Tagged: Boise Hawks
Boise Hawks Yearbook Madness
To commemorate the soon-to-be-over 2009 season I am resorting back to my high school days and sharing a little Boise Hawks Yearbook Madness with you. I asked the guys to nominate each other for the Boise Hawks Who’s Who and also vote on the Boise Hawks Top 5 Faves. Check it out below.
And don’t forget to check out our Boise Hawks Yearbook Madness photo album here!
With his sharp duds and outgoing personality it is hard not to picture Hernandez in front of a camera. He even gave the front office a taste of his future reality show when he taught us a few a few salsa moves last homestand.
Most likely to break out in song…#7 SS Hak-Ju Lee and #8 OF Jae-Hoon Ha
Known for their stellar rendition of Ruben Studdard’s “Superstar,” Lee and Ha are the karaoke favorites of this year’s squad. Both guys are big fans of American music and often use their Ipods to learn the lyrics to their favorite songs–and more English. I think the word “angelic” has even been used to describe their voices.
Most likely to pull off the biggest clubhouse prank…#21 RHP Josh Lansford
Maybe it’s the fact that he is a “vet” so to speak or maybe it’s that Cubs hoodie he always wears (I mean you could hide a lot of prankster stuff in there), but there is no surprise that Lansford would be responsible for pulling off the biggest clubhouse prank. He’s so stealthy…I haven’t even heard what his “big prank” is.
Most likely to read on the bus…#19 RHP Danny Keefe and #14 2B Logan Watkins
When you walk into the clubhouse, these guys’ lockers look more like library shelves than lockers. Keefe and Watkins can often be caught reading on the bus or in the clubhouse before the game. Their favorite books? Happens to be the same thing–the Harry Potter series.
Most likely to start their own charity…#9 C Matt Williams
Williams has always been drawn to helping those less fortunate and has displayed that sort of attitude several times this year while participating in the Kids Club Baseball Camp and other community events. If he wasn’t a professional baseball player, Williams has said that he would like to be a youth pastor.
Most likely to offer a pep talk…#24 IF George Matheus
Also coming in second in the “Most likely to talk your ear off” category, it seems that all of Matheus’ chatter is encouraging. On the field, he combines the right amount of light-heartedness and focus to uplift his teammates. And as one of the bilingual players on the team, no one misses out on Matheus’ pep talks.
Most likely to learn the steps from a music video…#28 OF DJ Fitzgerald and Pitching Coach David Rosario
Fitzgerald isn’t really a surprise for this title; he constantly has his headphones in before and after games and carries a certain swag that could be busted into some full on dance moves at any minute. But Coach Rosario? Most wouldn’t suspect him as a dancer–but–I hear he’s a pretty mean salsa dancer.
Most likely to be caught taking a nap…#27 RHP Dionis Nunez
If there was an award for quietest Hawk, I’m pretty sure Nunez would win that one also…and probably because he would be napping. Pitchers typically have a lot of time on their hands and the grind of minor league ball can be tough. I don’t blame the guy for catching Z’s while he can.
Most likely to be lost in la-la land…#8 OF Jae-Hoon Ha
Maybe Ha should consider switching from right field as most of his teammates would describe him as “out in left field.” The high-energy outfielder often causes quizzical expressions, either from his bunny hops in the batter’s box or his unconventional paths to a fly ball.
Most likely to stare at themselves in the mirror…#43 RHP Jon Nagel and #27 RHP Dionis Nunez
Once again, pitchers have A LOT of time on their hands, and it just so happens that Nagel and Nunez (when he’s not sleeping) spend that time in front of the mirror. It’s healthy to be conscious of one’s appearance, but, guys, please don’t become Narcissus. You know how the myth goes…
Most likely to talk your ear off…#6 RHP Tarlandus Mitchell
This title is particularly funny to me because Mitchell was one of the first players I took on an appearance…and it was like pulling teeth to get him to answer my questions. However, I remember him telling me, “Once I’m out of my shell, I talk a lot.” Apparently, he’s a man of his word because he still nabbed this award without even being in Boise.
