Where Are They Now? Checking Up On The Spokane Area’s Baseball Roots Former Spokane Junior Comes Of Age

Although Seattle Mariners fans may see this as the year of the namesake, and Baltimore Orioles boosters could hardly forget it, died-in-the-wool Spokane Indians backers have a Junior of their own.

Cleveland catcher Sandy Alomar Jr. has been sharing the American League spotlight with Seattle’s Ken Griffey Jr. and Jose Cruz Jr. and Baltimore iron man Cal Ripken Jr. as major league baseball reaches the halfway point of its 1997 season.

Alomar, a remnant of the grim years after Spokane lost its Pacific Coast League franchise, has surged into prominence with a long hitting streak and his bid for the A.L. batting lead.

Spokane fans try to forget the less-than-memorable Northwest League teams of the early 1980s. The first, in 1983, featured left-handed pitcher Mitch Williams, whose meteoric career as a big-league reliever crashed in the 1993 World Series and burned this spring in the Kansas City bullpen. The second had Alomar and outfielder Rodney McCray, who etched his name in baseball memory by running through an outfield fence in Portland.

Alomar, the last active player from either team, has surmounted several seasons of frustration to revive old notions that he looked like a star.

Like Griffey, Cruz and Ripken, he comes from a baseball family. Santos (Sandy) Alomar Sr. has had a 35-year career as a major league infielder and coach. Alomar Jr. can go those other one better. His younger brother, Roberto, is Ripken’s teammate, the superstar second baseman of the Orioles.

Sandy Alomar Jr.’s success is not the surprise it may seem. Fans with long memories recall he had been a rare two-time minor-league player of the year before becoming American League rookie of the year in 1990. However, problems with his throwing shoulder, a hip, a thumb and chronic difficulties with his left knee prevented him from playing as many as 100 games again until 1996.

He credits his offensive turn-around to an exhaustive training program and a different approach to hitting.

“Last year, my goal was to stay healthy all year, just to stay in the lineup,” he said. “This year, I came in stronger. The off-season conditioning really helped me a lot.

Cleveland’s media relations director Bart Swain agrees.

“He worked harder than anyone on our roster last winter, getting his knee in shape,” Swain said. “He gained a lot of weight, in the form of muscle, and strength.”

With encouragement from the homefront, Alomar, who marked his 31st birthday on June 18, believes he’s coming into his own as a hitter.

“I had a talk with my dad in the off-season, and he told me to be more aggressive,” Alomar said. “I put a lot of responsibility on myself this year. I feel I can produce more. Now, I want to drive the ball, so I can drive in more runs. We don’t have the ‘95 team that killed that league.”

The facts bear him out. With half a season to play, Alomar, whose single broke up Mike Mussina’s perfect game for Baltimore with one out in the ninth inning on May 30, ranks with league leaders in slugging percentage and doubles. He has dead aim on career highs for home runs and RBIs and he’s even outhitting his brother, who may hold a ticket to the Hall of Fame. Has he been surprised?

“I consider myself a pretty good hitter, .270 (career) isn’t that bad,” he said. “But finally I’m healthy. I have faith in God, faith in myself and a lot of confidence.”

Still, he’s not confused about his role.

“It’s difficult to be a catcher and lead the league because catching tends to wear you out,” the handsome, 6-foot-4 catcher said. “And,” he warned, “defense for a catcher is the main thing. That comes before hitting.”

Oddly enough, Alomar and another former Spokane prospect, Joey Cora (1985), one-time minor-league roommates, have had two of this season’s longest hitting streaks. The two also were selected to represent the American League in Tuesday’s All-Star Game.

With one game to play before the break, Alomar is enjoying a 29-game hitting streak entering today’s game. He was given Saturday off following a night game on Friday.

Cora, regular second baseman for the Seattle Mariners, had a club-record 24-game streak in late May.

Alomar keeps in touch with both his father and his brother.

“My dad calls me twice a week some times,” he said. “Roberto? I talk to him once or twice a week. He’s calling me, wanting to know how I’m sleeping, what I’m eating, how I’m standing, so he can do the same thing.”

