Results tagged ‘ Spring Training ’
2/15 Cubs begin organizational meetings
The Cubs baseball operations staff, coaches and scouts will meet today in Mesa for the start of organizational meetings. Usually, these meetings are held in early November after the season is completed but the Cubs delayed their sessions until everyone was in place. Manager Dale Sveum and his staff met on Tuesday at Fitch Park in Mesa to prep for their first Spring Training together. Pitchers and catchers report on Saturday with the first workout scheduled for Sunday at Fitch. The Cubs are waiting to see if Blake DeWitt clears waivers. He was designated for assignment on Feb. 6, and if he is unclaimed, could return as a non-roster invitee. Also unresolved is the compensation issue for Theo Epstein. Expect a decision this week.
– Carrie Muskat
2/7 Numbers game
Tony Campana will switch to No. 1, Anthony Rizzo gets No. 44, and catcher Jason Jaramillo will inherit Carlos Zambrano’s No. 38 this spring in Cubs camp. For those of you curious about uniform numbers for some of the new faces, here are some updates:
Pitchers
Lendy Castillo – #52
Paul Maholm – #28
Andy Sonnanstine – #21
Chris Volstad – #32
Casey Weathers - #56
Travis Wood – #30
Catchers
Welington Castillo – #53
Steve Clevenger – #51
Jason Jaramillo – #38
Infielders
Jeff Baker – #3
Adrian Cardenas – TBD
Junior Lake – #73
Anthony Rizzo – #44
Ian Stewart – #2
Josh Vitters – #61
Outfielders
Tony Campana – #1
David DeJesus – #9
Dave Sappelt – #17
Matt Szczur – #72
– Carrie Muskat
2/6 Non-roster invitees
Here are the 22 non-roster players invited to the Cubs’ Spring Training camp (in case you missed it). Pitchers/catchers report on Feb. 18, with a workout the next day. Position players report Feb. 23 and the first full squad workout will be Feb. 24 in Mesa, Ariz., at Fitch Park.
Pitchers: Esmailin Caridad, Marco Carrillo, Manuel Corpas, Jay Jackson, Rodrigo Lopez, Trey McNutt, Blake Parker, Dae-Eun Rhee, Trever Miller and Chris Rusin
Catchers: Michael Brenly, Jason Jaramillo and Blake Lalli
Infielders: Alfredo Amezaga, Edgar Gonzalez, Jonathan Mota, Bobby Scales and Matt Tolbert
Outfielders: Jim Adduci, Jae-Hoon Ha, Brett Jackson and Joe Mather
– Carrie Muskat
2/6 Back to work
I apologize for the lull in postings. I went on what was supposed to be a baseball-free vacation, but the movie on the flight was “Moneyball.” The concierge at our hotel was drafted by the Yankees and knew Geovany Soto. Heard a lot of discussion about the power of the Dominican Republic team in the Caribbean World Series. On the flight home, the attendant announced they didn’t have the movie “Dolphin Tale” so we watched “Moneyball” again. What is important is that Cubs pitchers and catchers report to Mesa, Ariz., in 12 days. See everyone soon at Fitch Park.
– Carrie Muskat
1/21 Cubs spring broadcast schedule
1/4 Spring report dates for Cubs
11/28 A’s consider Mesa as Spring Training site
When the Cubs leave their current Spring Training facility in Mesa, Ariz., the Athletics could move in. The A’s have entered exclusive negotiations with the city of Mesa that could result in a move from Phoenix. The Cubs are relocating to a new site in Mesa, which was expected to be ready for Spring Training 2014. The A’s would move their year-round Minor League operations from Phoenix’s Papago Sports Complex to Mesa’s Fitch Park. The exclusive negotiation period lasts through May 15. Oakland’s current agreement with the city of Phoenix expires after the 2014 season.
– Carrie Muskat
11/21 Cubs 2012 Spring Training schedule
The Cubs released the 2012 Spring Training schedule today. They’ll play 16 home games at HoHoKam Park in Mesa, Ariz., 17 road games, and two in Las Vegas. Spring training report dates will be determined at a later time. The Cubs will make their annual trip to Las Vegas for a two-game weekend series March 17-18 against a to-be-determined opponent. The Cubs close out the spring on April 3 against the Brewers. The Cubs and White Sox square off twice next spring – March 9 in Glendale and March 18 at HoHoKam.
Individual game tickets for the 2012 Chicago Cubs home spring training games at HoHoKam Park will go on sale Jan. 5 at 10 a.m. CT on www.cubs.com or by calling 1-800-905-3315. The ticket box office at HoHoKam Park will open for the sale of individual game tickets beginning Jan. 17 at 9 a.m. MT.
Season tickets at HoHoKam Park go on sale Jan. 4 at 9 a.m. MT and group tickets go on sale Jan. 5 at 9 a.m. MT at the HoHoKam box office or by calling 480-964-4467.
Here’s the schedule. All games begin at 1:05 p.m. Arizona time unless otherwise noted. Split squad games are denoted with an (ss).