Most likely to get married first…#28 LHP Ryan Sontag
By a unanimous vote, the only married player on the team gets this title. (Somehow I think they misunderstood my question). However, Sontag not only holds “Most likely to get married” but should also covet the “Most likely to start a family” title after welcoming his new baby girl Emily in July.
Most likely to laugh at a joke/crack a joke…#30 1B Justin Bour
Whenever you walk into the clubhouse it is easy to spot Bour’s hearty laugh…probably because he is either laughing or making other people laugh all the time. The good-natured first baseman easily breaks any tension with a little bit of humor…and his cool helmet-spinning trick!
Favorite Supermodel…Heidi Klum and Beyonce (I’ll count her even though she’s not really a “supermodel”)
Favorite MLB Team…The Chicago Cubs
Favorite Sport to Watch…baseball (from little league world series to major league)
Favorite Movie Shown on the Bus…Talento de barrio and Bad Boys 2
Boise Hawks Baseball Camp: Bringing It Back to the Kids
This week, the Boise Hawks hosted their annual baseball camp directed towards children ages 7-14. The camp is two half-day sessions jam-packed with drills. The kids had the chance to learn from Hawks players and Manager Casey Kopitzke (who is actually the first manager to take part in the yearly camp) while rotating from station to station, covering everything from base running to pitching.
Check out the montage of clips from the first day of camp here.
Besides the manager getting involved, there was also something new to the way the camp was run–on the baseball side. Manager Casey Kopitzke did not assign guys to the camp but instead hung up a sign-up sheet so the guys could volunteer on their own.
“I think it’s best if the guys decide they want to do something like this on their own,” said Kopitzke. “I want to make sure everyone has a good time…I don’t want to give a kid a bad experience because maybe the player didn’t want to be there.”
However, there was no shortage of interested players testing out their coaching skills. On the first day of camp pitcher Corey Martin manned the station on throwing basics, pitcher Yohan Gonzalez and catcher Richard Jones worked with the kids in the batting cages, first baseman Justin Bour taught the kids some ground ball skills, pitcher Danny Keefe worked on fly balls and Kopitzke took over base running. On the second day, outfielders Jose Valdez and Runey Davis worked in the cage, pitcher Ryan Sontag took over fly balls, infielder Logan Watkins and Tarlandus Mitchell taught the kids double plays, Kopitzke taught a little bit of catching, and pitchers Jon Nagel and Yohan Gonzalez taught the kids a little bit of pitching.
After the sessions, the kids were able to eat lunch with the guys and get a few autographs.
By far, it has been one of my favorite events this season–it is so cool to see these guys work with the youngsters, and you know these kids are just in awe because they were able to play with professional baseball players. So awesome!
Droppings from the Nest, July 7th
Hawks secured another win last night, and, just hours from now, look to make their first 3-game winning streak of the season. Tarlandus Mitchell will be on the mound for the Hawks–he will go head to head against Eugene’s Matt Jackson.
But before we look forward, we must look at the “droppings” collected today.
- Even though the Hawks pulled a second-straight win last night, Chris Langrill of the Idaho Statesman decided to take the focus off the players for a day and instead looked at one of the Hawks’ “superfan,” Carl Krueger.
- The Idaho Press-Tribune looks at Brett Jackson’s two-out, two-run triple that drove the Hawks over the Emeralds in last night’s comeback.
- Zach Wolken of KTVB Channel 7 recaps last night’s win, 5th overall win for the Hawks.
- Check out J. Bates highlights from last night’s 5-4 win over Eugene.
DON’T FORGET: Check out www.BoiseHawks.com for exclusive articles by the HAM Insiders…three fresh ones posted this afternoon.
