Had a chance to take some video before the doubleheader yesterday of Cubs’ third-round pick Jacob Hannemann during a round of batting practice (albeit a hit-and-run round)…our first look at the former BYU Cougar in a Hawks uniform.

I also had a chance during our workout at Spokane Falls CC to get a close-up of 2012 draft pick Trey Lang during his bullpen session.

Things here in the Spokane Valley are about to get a little draining today, as the Boise Hawks will play their first doubleheader since the 2007 season against the Spokane Indians.

As you can see from the pictures, there was a reason why Thursday’s game at Avista Stadium was postponed – in fact, if you look closely behind second base, you can see a mud puddle that formed in the outfield grass.

One needs to give some kudos to the grounds crew at the yard for getting the diamond playable for Friday night’s game – though they had to do some mound-scaping in the second inning after both Yohander Mendez and Paul Blackburn struggled with mud in their spikes in the opening frame.

However, at least for me – it comes down to having a tarp.  When you have arguably the biggest (and one of the best) facility in the Northwest League, you need to have a tarp.  It may only be used once a year, but the money the franchise lost out in ticket and concession sales from the rain out pales in comparison to purchasing a tarp that not only would have saved that game (since the rain turned to a drizzle around 8 p.m. that night), but future games as well.

HOTEL – Year in and year out, the Mirabeau Park Hotel and Convention Center ranks among the top stops in the NWL for all broadcasters.  The sprawling hotel has my room this trip literally in the back-40 – as I am closer to Walmart than the front desk, but it is a huge room and the only thing missing is a refrigerator (so I have to keep ice on hand or else my water bottle stays warm).  It is one of the few NWL hotels with a restaurant on property – with the Max Restaurant having the best happy hour menu around (have been a fan of their sliders on homemade buns, with a red pepper aioli for years, along with fries topped with garlic, balsamic vinegar, and feta cheese).

ISSUES – I apologize to the fans in Boise for the quality of our radio broadcasts, as a non-dedicated phone line at Avista Stadium has forced me to use a different set of radio gear.  Typically, we use equipment that sends digital quality audio – which provides crystal clear sound to fans on KTIK, however, the phone line does not allow that equipment to connect to the Cumulus studio.  Therefore, I have “borrowed” my radio gear from the College of Idaho (which I use to call basketball games during the winter) to get us on the air – but it makes the broadcast sound like it is coming out of a tin can.

FRIDAY NIGHT – Another great effort by the pitching staff, as Paul Blackburn worked around his own throwing error in the second inning that plated the lone Spokane run, retiring the final eight batters in order.  He has walked just one man, allowed four hits, and struck out 12 in his first 10 innings in Boise.  Carlos Martinez, the big-burly Cuban, kept the Indians off-balance for three innings, mixing a low-90s fastball with a devastating change up.  And Mike Hamann slammed the door – throwing 15 pitches, 13 for strikes, in picking up the save.  The Hawks used the long ball – and I mean LONG BALL, to win, as Kevin Encarnacion tried to hit the lights in right field with his moonshot, and Yasiel Balaguert’s home run ball wanted to either go to Home Depot or Costco, it was hit so far.  Was impressed by both rookies – Jacob Hannemann plays the game hard and I thought Cael Brockmeyer called a great game behind the plate (and gunned out his first base-stealer by five feet).

ABOUT THE DOUBLE HEADER – Skipper Gary Van Tol made a change to the pitching rotation for tonight, trying to keep the arms on a typical schedule.  Loiger Padron will get the start in the opener, while Orbandy Rodriguez will make a spot-start for Game 2.  The one thing that benefits the Hawks was the off day due to the rain out, giving the pitchers who saw action on Tuesday/Wednesday an extra day of rest.  Duane Underwood will now pitch Sunday afternoon, with Trey Lang tossing the series finale.

The Northwest League is off and running – with the Boise Hawks off to a 3-3 start to the season…which is an interesting number in itself.  Since the 2004 season, the Hawks have recorded a 3-3 start to a season only three times during that stretch (failing to reach the postseason in either of the seasons).

HOMESTAND #1: It was great to be home, back in the cozy confines of Memorial Stadium.  What was interesting to me, and it really hit me after Opening Night on Monday, was that the Hawks now have the smallest stadium in the league.  I can already hear the Boise media clamoring when the team draws 2,400 or 2,500 or 2,600 a game this season – saying that fans don’t want to come to the yard.  But when you have the smallest stadium in the league, that’s not a bad crowd – as we do not have the ability to put 5,000 fans in the park like Vancouver, Spokane, Hillsboro, and Salem-Keizer, or even 4,000 fans like Everett, Eugene, and Tri-City can. I was really pleased with the new hats that the Hawks will wear at home – and even more excited when I saw a boatload of fans wearing the hats in the crowd.  In talking with fans, they are fans of the batting practice tops, with the new home whites coming in second.

