O. T. Cubs Fantasy camp

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

Hello to all.

Just returned from Randy Hundley's Fantasy Baseball camp. Had a great time and our team won the Camp Championship. This was the 25 th anniversary of the camp and there were many retired Cubbies there. I had Fergie Jenkina and Carmen Fanzone as my coaches for the week. Hall of Famers Fergie jenkins, Ernie Banks, and Billy Williams were all there as was Lee Smith. Played ball against Phil Donahue's son and Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam fame. Mark DeCarlo from the Travel channel also played ball this week. Rick Sutcliffe was coaching and Joe Pepitone was the judge for the kangaroo court.

We all celebrated Ernie Banks 76th birthday during the camp. Also had Ernie call and talk to my wife when he started talking about Who was my boss. According to Ernie, the wife is always the Boss in the family. Ernie is one funny awesome man and obviously an all time favorite for any cub fan. Autographs were available freely when ever you wanted them. A total of 6 69 cubs were in camp and many from the 84 team.

We played a double header every day, and the final game of the week we played against the coaches. The campers lost 21 to 20, but all had a great time. I hit a hard ground ball against Fergie and drove in a run from third (yes, off a Hall of Fame pitcher). Our team outscored the pros 4 to 2 for our inning.

Wow, what a great week. Something every baseball fan should do sometime.

Ken

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Posted By: Bruce Babcock

You said it, Ken. What a great week! Wow! I am envious.

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Posted By: barrysloate

Sounds pretty cool. Did you get to speak to Eddie Vedder?

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

Did any of the campers throw one high and tight at Billy Williams because he was crowding the plate?

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Posted By: barrysloate

Such as when Joe Pepitone crowded the plate on Kramer (who punched out Mickey Mantle)?

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

Exactly, Barry.

"Yeah, well, Joe Pepitone or not, I own the inside of that plate!"

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Here's Joe Pepitone on his hog with his woman after a game in 1971.

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

sure did. He's a huge Cub fan. He's also a really nice guy. For the banquet last night he wrote a song that he sang about the camp. He said he was probably going to record it. He sat at the table right next to mine. One morning he asked to follow me to the ball park because he didn't know the way. Phil Donahue was master of ceremonies for part of the banquet. Earlier in the week, I had Eddie autograph a ball for a friend of mine. Eddie is pretty fast on the base pads, but he doesn't hit very well. Guess he should stick to singing

Of course I was really excited because my 23 favorite cubs of all time were there. Ernie Banks, Lee Smith, and Ron Santo. Sandberg was spoted at camp at the batting cages, but he did not officially make an appearance at camp. Here is a run down of the coaches.

Randy Hundley, Todd Hundley, Ernie Banks, Ron Santo, Glen Beckert, Rick Sutcliffe, Lee Smith, Ron Coomer, Rick Reuschel, Carmen Fanzone, Jose Cardenal, Gene Oliver, Willie Wilson, Leon Durham, Billy Williams, Joe Pepitone, Larry Biittner, Ed Lynch, Fergie Jenkins, Jodi Davis, Keith Moreland, Bobby Dernier. Also saw Jim Volkman from Wgn radio doing his Harry Caray immitation. In our game against the pros, Ken Rudolph and gary Justadt were there. Also saw Gary Sarge Matthews.

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

Trying to decide which I like more: the sideburns or the hat.

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

now you don't throw high and tight against a Hall of famer. A team mate did hit one back at Fergie however. Brian (my team mate) said he would have felt really bad if he would have hurt Fergie. Our pitcher did however throw in high and tight to Joe Pepitone. Good thing camp was over so he didn't get fined by Pepi. Pepitone was ruthless as the judge in the kangaroo court. Also Pepi is hilarious. We also got Pepitone to take off his hat and Toupe. He has a really ugly bald head these days

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Posted By: barrysloate

Ken- how is Ron Santo's health? I know he has had some terrible problems.

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

I spent some time playing in the minor leagues, and one of the funniest things I ever saw was one day when Bob Humphreys (former Cub, by the way) was throwing batting practice, and one of guys smoked a one-hopper that went through the net on the pitching screen and caught Humphreys in the jewels. Hump was a roving instructor at the time and not exactly the most well-liked guy -- mainly because he was a former pitcher who was always trying to change the way guys hit. (His lifetime batting average is .131 -- I just looked it up). Anyway, despite the fact he went down in a heap, just about everyone in the field doubled over in laughter. Heck, I still get a kick thinking about it.

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Posted By: barrysloate

Rob- please share with us your experience in the minor leagues. How far up the ladder did you get?

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

I made it as far as Las Vegas in the Pacific Coast League with the Padres in 1989. Played in a few "B" games that season in spring training. I actually split time that season between Double-A Wichita and Vegas. Playing in the PCL was a lot of fun because of the tradition of that league. Playing in the Texas League was, well, a chance to experience some of the worst bus rides known to man (Wichita to Jackson, Miss., specifically)

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Posted By: barrysloate

What an unforgettable experience.

Did any of your teammates make the majors?