- Social Networking Links One Hawks Family Millions of Miles Apart
- Baseball Is Spoken Here
- Back at Square One for Converted Pitcher Joe Simokaitis
ONE MORE THING: Get the players’ perspective and check out Hawks 3B Jordan Petraitis’ blog, Living the Dream, Not the Life
Community Appearance Adventures: Mascots, Main Street Mile and Mucho Imagination
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Imagine this: You’re driving down the road, minding your own business when you see the reflection blue lights flashing in your rear-view mirror…yep a copper.
“Why do you have a giant potato in your front seat?”
“You see, sir, I work for the Hawks. And I had to drive Spud from the mascot race back to the stadium.”
“Do you realize you cannot see out of the right side of your car?”
“Um, yes sir…but…Spud doesn’t fit in my trunk or my backseat…the front seat was my only option…I mean, sir, what do you suggest? Would you like to escort Spud in your backseat?”
That is exactly the scenario playing through my head as I cruised past (as unassumingly as I possibly could) a Boise police officer Friday afternoon…with a giant potato riding shotgun.
Oh the adventures of community appearances.
Last Friday was the Main Street Mile’s “A Mile for Men’s Health.” Main Street Mile is a non-profit whose mission is to eradicate prostate cancer as a life threatening disease by advancing awareness, education and screenings. As part of the event, Humphrey and Spud ran in the Mascot Scamper (hence the reason for a giant potato in my car).
While neither Humphrey nor Spud made it into the top three, they did put in a great effort. And both did an awesome job pumping up all of the kids for their race, the Meadow Gold’s Children’s Half Miler.
But supporting Spud in Humphrey in their race wasn’t the only reason my boss, Kristen Nimmo and I were there–the Boise Hawks have partnered with the Main Street Mile and will be “batting for men’s health.”
The Hawks will be contributing funds to the Main Street Mile through our “Jersey Off Their Backs” program by wearing replica 1978 Chicago Cubs jerseys various times throughout June and July. The jerseys will be auctioned off on BoiseHawks.com through July 31, with bidding coming to a close at 8 p.m. MST. All proceeds will benefit prostate cancer research and awareness.
Don’t forget to bid on your favorite Boise Hawks player’s jersey before it’s too late!
Droppings from the Nest, June 26th
Hawks win! Hawks win! Hawks win!
The Hawks came back with a rally in the final two innings to push past Salem-Keizer, 5-4.
Greg Rohan recorded the Hawks first homer of the season; Hak-Ju Lee extended his hitting streak to six games; and Logan Watkins, who has hit safely in five of his six games, had a season-high three RBI.
So much for the Black Widow curse…maybe I just had to get it out in the open in order for the baseball gods to relieve me of my burden.
Let’s hope so.
- Of course, the big news today is the Hawks’ first win of the season, and the Idaho Statesman has a game recap of last night’s victory.
- Channel 2 also highlights the Hawks’ win, but also does a video feature on Manager Casey Koptitzke’s arrival to the Treasure Valley.
- Channel 7 also covers Kopitzke’s return to the team.
If I’m missing any droppings in my daily sweep, let me know–I don’t want to leave anyone out (onalee@boisehawks.com).
Hawks Tangled in the Black Widows Web
I am the Black Widow.
Now for some background: In college, a friend of mine deemed me the Black Widow after several of the Memphis Redbirds players I had interviewed curiously started slumping. But not only were they not getting hits, their errors increased.
Female Black Widow spiders are known to be particularly dangerous, not only to people, but also to their male counterparts. But the nickname isn’t derived just from a biology book–there’s also a baseball tie.
The name comes from The Natural. You know the woman dressed in all black that ends up shooting Roy Hobbs? Well, my friend calls her the Black Widow because she basically ends Hobbs’ career.
While I definitely haven’t shot anybody, at times it seems that my curse could send them into such a downward spiral that they don’t recover.
Of course, I don’t do this intentionally. I want all of these guys to succeed; and if I chose to interview you in the first place it probably means that you were doing well. But now take a look at your stats…
I am the Black Widow.