Alomar has fond memories of his stay in Spokane, where he hit a meek .215 as a raw rookie.

“We stayed in the Gonzaga University dorms, and I was kind of homesick at first,” he said. “It was the first time I had been away from Puerto Rico. I came from American Legion to face all these college people. They were way ahead of me. But, I had a great time, and it was a great learning experience.”

Alomar is not the only active namesake with Spokane Indians connections. Bobby Bonds Jr. (1992), whose career began very slowly, tore up the California League as a San Francisco Giants farmhand during the first two months of the current season. Gary Matthews Jr. (1994) is batting .306 at San Diego’s Double-A farmclub at Mobile. He had been leading the Cal League in runs for Rancho Cucamonga.

Not a big hit

Only former Lewis-Clark State College outfielder Marvin Benard stood between Florida’s Kevin Brown and major league baseball’s 15th perfect game on June 10, when Brown hit Benard in the right leg with a two-out, two- strike fastball. Brown threw a no-hitter, beating San Francisco 9-0.

Royals report

Don’t give up on members of the 1995 or 1996 Indians, the first two clubs staffed by the current parent team, the Kansas City Royals. Although both squads had losing records, the 1995 assemblage has right-handed starter Matt Saier on the fast track to the big leagues with outfielder Mark Quinn not far behind. Saier, signed as a 15th-rounder out of Georgia Tech, carried a flashy 1.69 earned run average for Wilmington of the Carolina League when the Royals promoted him to Double-A Wichita in early June. Saier has a 3-2 record for the Texas League club. Quinn is hitting .311 at Wilmington where his 17 doubles, 11 homers and 57 RBIs have him among the leaders. Jeremy Giambi and Kit Pellow have batted their way from Lansing of the Midwest League to Wichita. Tony Miranda remains at Lansing, where he and first baseman Jason Layne are above the .300 mark and Kenderick Moore rates with league leaders in stolen bases and runs.

Padres report

Up-and-coming reliever Todd Erdos, who was a 1992-93 San Diego farmhand in Spokane, has been returned to Mobile after pitching a perfect inning and earning the victory in his major-league debut with the Padres on June 10. Erdos, a ninth-round draft pick, has 14 saves.

Right-handed pitcher Matt Clement (1994), a third-round draft selection, jumped on the fast track with 31-2/3 consecutive scoreless innings for Rancho Cucamonga. After going 6-3 with a league-leading 1.60 earned run average in the California League, Clement stands 1-1, 1.93 at Mobile, where former Spokane outfielder Earl Johnson (1993) leads the league with 34 steals.

Cougar on the loose

If the Milwaukee Brewers can find a defensive position for former Washington State prodigy Mike Kinkade, he looks like a cinch big-leaguer.

Kinkade has set the Texas League on its ear, batting .362 at midweek with 19 doubles, a league-leading 10 triples and nine home runs. The El Paso third baseman also leads the league in hits. He’s second in batting, and extra-base hits and he’s third in slugging and on-base percentage.

On the downside, Kinkade leads all minor league players in errors.

Notes

The season appears over for former Gonzaga University catcher Mike Redmond. The Florida Marlins farmhand, stationed at Triple-A Charlotte, underwent rotator cuff surgery on his right shoulder in early June. Redmond hit .213 in 61 at-bats before his injury. … Former Kennewick prep star Ron Wright, the Triple-A first baseman for the Pittsburgh Pirates, is hitting .318 with 25 doubles and 11 homers for Calgary of the PCL.

The other hot prospect from the Tri-Cities, ex-Kamiakin High left-hander Tony Mounce has a 6-3 record and ranks with Texas League leaders in ERA.

Pitcher turned minor-league slugger Kevin Garner, San Diego’s first-round draft pick in 1987, is among those preserving their careers in the Northern League, the flossiest of the independent circuits that sprung up a few years back. The two-time circuit all-star from the University of Texas, traded to Sioux City by St. Paul during the off-season, has 10 home runs and 22 RBIs after 27 games.

