Prep connection pays off

Tim Hulett has never been one to play favorites.

But the Spokane Indians manager admits he must guard against the inclination to do so every time he deals with Denny Duron – which he has been doing once again on a daily basis, ever since the Indians signed the former Pepperdine standout to a free-agent minor league contract earlier this summer.

Hulett has known Duron since he was a young boy growing up in Shreveport, La. As the head baseball coach at Evangel Christian Academy, he tutored Duron on the diamond for four years and watched him quarterback the Evangel football team to state championships two out of his last three years in high school.

During that time, Hulett became a big Denny Duron fan, which he still is today.

And the two have been reunited this summer on an Indians team that returns to Avista Stadium this evening at 6:30 to open an important five-game Northwest League series against the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes.

“It’s crazy the way things like that happen sometimes,” said Duron, the Indians’ starting shortstop, who was hitting .277 with seven doubles, a triple and a home run heading into Monday night’s game against the Tri-City Dust Devils in Pasco. “But I’m glad it did. Getting to play for Tim again is a real treat.”

Hulett, in his third season with the Indians, feels much the same about the unlikely reunion. But he does his best to treat Duron as just another prospect, despite their prior coach-player relationship and the fact that Duron played high school football and baseball with all three of Hulett’s sons at Evangel Christian.

“He’s a great kid and fun to be around,” Hulett said of Duron. “He’s got a great sense of humor, and he’s an extremely hard worker – which any coach appreciates. But for him, it’s just like any other guys at this level, and he knows it. He’s here now, and he’s earned his way here.”

The only thing Hulett did was mention the 23-year-old Duron to the parent club Rangers as a potential free-agent signee when the 5-foot-11, 180-pounder went undrafted this summer after graduating from Pepperdine, where he was a four-year starter and the West Coast Conference’s defensive player of the year this spring.

As a senior with the Waves, Duron handled 173 chances and made only three errors, but he struggled at the plate, hitting only .286, with seven doubles, a triple, two home runs and 19 RBIs.

Hulett suspects Duron’s so-so offensive production was one of the reasons he was overlooked in the draft. But having seen him bat .481 and hit a school-record 16 home runs as a senior at Evangel Christian, Hulett figured he was deserving of a chance to play professionally.

“His defense has always been good,” Hulett explained, “and after seeing him hit in high school, I was a little surprised he didn’t have more offensive success at Pepperdine. I knew he could swing the bat, so I just let the (Rangers) organization know that, hey, if we’re looking for middle infielders, I know this guy, and here’s what he’s done.

“Our organization is really good with hitters, so I felt like we could help him and get him to the place where he can be really competitive at the plate again.”

Duron arrived in Spokane eager to play for Hulett once again, but not seeking any form of special treatment.

“Tim has been really great about that,” he said. “I haven’t sensed any kind of favoritism. He treats me just like he treats everyone else, and it’s worked out well. I’ve actually enjoyed it that way.

“I’ve told so many people, he’s the exact same as he was in high school. He’s constant, he knows the game and he’s still got the same great temperament he’s always had.”

Duron, Hulett said, was also capable of playing football at the major college level. But after failing to reach 6 feet tall, he gave up on that idea.

“As soon as I realized I was going to stay short, I figured baseball was my best bet,” Duron said. “I even went to a college without a football team, so I wouldn’t be tempted to change my mind.”

To take the next step in professional baseball, Duron knows he must improve all aspects of his game – even his defense. But he is convinced he has landed in the right place to do exactly that.

“I’m always working to up my game, be it hitting or fielding,” Duron said. “I’m just here looking to learn something new every day, and I feel because of Tim and the other coaches here that I can do that. They’ve all been around the game so long, and that’s great, because you can learn so much from them.

“Being reunited with Tim has been a real blessing. He’s just the man.”