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

Yes, quite a few. I played six years (three of them in AA or higher), so I don't think it's that unusual. On the 1988 El Paso team I played on, we had Gary Sheffield and Greg Vaughn (pretty good 3-4 punch). And Andy Benes, the No. 1 pick in the 1989 draft, was on our team in Wichita that season. He put together a 10-game stretch that year that was unreal. I've never seen a pitcher dominate hitters like he did. It was like he was toying with them sometimes. I got to watch from center field, and at times I just laughed at how foolish he made guys look. Plus, I was thankful I didn't have to face him.

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Posted By: barrysloate

Thanks Rob. I've gotten to see the Brooklyn Cyclones play a few times but in the five years or so they've been around, virtually nobody made the majors. Scott Kazmir did but he only pitched a game or two for them.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

So that makes two former minor leaguers that post here?

Frank Ward also played minor league ball.

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

I can believe that, Barry. Thinking back to my time in rookie ball (the equivalent to short-season Class A), I can't come up with many guys who went on to the majors. One was Greg Maddux, who pitched for the Pikeville Cubs in the Appalachian League. I think he was 18 at the time. Funny, but at the time, he was considered somewhat of a hard thrower.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Rob I see that you were traded for Steve Stanicek. He was one of my favorite players when he was in college at the U of Nebraska.

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

Dan,

The funny thing about that trade was that it happened in spring training. I had played only two seasons with the Brewers, the highest at Class A in the Midwest League. Steve was a former first-round pick (I think) with the Giants, and I was coming off a .252 season. So I was feeling pretty good that the Giants liked me a lot. Anyway, I made the trip from Phoenix (Brewers) to Scottsdale (Giants) and played pretty well for the last two weeks of spring training. I was slated to break camp with the Fresno team, and on the last day of camp, our manager, Steve Swisher, called me in to tell me they were releasing me. I was shocked.

The irony of it is that Bob Kennedy was the Giants farm director. My main collecting passion is Cleveland Indians memorabilia, and he was a member of the 1948 Indians, the last time Cleveland won the Series (my license plate is 48TRIBE). So here was a former Indian from their last glory days giving me the boot.

It all worked out OK, because the Brewers re-signed me the same day, and I ended up going to the California League anyway, just like I would have with the Brewers. So, in reality, the Brewers got Stanicek for nothing.

(Later that season I homered against Fresno when Kennedy was in town to watch them. Easily one of the highlights of my career.)

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Great story....did you make it into any of the numerous 1980s minor league baseball card sets?

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

Yes ... 1985 Beloit Brewers (TCMA), 1986 Stockton Ports (ProCards), 1987 El Paso Diablos (ProCards), 1988 El Paso (Best), 1989 Wichita Wranglers (Rock's Dugout). Because we had Andy Benes on our team in Wichita -- and because we made the playoffs -- Rock's Dugout issued (I think) four different sets throughout the season. I'm in three of them.

I'm willing to trade even up for any DeLongs, SGC 50 or better.

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Posted By: barrysloate

Rob- these are great stories. You had a pretty long professional career. There are plenty of guys who don't make it through six seasons at any level.

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

By the time I retired, those six felt like 60.

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

for the most part, Santo is doing okay considering his problems. He is diabetic and has had both legs amputated. He walks around on 2 prosthetic legs and has a great attitude. He was awesome and signed autographs for all that wanted them. I got at least 3 signiatures from him to give to other people. I do not believe in selling autographs on ebay. He did have some health issues this week and left the banquet early. His son Jeff was there and stayed the rest of the banquet. Jeff is a good guy also and played ball on our team 4 years ago when they were filming "This Old Cub". Santo is ready for the season to start and is excited abut the Cubs this year. Ernie Banks looked good for being 76, but sometimes he wasn't quite lucent, but he is a great man.

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

here are a few pics
hhttp://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/kmac32/127059327-M.jpgttp://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/kmac32/126382574-M.jpg

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

Kmac catching #32

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

Ken McMillan = Jack Clements

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

they compared me to Dale Long at camp. Behind the dish is the best place to play. You see the entire game and are in every play.

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

Did you bring the glove, or did they provide it? If they had one on hand, color me impressed.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Did you hit a homerun in 8 consecutive games too?

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Posted By: George

It is nice to hear that the Cubs fantasy camps are still going strong, after 25 years. I went to the first one, in 1983, in Scottsdale, Arizona. All of the 1969 Cubbs were there, inclucing Ernie Banks, Glen Beckert, Don Kessinger, Ron Santo, Billy Williams, Jose Cardenal, Jim Hickman, Randy Hundley (and his son Todd, who was a kid at the time), Ferguson Jenkins (who was still active), and Leo Durocher. Even old Charlie Grimm was there. Then, in August of 1983, we met again and played a game in Wrigley Field, prior to a real game between the Cubs and the Mets. We shared the Mets' locker room, and I had a long chat with Tom Seaver, and got to meet Rusty Staub and Darryl Strawberry, as well.

