” at Cafaro Field.  The loss drops the Scrappers to 1-4 against Williamsport with one game remaining in the series on Friday.  It’s fireworks night and no rain is in the forecast, so get there early!

The Mahoning Valley Scrappers won the first game in Williamsport against the State College Spikes, 5-4, on Sunday.  The win puts the Scrappers at 7-3.  There are two more games to be played against the Spikes before the Scrappers come home to host the Williamsport Crosscutters on Wednesday.

Jordan Henry started the game with a double for the Scrappers. He would later score on a Greg Folgia RBI single.  Folgia would also score on an RBI groundout from Jason Smit.

The Spikes responded with three runs off of Scrapper starter Marty Popham in the bottom of the first to hold a 3-2 lead.  After both teams scored a run in the sixth to knot the contest at four runs apiece, Mahoning Valley scored in the top of the 7th inning to tae a 5-4 lead.  The go-ahead run was a result of a Smit double who later scored on a Chun Chen clutch RBI single.

Kaimi Mead worked a scoreless two innings to record his first save for the Scrappers.