Former Gonzaga infielder John Tsoukalas, another Northern League vet, is a batting title contender for Sioux Falls.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Where are they now? Former Spokane Indians and ex-area high school or college players active in professional baseball during the first half of the 1997 season. Major-league players are listed chronologically. Because their players still hold a prominent place in the ranks of former Indians, minor league teams are San Diego affiliates, except for Wichita, Lansing and Wilmington, which are affiliated with Kansas City. Players in other organizations are grouped by leagues. Their years with Spokane or, where appropriate, their major-league organization or school, are shown in parentheses. MAJOR LEAGUE OFFICIALS General manager *Jim Beattie (1981) Montreal, special assistant *Bobby Bragan (1958-59) Texas, special assistant *Preston Gomez (1960-62) California, vice-president marketing and public relations Steve Greenberg (1973-74) Pittsburgh, special assistant Larry Himes (1965) Cubs, assistant general manager *Steve Lubratich (1982, 1987-88) Detroit, community relations director *Don Newcombe (1961) Los Angeles, West scouting supervisor Ed Pebley (1979-80), special assistant *Bill Rigney (1938) Oakland, general manager Kevin Towers (1989-90) San Diego, director of minor league instruction *Tye Waller (1988, 1994) San Diego. MAJOR LEAGUE MANAGERS Bobby Valentine (1969-70) Mets, Bill Russell (1970) Los Angeles, Bruce Bochy (1989) San Diego. MAJOR LEAGUE PLAYERS American League: Sandy Alomar Jr. (1984) Cleveland, Joey Cora (1985) Seattle, Ricky Bones (1986) Kansas City, Doug Brocail (1986) Detroit, Warren Newson (1986) Texas, Dave Hollins (1987) Anaheim, Jose Valentin (1987) Milwaukee, A.J. Sager (1988) Detroit, Bryce Florie (1989) Milwaukee, Matt Mieske (1990) Milwaukee, Scott Sanders (1990) Seattle, #Jose Santiago (1995) Kansas City. Released: Mitch Williams (1983) Kansas City. National League: Thomas Howard (1986) Houston, Luis Lopez (1988) New York, #Lance Painter (1990) St. Louis, #Heath Murray (1994) San Diego. MAJOR LEAGUE COACHES Bill Buckner (1969-70) White Sox, Joe Coleman (1980-82) California, Mike Cubbage (1974-75) Mets, Tim Flannery (1993), San Diego, Jim Gantner (1977) Milwaukee, Gene Glynn (1990-91) Colorado, Ron Jackson (1982) White Sox, Art Kusnyer (1976-77) White Sox, Rene Lachemann (1979-81) St. Louis, Davey Lopes (1970) San Diego, Pete Mackanin (1973-74) Montreal, Sam Mejias (1976) Seattle, Tony Muser (1978) Cubs, Jerry Narron (1980, 1982) Texas, Rob Picciolo (1986-87) San Diego, Jamie Quirk (1978) Kansas City, Tom Robson (1974-75) Mets, Ned Yost (1978) Atlanta. (All except Glynn played in the major leagues.) BROADCASTERS *Ron Fairly (1960) Seattle, *Ed Farmer (1978) White Sox, *Tom Paciorek (1970-71) White Sox, *Lary Sorenson (1977) Detroit, *Don Sutton (1968) Atlanta. SCOUTS *Juan Bernhardt (1979) White Sox, *Ramon Conde (1960-61) Milwaukee, *Ed Crosby (1979) White Sox, *Bobby Darwin (1969, 1972) Los Angeles, Manny Estrada (1979-81) Baltimore, *Dick Egan (1966, 1968) Florida, *Jim Fairey (1967) Texas, Dick Hanlon (1958) Los Angeles, *Tim Harkness (1961) San Diego, R.J. Harrison (1980) Atlanta, *Mike Humphreys (1988) Detroit, Wilbur “Moose” Johnson (1952-53) Toronto, *Don LeJohn (1963) Los Angeles, *Lloyd Merritt (1959) Philadelphia, Lance Nichols (1966) Colorado, Al Ronning (1958) Major League Scouting Bureau, *Bill Singer (1964-66) Florida, *Jerry Stephenson (1970-71) Boston, *Larry “Moose” Stubing (1982) California, *Roy White (1967) Yankees, *Stan Williams (1966) Yankees.