All of that to say: I think a few of our Hawks might be tangled in my web. After all, we are 0-5 right now with a team ERA of 7.74 and 12 errors. Our hitting hasn’t suffered as much as I thought it had, but if you look at the individuals that are being affected by the Black Widow, the curse is quite apparent.
Of course, I cannot name names…superstition is a nasty thing in baseball.
I have to work with these guys for the rest of the season; and I can’t be on their bad side. Plus, I have articles to write which means interviews to do–if word gets out that I’m the Black Widow and you are doomed if I ask you for quotes, I’m in big trouble.
I’ve tried numerous times to apologize to the baseball gods and pray that my Black Widow curse is lifted–but it seems that I’ve carried it with me from Memphis.
To the individual players I have cursed, the team as a whole, the Cubs organization, Hawks fans and front office staff–I am sorry. I am the Black Widow.
But at least now there’s someone to blame for the losses, right?
Droppings from the Nest, June 21st
First of all, I want to say that the press box last night was packed!! And I am so excited–I hope that happens several more times this season!
- The HAM Insiders were busy last night! Check out Mike Safford’s game story and two of my very own feature stories (Hawks Comforted by the Host Family Program and Special Day for the Birthday Boy)
- Chris Langrill, beat writer for the Idaho Statesman focuses on the good and bad of last night’s Opening Night.
- Will Love with the Idaho Press-Tribune wraps up the Hawks’ 14-8 loss to the Tri-City Dust Devils.
- Channel 2 breaks down the highlights,
- Channel 6 takes a look at the Hawks on Opening Night.
Media Relations? Youre Supposed to Be Good at Communicating, Right?
Media Day. The day that I’ve been hyping up in my mind…the day I get to shine…or flop…or manage to do a little of both.
I was putting myself to the test, asking, “Onalee, you’re good at communicating, right? After all, you were an English major, you’re a writer, a talker, a listener. Are you ready to show these players who’s boss? Are you ready to show the media that you are fully capable of helping them get the interviews and information they need? Are you ready to show the front office staff that there is a reason they hired you?”
(And, yes, it was a very intense ride to the stadium–by myself– giving myself my own pep talk).
In my mind, media day went off without a hitch. The media was satisfied, the players were extremely cooperative, and I survived. However, there was one very (seemingly) large barrier in my way.
Obstacle numero uno: I don’t speak Spanish*. 
Note: I just managed to scrape by in my Spanish classes in
college…and have always been a tad terrified of the inability to
communicate with another person.
The language barrier is probably the most difficult thing I have encountered thus far. With 11 Spanish-speaking players, and some of them being pretty limited in their English, it can sometimes be difficult to relay the information you want. And, of course, I had a LOT of information to relay.
Last night at the host family dinner, all of the players received a player info packet, outlining important information concerning the team and Boise. There were also some fun bio questions included that the guys had to fill out. To make it easier for some of the players I translated the packets into Spanish…using Google Translator of course.
But last night, I was really bummed. None of the Spanish-speaking players filled out all of the bio questions, and I was afraid that the Spanish translation was a complete and utter failure. Remember my pep talk? This is what it was mostly about–figuring out how I could communicate with the players whose language I didn’t speak, whose language I had tried to learn, but never was successful at mastering.
To make the day run more smoothly, we didn’t split the team up into pitchers and catchers and then position players as most teams do; nope, we split them up by language. And who was in charge of doing so? You’ve got it…me.
It’s funny how you think talking louder and more sternly makes someone understand you better. Anyway, I stood at the top of the home dugout and as each of the players came out of the dugout, I asked (very forcefully), “Habla español?…Si?” If they nodded or said “si” back, I pointed to centerfield and said, “Then go take your picture.” It worked, but it was frustrating for me. I didn’t like that I couldn’t communicate fully with them, that they couldn’t ask me questions like so many of the other guys were doing, that I couldn’t get to know them as well or as quickly because I didn’t speak their language.
