Project Durham Bulls #1: Kyle Roller

I have been working on a few set projects recently on the blog, but I have also been thinking about taking up another project beyond the sets that would focus on single cards of Durham Bulls players.  More specifically, I am looking to add autographs of players who have appeared for my favorite Minor League team.

A few challenges I envision:

1. Minor League teams have a little bit higher turn over rate than Major League teams.  There are many years where the number of players who appeared on the roster is eye popping.  I am ready to track them down.
2. Some of the players who appear on the Bulls do not have autographs.  I am thinking about whether or not to chase in-person autographs, but have not made a final decision on that yet.  Kind of leaning towards no.  
3. What to do about the hundreds of posts that I have made over the last three plus years with cool cards of the Durham Bulls?  Just because I have one autograph of the player, say someone like Evan Longoria, doesn't mean that I am just going to skip over all of his autographs in the future and never give him a post in this series.  I will get there.  

With that being said, I have started a new page up at the top of the blog which will display the different players who appear in these posts.  

With that being said here is the first of many cards....

Kyle Roller - 2016 Durham Bulls 

Background- 

Kyle Roller appeared on the 2016 Durham Bulls for a total of 50 games before he was released.  His time with the Bulls included a .216/.316/.377 line with 5 home runs, 9 doubles, and 12 RBIs.  Roller's professional career started with the Yankees in 2010 after he was drafted out of East Carolina.  He played in the Yankees system from 2010 until the end of the 2015 season.  His best season in the Minors was easily in 2014 when he hit .300/.391/.550 with 26 home runs, 30 doubles, and 74 RBIs splitting time between Double A Trenton and Triple A Scranton.  Roller's other notable career highlight came in the 2015 Triple A All-Star Game when he sparked the International League to a 3-2 win over the Pacific Coast League.  

Card-

I really like college sports, so I was happy to find a card of Roller in an East Carolina jersey.  I am not always a huge fan of the Panini products, but I always liked these Elite Cards.  Roller was the Cape Cod League MVP during the summer of 2009 and was named first team All-American in 2010 at ECU, so while he was not the highest of draft picks or most highly regarded prospects, it's nice to see a player with a college career get a little cardboard love.  

  

Snorting Bull Summer Baseball Tour Game 6: Richmond Flying Squirrels vs. Harrisburg Senators

My baseball summer tour came to a close Thursday night when I attended the Richmond Flying Squirrels game versus the Harrisburg Senators.  I picked the final stop in Richmond since it was the first place that I attended a professional baseball game sometime back in the early 1980s.  My wife made the trip up to Richmond with me, so we get some non-baseball items too.

We took a tour around the area where I used to live in Richmond and decided to do a quick random restaurant.  We do not eat at chains on the road choosing to look for something local and unique instead.  We went to The Mill on MacArthur.  Excellent.

It's pub food, but it has a lot of good touches.  They have a great wine and beer selection too.  If you happen to ever be in Richmond this is a great place.  Small, yet friendly.  On to baseball.....

The outside of The Diamond is a giant concrete bowl with a shoddy wooden fence out in the outfield.  In discussing the stadium with different people someone suggested that the outfield fence actually was originally attached to Parker Field.  There is a gap in between the billboards on the fence which is reportedly one of the "character" points of the stadium.  Really, the outside of this park reminds me of the 70s cookie cutter concrete bowls.  The inside is old and antiquated too.

Narrow and crowded concourses run throughout the stadium.  The Squirrels had a good crowd for the game (6,200) and the areas around the concession stands tended to bottleneck.  While the stadium is just 30 years old it was one of the major reasons that the Braves pulled their Triple A affiliate out of Richmond and moved them to Gwinnett.  Even now, the stadium debate in Richmond is still a hot issue and many feel like the Squirrels will leave too without a better facility.

The seating area is better than the inside areas of the stadium.  The lower deck has nice seats with good views of the field.  There is little foul territory on the field, so fans are really close to the players.  The back of the lower bowl has party boxes with seating areas inside and outside.  The upper deck has a pretty sharp downward angle (sort of like Kaufmann in KC) with the awesomeness of tarps around the top.  What is the stadium in Oakland called now?  Yeah.

Oh, and while you are getting off my lawn there is also this.....

Why am I being served ice cream in an Angels helmet at a game involving a Giants affiliate?  All I could think of was Scott Spiezo and Troy Glaus going off against the Giants bullpen in the 2002 World Series.

The game.  The Squirrels put up a four spot in the second inning which was more offense than the Senators could muster.  One of the big hits in the inning came from starting pitcher Matt Lujan.  Watching an American League minor league team (Durham Bulls- Rays) means I do not see the pitcher bat ever unless I am watching the Cardinals game on television.  

Lujan was also pretty sharp on the mound.  The left handed starter had taken a no hitter into the seventh the last time he pitched against the Senators and was dominating again this time.  Lujan is not the hardest thrower (high 80s/low 90s), but has good control and stays on the edges of the plate.  Here's a great battle against Matt Skole.  I am not sure where this last pitch was on this at-bat, but I was ready to punch out Skole.....

I also spent a little bit of time watching Squirrels outfielder Devin Harris.  I do not write up many college baseball games, but I saw him play several times while he was playing at East Carolina.  He's had two really good years for the Pirates before being drafted by the Giants.  Here is one of his at bats......

Outside of the four runs scored by the Squirrels in the second, they tacked on a late run, and cruised to a 5-1 victory.  I was impressed with Lujan's control and command during the game, and while he is not the best pitching prospect on the team, I would imagine he'd have a role on the Giants at some point in the future.  

Overall, The Diamond leaves a lot to be desired, but the on the field product is pretty good here.  The Double A players are a little more advanced than the players I saw in Greensboro and Burlington, but also not far from the level of players I saw all the time watching the International League (AAA).  The team seems well supported, so hopefully the city can build a new stadium, maybe get rid of those Angels ice cream batting helmets, and maybe let's lose some of the on field promotions.  Flamingos, pigs.  Aye Caramba.