MINOR LEAGUES MINOR LEAGUE INSTRUCTORS *Rob Ellis (1976-77) Baltimore, Duane Espy (1977-78) San Diego, Jack Maloof (1984-85) Florida, *Orlando “Marty” Martinez (1973-74) Detroit, *Gary Pettis (1982) White Sox, *Don Reynolds (1981) Texas. TRIPLE-A Las Vegas (Pacific Coast): *Joey Long (1992), trainer Steve Sayles (1985-86), Todd Schmitt (1992), *Jim Tatum (1985). American Association: Manager Greg Biagini (1979) Oklahoma City (Texas), manager *Tim Johnson (1971) Iowa (Cubs), coach *Von Joshua (1969-71) Nashville (White Sox), *Pedro Martinez (Aquino) (1987-88) Indianapolis (Cincinnati). International League: *Glenn Dishman (1993) Toledo (Detroit), *Greg Keagle (1993) Toledo (Detroit). Pacific Coast League: Trainer Keith Dugger (1990-91) Colorado Springs (Colorado), coach *Pete Richert (1961, 1963-64) Edmonton (Oakland), coach *Wilfred “Sonny Siebert” (1986) Colorado Springs (Colorado). DOUBLE-A Mobile (Southern): Matt Clement (1994), Bubba Dixon (1994), *Todd Erdos (1992-93), Earl Johnson (1993), Brad Kaufman (1993), Greg LaRocca (1994), Gary Matthews (1994), Juan Melo (1994), Chris Prieto (1993), Brett Walters (1994). coach *Bruce Tanner (1990) Carolina (Pittsburgh) Wichita (Texas): Enrique Calero (1996), Jeremy Giambi (1996), coach *Gary Lance (1979-80), Kit Pellow (1996), Steve Prihoda (1995), Matt Saier (1995). Eastern League: Manager *Joe Ferguson (1971) Bowie (Baltimore), Melvin Rosario (1992-93) Bowie (Baltimore). Southern League: Julio Bruno (1990) Jacksonville (Detroit), Tom Doyle (1993) Chattanooga (Cincinnati). Texas League: General manager Monty Hoppel (1984-85) Midland (Anaheim), manager *Bobby Jones (1973-75) Tulsa (Texas), coach *Orlando Mercado (1981) Midland (Anaheim). SINGLE-A Rancho Cucamonga (California): Manager Mike Basso (1986), Keith Davis (1994), coach *Dave Smith (1994), Brian Wolff (1993). Clinton (Midwest): Manager Tom LeVasseur (1986). Lansing (Midwest): Brandon Baird (1996), Brandon Berger (1996), Pat Hallmark (1995), manager Bob Herold (1996), Steve Hueston (1996), Jason Layne (1996), Aaron Lineweaver (1996), Tony Miranda (1995-96), Kenderick Moore (1996), Scott Mullen (1996), Rick Pitts (1996), Juan Robles (1995-96), Chad Rodriguez (1996), Allen Sanders (1995?-96), Brett Schafer (1995), Jason Simontacchi (1996), Ethan Stein (1996), Brett Taft (1996), Jeremy Williamson (1995). Wilmington (Carolina): Carlos Beltran (1996), Ryan Brewer (1996), Jake Chapman (1996), Roman Escamilla (1996), Emiliano Escandon (1995), coach *Rick Keeton (1996), Mark Quinn (1995), Mike Robbins (1995). Appalachian League: *Jim Shellenback (1973-74) Elizabethton (Minnesota). Arizona League: Coach Saul Soltero (1987) Peoria (San Diego). California League: Bobby Bonds II (1992) San Jose (San Francisco), Antonio Fernandez (1994) Stockton (Milwaukee), coach *Charlie Hough (1970-71) San Bernardino (Los Angeles), vice president for business development Tim Marting (1984-5) Modesto (Oakland), Jeff Pearce (1990) Lancaster (Seattle). Carolina League: Roy McKinnis (1993) Frederick (Baltimore), coach *Ken Rowe (1962-64) Kinston (Cleveland). Florida State League: Coach *Jack Billingham (1965-67) Kissimmee (Houston), Erick Corps (1993) St. Petersburg (Tampa Bay), coach *Rodney McCray (1984) West Palm Beach (Montreal), coach Rick Waits (1973-75) St. Lucie (Mets). Gulf Coast: Manager *Frank Howard (1959-60, 1976) GCL Braves (Atlanta), manager *Al Pedrique (1995) GCL Royals (Kansas City), president Tom Saffell (1958-59). Midwest League: *Coach Stew Cliburn (1982) Fort Wayne (Minnesota), coach Brian Peterson (1988) Kane County (Florida). New York-Pennsylvania: Manager Dick Berardino (1963-64) Lowell (Boston), manager Kevin Higgins (1989) Utica (Montreal), coach Juan Lopez (1976-78) Pittsfield (Mets). Northwest League: Manager John Kuehl (1988) Southern Oregon (Oakland). Pioneer League: Trajan Langdon (1994) Idaho Falls (San Diego). South Atlantic: Coach *Jack Lamabe (1987-88, 1991) Asheville (Colorado), coach *Dennis Rasmussen (1982) Charleston (Tampa Bay). OTHER LEAGUES Pacific (Japan): Shane Dennis (1994) Chiba, *Jason Thompson (1993) Chiba. Northeast League (Independent): Manager *John Wockenfuss (1973) Albany. Northern League (Independent): *Jerald Clark (1985) Duluth-Superior, Kevin Garner (1987) Sioux City, coach Barry Moss (1992-93) St. Paul, Jason Schlutt (1993) St. Paul, manager *Jay Ward (1963-64) Thunder Bay, coach *Maury Wills (1958-59) FargoMoorhead. Western League (Independent): Manager *Steve Hendricks (1987) Salinas, manager *Bill Plummer (1979) Chico, Scott Singleton (1994) Mission Viejo. AREA COLLEGIANS *Marvin Benard (Lewis-Clark State) Phoenix (San Francisco), Shawn Buhner (LCSC) Lancaster (California), *Steve Decker (LCSC) Tacoma (Seattle), coach *Tom Edens (LCSC) Portland (Colorado), *Scott Hatteberg (WSU) Boston, Mike Kinkade (WSU) El Paso (Milwaukee), Bucky Jacobsen (LCSC) Ogden (Milwaukee), manager Don Long (WSU) Vancouver (California), *Tom McGraw (WSU) Louisville (St. Louis), Scott Morgan (Gonzaga) Kinston (Cleveland), *John Olerud (WSU) Mets, coach *Frank Reberger (Idaho) Shreveport (San Francisco), #Mike Redmond (Gonzaga) Charlotte (Florida), *Steve Reed (LCSC) Colorado, *Aaron Sele (WSU) Boston, scout *Doug Sisk (WSU) Mets, *Mark Small (WSU) Jackson (Houston), vicepresident of baseball operations *Bill Stoneman (Idaho) Montreal, manager *Rick Sweet (GU) Binghampton (Mets), John Tsoukalas (GU) Sioux Falls (Northern), *David Wainhouse (WSU) Calgary (Pittsburgh), *Bob Wells (CCS) Seattle, Kenny Woods (LCSC) Shreveport (San Francisco). AREA PREPS Darin Blood (Post Falls/Central Valley/Gonzaga University) Shreveport (San Francisco), Matt Sachse (Ferris) Wisconsin (Seattle), *Ryne Sandberg (North Central) Chicago Cubs, #John Schroeder (Coeur d’Alene) Fort Wayne (Minnesota), Tate Seefried (Central Valley) Binghampton (Mets), *Kevin Stocker (Central Valley) Philadelphia, John Thompson (Shadle Park) Memphis (Seattle), coach *Elliott “Bump” Wills (Central Valley) Oklahoma City (Texas). SONS OF FORMER INDIANS Manager *Mike Brumley (*Mike Brumley, 1960, 1963) Rio Grande Valley (Texas-Louisiana League), Dan Cey (*Ron Cey, 1971) Fort Wayne (Minnesota), *Robb Nen (*Dick Nen, 1963-64) Florida. *Denotes major-league playing experience #Denotes disabled list