But this soon changed. Those bio sheets? I was determined to get those questions answered–whether it meant me trying to act out the questions so they could understand me.
After lots and lots of laughter (from both me and the players) and butchered Spanish, I managed to get every single player to fill out the questions. It took patience (from both parties) and a good sense of humor, and–to get all girly and cheesy on you–I think it was kind of a bonding experience. I got to know some of the Spanish-speaking players better today than I know some of the American players. It showed me that, sometimes, communication isn’t all about talking and writing, sometimes it’s about laughter and listening and cooperation.
Even so, I’m investing in Rosetta Stone for Spanish this weekend.
*I don’t speak Korean either, but I’m lucky enough that they have a translator—so that’s a story for another time.
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Droppings from the Nest, June 18th Edition
Part of working in media relations is developing a strong relationship with the media of Boise, making sure they get all of the information to create stellar stories. Everyday, I am going to bring you the droppings from the nest around Boise (and sometimes beyond) so you can check out how we’re making the news. Enjoy!
- The Idaho Statesman was among the flock of media waiting for the Hawks to arrive yesterday, and beat writer Chris Langrill jumped at the opportunity to talk to the three 2009 draft picks joining the team.
- The Statesman also broke a story about Manager Casey Kopitzke and his current leave of absence.
- KIVI-TV Today’s 6 captured footage of the players arrival yesterday at the Boise Airport.
Don’t forget–you can also check out www.boisehawks.com for exclusive stories from the HAM (Hawks Advanced Media) Insiders.
And–one more thing–not only can you connect with me on Twitter, you can connect with the Boise Hawks on Twitter, MySpace and Facebook!
Season Whirlwind Begins Now
…or maybe I should say it began earlier today, say, around 1:13 p.m.
But before I tell you what happened at the special time of 1:13, I just want to say, welcome, to the first of many, many entries at A Bird’s Eye View. As one of three members of Hawks Advanced Media (HAM), I’ll be bringing you “slices” of Hawks info and insight throughout the season. Unlike my collegues’ blogs (On the Mike with Mike Safford and Sharp Visions), I will be bringing an interesting perspective from the front office and the behind the scenes stories that come with it.
But, enough about me (if you wanted to know more about that, you would’ve been reading my bio), let’s get to the stuff that’s really important: the Hawks.
So what happened at 1:13? The 2009 Hawks landed in their new nest. Host families (more to come on them later) and members of the front office (your’s truly included) met the 27 players and three coaches right when they stepped off the plane.
While I was waiting with other members of the staff, the media and the host familes, I wondered: do these guys realize how cool this is? To be greeted by fans and media just for short-season ball?
For most of them, it is their first taste of pro ball…a tiny glimpse of their futures. And because of that, I think most of them were terrified walking through those doors.
I would have loved to be inside their brains, listening to their thoughts as they walked through the glass doors of the airport and saw a throng of people–fans holding signs, tv crews with cameras ready for action and, of course, all of the Hawks staff in electric orange polos–if nothing else, our shirts probably startled them a bit. Just imagine…
And then think…what if you’ve never heard of Boise before? Which, we learned later, only a handful of the 27 guys had heard of Boise. It isn’t as bad as it sounds–the Hawks consist of 15 foreign players–three from Venezuela, three from Korea and eight from Dominican Republic–so they get a free pass on U.S. geography. And even for the guys who had heard of Boise, they still didn’t know what to expect of their new home.
Recent 15th Round Draft Pick, Cody Shields immediately noticed the mountains surrounding the Treasure Valley.
“I’ve never seen mountains before,” Shields, a Florida-native said. “They’re awesome! I just can’t believe them. I’ve never been farther west than New Orleans.”
For most of these guys, Boise is just the first stop on the road to their big league dreams…they’ll get to know a lot of different cities they’ve never even thought about before. But–for the time being, I’m really glad they’re here.
A Bird's Eye View 