STRANGE NUMBERS: A couple of anomalies during the series – including the Hawks woes with runners in scoring position.  Boise recorded just two hits in their first 22 at bats at home with men in scoring position, and were 9-for-64 through their first five games.  The other was the “wild pitch fest” on Tuesday, as the Hawks combined for seven wild pitches in the contest, joining the 2008 Tri-City Dust Devils as the only teams in the last decade to achieve the dubious feat.  Trey Lang recorded six of the WP’s, two off a 30-year Northwest League record.

FAIR OR FOUL: David Bote’s home run on Tuesday night down the left field line drew Salem-Keizer manager Gary Davenport out of the dugout, thinking it was a foul ball.  The Hawks were discussing the play on the trip to Spokane and asked skipper Gary Van Tol, who said he thought the ball hit the screen of the foul pole, hit the top of the fence, and bounced onto the field of play.  Hitting coach Bill Buckner had a different view – he said he thought it was foul, but that didn’t matter, he said “It was a home run!”

PUTTING UP ZEROS: James Pugliese started the season with nine and two-thirds innings of scoreless baseball (before an inside the park home run put a crooked number in his ERA line).  The righty has allowed just six hits, walked two, and struck out 11.  Corbin Hoffner has retired 18 of the 19 men he has faced over the span of two games – with just one walk and five strikeouts.  Mike Hamann tossed a 1-2-3 ninth inning and has retired 11 of 12 men out of the pen.

COLD, COLD NIGHT: Thankfully, Memorial Stadium has a tarp – and thankfully it was on the field at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, as a rare June rainstorm hit the Treasure Valley.  The tarp saved the contest that evening, thought the game-time temperature of 57 degrees was the coldest start to a Hawks game at home in at least a decade.  I can say, I have never worn a sweater, and a sweatshirt during a home game.

FOOD UPDATE: Six games into the season and there has been no changes to the pregame meal routine…three times hamburgers have been delivered, twice hot dogs came to the booth, and once I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (gave up another hamburger to the S-K radio crew so they could eat).  Heading to Spokane – and have a feeling chicken sandwiches will have the lead when we return home.

Here are the official game notes for tonight’s Boise Hawks-Spokane Indians contest at Avista Stadium.  You can listen to the game live in the Treasure Valley on 1350 KTIK-AM or online at milb.com.

Boise Hawks Game Notes for 6-21-13

The Boise Hawks, in conjunction with the Chicago Cubs, have announced that 2013 third-round draft pick Jacob Hannemann has been added to the roster.

Hannemann, who had a banner season at Brigham Young University this spring, has joined the Hawks in Spokane. He is the second 2013 draft pick to be added to the Boise roster – joining catcher Cael Brockmeyer.

Hannemann, 22, was named the West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year this season after spending two years on a LDS mission. He batted .344 (74-for-215) with 16 doubles, seven triples, five home runs, 29 RBI, a .415 on-base percentage and a .553 slugging mark in 51 games for BYU, going 14-for-15 in stolen base attempts. Hannemann batted .385 with a .453 on-base percentage and a 1.084 OPS in his final 42 contests beginning February 27.

Following the season, he was named to the first-team Freshman All-America team by Louisville Slugger and a second-team NBWCA All-American.

The Cubs have now signed 11 of their 40 draft picks this season, including three of their top five.

SPOKANE, Wash. – Tonight’s Northwest League game between the Boise Hawks and the Spokane Indians has been postponed due to rain.

The two teams will make the contest up as part of a Saturday doubleheader, with the first pitch of Game 1 scheduled for 6:35 p.m. (MDT)

Rain has fallen steadily in the Spokane Valley for the past 36 hours – and is not expected to let up until Friday morning.  Avista Stadium is the lone NWL stadium with a natural surface that does not have an tarp – and despite outstanding drainage, the infield surface was unplayable.

It marks the first time since the 2007 season that the Hawks have had a game rained out – with Boise having to play doubleheaders that season in both Yakima and Everett.  Over the past four years, the Hawks have had two games shortened due to rain (2011 in Vancouver, 2012 in Yakima), while the club forfeited a game in August of 2010 due to playing conditions in Everett.

The two teams, weather permitting, will play their regularly scheduled single-game tomorrow night at 7:35 p.m. (MDT)

Every now and then, I’ll post the Game Notes I produce for the contest that night.  Here is a Fathers’ Day special for Hawks fans…today’s game notes.

6-16-13GameNotes

It’s sad when one of my favorite stops in the Northwest League is starting to slip quickly down the list – but Eugene is starting to draw the ire that I’ve had for Salem ever since I starting doing this in 2003.

Not sure what has happened over the years, but there was something with the Ems that has changed since they decided to cross the Willamette River from their days at Civic Stadium and now “sharing” PK Park with the Oregon Ducks.

