Jul 12, 2007 - 04:05:21 CDT
BySTEVETHOMAS Bismarck Tribune
Wood bats vs. metal bats.
Even after a full season of play, opinions are deep- seated over North Dakota's decision to employ wood bats state-wide in high school baseball.
Acouple of scouts who were involved in the Mandan tryout camp Wednesday joined the wood bat corner.
San Diego Padres scout Hank Krause won't deny that the use of wood bats significantly cools off offensive statistics. He just doesn't believe that players are hurt by the diminished numbers.
"I'll tell you what, when that individual can swing wood it makes us more interested in him," Krause said prior to putting 48 young players through their paces at Memorial Ballpark.
While statistics have their place in the discovery and evaluation of players, Krause said they're just a means to an end. Eventually a trained eye will supercede what the averages have to say.
"As long as we have DonHanson we don't need to worry about that," Krause said.
Hanson, a former coach and publisher of the Hoopster, has been a baseball scout and a driving force behind the Mandan tryout camp for much of its 42-year history.
Krause insisted that players with pro baseball aspirations must at some point come to terms with wood bats. In his mind, the sooner the better.
"Kids who swing metal go to the pros and swing wood and some of them can't handle it," he pointed out. "... With the wood bat it's a different game. If you want to play this game you've got to swing wood."
Krause said he understands why metal bats appeared on the scene.
"We've had metal for economic reasons, but when you come right down to it, it hurts kids in the long run," he said.
Philadelphia Phillies scout Jerry Lafferty seconds Krause.
"As a scout, statistics are important, but the ability to use the tool that's going to make you money is much more important," Lafferty related. "That's what I want to observe, so I'm pleased they're using the wood bats."
Wood bats, according to Lafferty, significantly inflate a batter's abilities. Scouts, therefore, must clean away the chaff in order to get a reading on a prospect.
"Basically,I've found ... as a general rule of thumb you take 30 to 40 feet off the distance of a hit when a player is using an aluminum bat," Lafferty observed. "... Therefore, the home run hit with an aluminum bat might be a routine fly with a wood bat."
That's probably why all 22 bats available at Wednesday's camp were wood. And it's probably why none of the players who stepped into the batting cage came close to clearing the wall.
3 THEYCANPLAY:Krause, who operates out of Akron, Iowa, said he's been attending the Mandan camp "for 25 years, at least." It's his job to keep track of players in Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and part of western Minnesota.
"We're looking for kids who can really play and the last four or five years North Dakota has been outstanding,"he said.
Krause pointed to left-handed pitcher JeremyHorst of Burlington and right-handed pitcher Charlie Shirek of Minot. Horst went to the Cincinnati Reds in the 21st round of this year's draft and the Chicago White Sox picked Shirek in the 23rd round.
3 IOWA-BOUND: Iowa Western Community College was one of eight colleges represented at the Mandan camp. IWCC, which advanced to the junior college nationals last spring, has plucked three players from North Dakota. Freshman outfielder Tyler Lundy of Minot hit .378, belted 16 homers and plated 63 runs for IWCCand freshman right-hander TomEbert of Fargo was 3-2 with a 5.04 ERA.
Catcher-outfielder Jacob Wurtz of Thompson hit .312 with 4 homers and 37 RBIs for the Reivers.
North Dakota Gatorade player of the year Tanner Lorenz of Harvey has signed a letter of intent to play at IWCC.
TheUniversity of Mary, Briar Cliff (Iowa), Iowa Central, JamestownCollege, South Dakota State, Wayne State (Neb.) and Bismarck State College were the other schools represented.
3 GETTINGAROUND:Lafferty has piled up the mileage over the years. His territory includes Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and part of Minnesota.
"I've been doing this for about 27 years," he said.
Briar Cliff coach Boyd Pitkin, who is also a scout, gave the Minnesota Twins a presence at the camp.
3 AROUNDTHEHORN:In four hours, 48 players were clocked in the 60-yard dash. Outfielders fielded and threw. So did infielders. Catchers caught and threw.Finally, the pitchers took on the hitters.
Lafferty said he wanted to see center fielders and middle infielders running the 60 in 6.7 seconds. Corner infielders and outfielders were aiming at 7.0 and catchers at 7.1.
Krause said the Padres like all players to be in the 6.9-second range. The fastest time Wednesday was a 6.5.
3 AWESOMEALUMS:Graduates of the Mandan tryout camp include Travis Hafner and DarinErstad.
3 MORETOCOME:Don Hanson of Mandan, who coordinated the camp, said this year's pool of players is young, but skilled.
"This bunch of young kids showed a lot of nice tools,"Hanson said. "If they continue to develop we'll continue to have a nice run of North Dakota athletes. ... We've got some kids out there making good progress in college baseball."
Steve wrote on Jul 12, 2007 9:05 AM:
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