News
Oakland Spring Training Notebook
Kyle Galdeira
03/20/08
PHOENIX, Ariz.-The Waikiki BeachBoys made it to Hawaii Winter Baseball's 2007 championship game thanks in part to the contributions of three Oakland Athletics' prospects.
Athletics' pitcher Jared Lansford and middle infielder Justin Sellers—both sons of former Major Leaguers-as well as speedy outfielder Jermaine Mitchell made significant progress in their time with HWB. Oakland's Player Development Director Keith Lieppman was pleased with his players’ performances, and expressed his desire to continue assigning players to the league.
>Sellers expects to start the season at Double-A Midland (Texas) where he will compete up the middle as a second baseman or shortstop. The 22-year-old earned Defensive Player of the Year honors while in Hawaii, and parlayed that success into some Spring Training action with Oakland’s big league club.
“I had a great time in Hawaii,” Sellers says. “Oahu treated me well, and Hans L’Orange (Park) was a great stadium to play in.
>Mitchell is slated to begin 2008 in Oakland’s High-A club located in Stockton, Calif., but the outfielder who was deemed the fastest player within the organization by Baseball America says he has realistic hopes of seeing some Major League action by next season. With the A’s high turnover, and constant thirst for young, relatively inexpensive talent, Mitchell is on the right team at the right time.
>Lansford has the toughest road to traverse seeing as he is still recovering from shoulder surgery which relegated the hurler to the bench for most of the 2007 campaign. He will most likely join Mitchell in Stockton where he will attempt to maintain his arm strength. If he is successful, and can regain his form, Lansford could work his way into Oakland’s starting rotation within the next two to three years.
Hawaii Winter Baseball is an organized professional baseball league sanctioned by Major League Baseball (MLB). It provides a setting for top young professional ball players to play against top-notch U.S. and international competition to accelerate U.S. player progress through their respective major league farm systems, and to give top young Asian players opportunities for international competition. The HWB league returns for its eighth season in late September of 2008, and will feature games at the University of Hawaii at Manoa’s Les Murakami Stadium and Waipahu’s Hans L’Orange Park. Stay tuned for upcoming community events, clinics and festivities…Catch the Dream!