Yes, the press box is outstanding – even with air conditioning…but the Ducks mandate that the booth remains at 70 degrees, regardless of the weather, with the AC vents underneath your workspace (no chance I’ll ever – or any broadcaster, will wear khaki shorts in Eugene).  You are landlocked in the booth and there is no communication as to scoring decisions (not even on the scoreboard/videoboard), no communications for defensive changes – you are on your own as if you are at a high school game.  At Civic, there was a small window where the broadcasters could see the scorer for decisions and for errors, they would quickly dim the lights.

I feel more for the Hawks than anything else.  I talked yesterday about the “new” clubhouse and the nearly 15 minute one-way walk.  What I didn’t realize until yesterday was that the coaching staff are basically in a lockerroom – no desk for Gary Van Tol to do his pregame work (welcome to the club, skip), no place for the laptops for postgame reports, and for two nights in a row, no post game meal for the staff (guess Eugene’s clubbie doesn’t want a tip?).  Even worse is the condition for first-year trainer, Jonathan Fierro – as there isn’t a training room. When the team got to Eugene on Friday, the Ems were scrambling for a table or two for the training supplies to just be stored on, let alone a table for treatments/training.  The frustrating part of it all is a stone’s throw away is U of O’s training room that probably rivals the best of the best big league training rooms.

ON TO THE POSITIVES: How about the Hawks pitching staff! Despite the tough 1-0 loss last night to the Ems, it was as dominating effort by Boise pitchers in a long while.  Paul Blackburn made his short-season debut and was nearly unhittable, retiring 15-of-16 men, including eight strikeouts.  Corbin Hoffner pitched to contact, retiring all nine men he faced in his Boise debut.  Unfortunately, Tyler Bremer left a 2-2 pitch over the plate that Henry Charles hit over the wall to end the game.  Hawks pitchers have struck out 20 and walked just one man in 17 innings, allowing just six hits.

LOOKING AHEAD: Salem-Keizer took over first-place in the NWL South with a second-straight win over Hillsboro, winning 8-4 last night.  Everett leads the North, having taken a pair of 6-4 victories over Spokane.

ALUMNI LINKS:  Darin Downs Finally Sees Action with the Tigers, Tyler Colvin Back with the Rox, John Lackey Resilient in win over O’s

Opening Day in Eugene was an interesting experience for the Boise Hawks in more ways than one – ending with a convincing 7-0 victory over the Ems, the first win in a season opener since the 2008 season.

The Hawks struggled initially when they arrived at where they “thought” was their clubhouse – as Eugene is the only team in the league with the changing room not near the stadium.  After waiting 10 minutes to learn where to go, the team was housed in the new football building – which forced the team to make a 12-13 minute walk (one way) to the stadium.  It marks the fourth season the Ems have been at PK Park and every year we hear there is going to be a clubhouse, and every year a different excuse.  Luckily for the Hawks it wasn’t raining…I wouldn’t want to have to walk in the rain to BP, back to change, back to the park for the game, then back to shower.

Another strange thing was pregame at PK Park.  Typically on Opening Day, the entire rosters have been announced, teams line up on the foul lines, and the National Anthem is played – the entire pomp and circumstance.  Game time was scheduled for 7:05, but all of a sudden at 6:57, the Ems took the field, the anthem was played, and first pitch was thrown at 7:00.  Strange?  Sorta like a sasquatch that is on the concourse at the stadium.

It was a match-up of looks, as the Hawks unveiled their new graphite/charcoal colored road uniforms, while the Ems wore uniforms that were white that faded into a “forest” with neon green numbers.  The Hawks uniforms looked sharp, although it was very difficult for me to pick up the numbers on the front and back of the uniforms from the press box (yes I need to get my eyes checked and probably need glasses, but it was hard to see).  You be the judge in these game highlights from KVAL-TV in Eugene

RECAP –Pitching dominated the game, as James Pugliese showcased his new delivery and picked up his first win.  The righty went five innings, allowing just three hits, striking out a career-high seven.  Shawon Dunston Jr. went 4-for-6, with Kevin Encarnacion and Danny Lockhart each rapping a pair of hits in the win.  Jacob Rogers hit a monster home run to center for the big hit of the night.

CONCESSIONS – Game 1 of the season featured hamburgers in the press box, but I had the opportunity to tour the park to see what they had to offer.  Since there are no permanent facilities for concessions, the Ems have a bunch of food trucks/trailers throughout the stadium – including a barbecue booth, a fish and chips trailer, and a Voodoo Donut booth that serves a Maple Bacon Voodoo Donut Bratwurst.  Prices in Eugene are a bit more expensive – $3.50 for a hot dog, $4.75 for popcorn, $4.00 for a small soda, $6.00 for a small domestic beer, $7.00 for a small microbrew.

AROUND TOWN – I mentioned it on the broadcast that Eugene is an interesting city, very liberal and reminds me a lot of my time living in Olympia, Wash.  Dreadlocks and tie-dyed shirts are everywhere, as if we are still in the late 60s and 70s.  So with that, I saw a restaurant while taking a walk for lunch yesterday – thought the restaurant fit my description perfectly.