It is hard to believe that Ernie Banks is now 76. Let's play two.

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Posted By: Kyle

posted at Pearl Jam's message board:

http://kencarl.smugmug.com/gallery/2423085/2/127031177#127031389

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

I supplied the glove, and I was lucky to hit it out of the infield, but I had a great time. We used pitching machines to hit off of. It was a blast, but the muscles were a little sore today.

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

Eddie was a blast also, better stick to singing however. In fact, we all need to keep our day jobs

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Posted By: Kyle

more pics here:

http://kencarl.smugmug.com/Randy%20Hundley%20Baseball%20Camp%202007


I love Eddie and PJ.
-Kyle-

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Posted By: barrysloate

Eddie looks pretty dashing in his Cubs' uniform

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Posted By: Jason L

Hey Rob, thanks for relating all those minor league stories...very cool.

I have a question that I hope I phrase correctly,...from your first hand experiences playing pro ball, would you say it's largely true or false, that you can just "tell" who is going to make the majors? is there a sense that everyone can tell when the skill level is there, etc...? and if so, at what point during your career did that differentiation become less obvious?...where it seemed that most were good enough, and it became more an issue of timing, luck and a hole to fill at the major league level?
does that make sense, at all?
always wondered about that
Thanks,
Jason

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

Jason,

I think I know what you're asking, and it's a good question. I think players look at other players differently than organizations look at them, because a player is paying attention only to skills and not taking into account how much money a team has invested in a player. I remember playing with and against guys who, the general consensus was, seemed to belong at a higher level. Then you'd ask around and find out that the organization "just doesn't like him" or that the player picked up a negative label along the way and faced an uphill battle just to get out of Double-A.

There were guys -- Gary Sheffield comes to mind -- who you could look at taking BP and just see the bat speed and know he was something special. An a**hole to be sure, but still a special player. Of course, you didn't have to be a genius to see it in him. And facing Ramon Martinez ... he's the only guy who ever made be feel borderline scared in the batter's box. You could just see he had that "extra" stuff and know he was going to make it. His stuff -- at least in the Texas League -- was so nasty, I often didn't know how to react to it. Which was scary.

The funny thing is, a guy like Martinez, even though he had a strong big league career, he fell far short of what I thought he'd do. Which tells me just how amazingly hard it is to succeed at the major league level. Even though it's a cliche, it really does take more than pure ability a lot of time, and mental toughness plays a big part.

Conversely, you play against guys -- Gregg Jeffries for example -- who seems to be the complete package, then they never make it or make it for only a short time.

Gosh, I don't know if I've even answered your question after all of this rambling. I guess what I'm saying is that when you play with or against the same guys during a long season, you quickly realize the ones who seem "destined." And even though you might not always be 100 percent right, the more you're around -- and the higher the level you're playing at -- the better your precentage is in picking out the future stars.

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Posted By: Jason L

Thank you, and your last paragraph nailed the answer, for sure....very interesting perspective on all of it.
The politics of the cash must be a frustrating thing to come up against, when all you're trying to do is learn the game at the highest levels...Not only do you have to be incredibly talented, work hard, have luck, you also need to be at the right place in the organization every step of the way, and have the investment in you match the opportunities that exist in the organization!?
What an amazing experience you must have had!

And I have to ask, your ID - did you steal 51 bases in a season?

Thanks again, Rob.

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Posted By: Rob Dewolf

Jason: Yes. Coincidentally, that was about 51 pounds ago.

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Posted By: Jason L

I'm with you...although I can't say that at least I was a professional athlete before I gained weight...I just gained weight!

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

Hey Jason,

You can go to fantasy camp and lose those pounds. I'm sure Randy Hundley can arrange that for a small fee

Ken

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Posted By: Jason L

I would love to try that some time...where is that Cubs camp? but I somehow doubt that it is a "small" fee!
Does Randy run you through running drills?

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

It is always heald the last week of January in Mesa, Arizona. The fee is roughly $3800.00. You have trainers and the coaches instruct you on baseball, batting and throwing. They recommend to start stretching several weeks before camp and running and throwing. it doesn't hurt to go to a few batting cages. The games are played with pitching machines so nobody throws out their arms and the pitches come in 60 to 65 mph. Basically you are treated as a ballplayer for the entire week and have a blast. We were supposed to play against the Brewers camp last week, but the games got rained out unfortunately (Brewers use live pitching). My team won the camp championship (not to bad for some out of shape 40 to 50 year olds). I caught the majority of the week (lefty catcher). You get breakfast anf lunch every day in the fee, your uniform, an engraved bat, an autographed baseball from all the pros, and the final game of the week you play against the pros.

Ken

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Ken, that doesn't sound like a bad deal considering all the extras you get...just to hang out with guys like Banks, and Santo out on a ballfield would be priceless.

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Posted By: Ken McMillan

well, I agree with you on that one. I don't know of anyone who has not had a great time going to camp. The camp has about 60% repeat business. Also forgot to mention that you get 50 of your own baseball cards to pass out. This was my 5th year at camp by the way.

Ken