March 4 vs. Athletics, Mesa
March 5 vs. Athletics, Mesa
March 6 vs. Rockies, Mesa
March 7 at Royals, Surprise
March 8 vs. Mariners, Mesa
March 9 at White Sox, Glendale
March 10 at Brewers, Maryvale
March 11 at Dodgers, Glendale
March 12 vs. Reds, Mesa
March 13 at Giants, Scottsdale (7:05 p.m. MT)
March 14 vs. Brewers, Mesa
March 15 (ss) vs. Diamondbacks, Mesa; at Rockies, Scottsdale
March 16 vs. Giants, Mesa
March 17 (ss) at Athletics, Phoenix; at Las Vegas (Team TBD)
March 18 (ss) vs. White Sox, Mesa; at Las Vegas (Team TBD)
March 19 at Mariners, Peoria
March 20 (ss) vs. Rangers, Mesa; at Athletics, Phoenix
March 21 OFF
March 22 at Rangers, Surprise
March 23 at Rockies, Scottsdale
March 24 vs. Padres, Mesa
March 25 at Indians, Goodyear
March 26 (ss) vs. Padres, Mesa; at Diamondbacks, Scottsdale
March 27 at Reds, Goodyear
March 28 vs. Indians, Mesa
March 29 at Padres, Peoria
March 30 vs. Dodgers, Mesa
March 31 vs. Angels, Mesa
April 1 at Angels, Tempe
April 2 at Diamondbacks, Scottsdale
April 3 vs. Brewers, Mesa
– Carrie Muskat
10/23 Mesa’s Robert Brinton dead at 60
Robert Brinton, a key force in keeping the Cubs in Arizona, died unexpectedly on Friday. A past Cactus League Association president, Brinton was not feeling well in his office at the Mesa Convention and Visitors Bureau. Mesa Mayor Scott Smith said when Brinton failed to return from the restroom, another employee found him slumped over. He was 60.
“I was just absolutely stunned,” Smith told the Arizona Republic. “I lost a friend, a co-worker, a giant.”
Brinton and Smith partnered to save the Cubs from a potential move to Naples, Fla. The two men campaigned together for approval of a Mesa ballot measure that approved financing for a new Cubs Spring Training complex at the present site of Riverview Golf Course, near the interchange of Loops 101 and 202 in west Mesa.
“Everything he did was for the love of his community and people,” Smith said. “He gave selflessly because he believed in it. He was that kind of person.”
Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts said in a statement that Brinton helped persuade him to keep the Cubs in Arizona after he bought the team in 2009.
“Robert was as passionate a Cubs fan as there ever was,” Ricketts said in a statement. “His love for baseball helped fuel the success of the Cactus League through more than five decades. His leadership this past year is a big part of the reason our team is staying in Mesa, and his legacy to future generations will be evident each spring as the Cubs take the field. He was a true friend and we will miss him dearly.”
Former Arizona Diamondbacks GM Joe Garagiola Jr. said Brinton’s respectful manner and credibility helped persuade the Cubs to stay in Mesa in 1989, when the league had eight teams and was endangered. He said the Cubs were listening to Florida politicians, who were hoping to lure the remaining teams to their state.
“The debt that the Cactus League owes Robert Brinton is immeasurable,” Garagiola said. “Everyone who knew him has a hole in their heart today.”
Brinton served as president of the Cactus League Association for two years, but he was a board member for 20 years. He also was executive director of the Mesa Convention and Visitors Bureau and the past president of the Mesa HoHoKams, a civic group that performs many functions at Hohokam Stadium during games.
Under Brinton’s leadership and through his tireless efforts, “the Cactus League exploded into a 15-team league that rivals the Super Bowl in economic importance,” said Dave Dunne, the league’s treasurer and manager of Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, the spring home of the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies. The Cactus League drew more than 1.5 million fans this year and had an estimated economic impact of $360 million.
Dunne said Brinton was “this generation’s Dwight Patterson,” the hotelier who helped found the Cactus League by luring the Cubs to Mesa in 1952.
“Heaven’s baseball team just added another player,” said Mark Gallo, current HoHoKam stadium manager. “I loved the man.”
Brinton is survived by his wife, Nannette, and seven adult children. Services are pending.
– Carrie Muskat
10/18 Mesa ready to go
Groundbreaking is expected next spring or summer for the Cubs’ new Spring Training facility, which received a vote of approval Monday night. The Mesa city council voted 6-0 to approve the package to allow it and the Cubs to design and build the $99 million Spring Training complex. Mesa now has a 30-year deal in place to build the stadium and manage it with the Cubs, who have called the city its Spring Training home since 1979. The city also can sell parcels to the team for the so-called “Wrigleyville West” entertainment complex.
Mesa officials and the Cubs have been negotiating terms since voters approved the deal last November by a 2-1 margin. Mesa Mayor Scott Smith said the Cubs will pay any expenses exceeding $84 million for the stadium and $15 million for related projects. Scottsdale-based Hunt Construction Group was named the contractor, and was awarded $380,000 for the design phase of the project. It will seek competitive bids on the subcontract jobs.
Mesa officials expect the complex to be finished in time for Spring Training 2014. The new facility will be located at the southeast corner of the Loop 101 and Loop 202 in west Mesa and replace the Riverview Golf Course.
– Carrie Muskat
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