Greatest 21 Days Baseball Profiles

Playing for the semi-pro Santa Maria Tigers in June 1990, Larry Jacinto helped his team beat a seemingly much stronger opponent shocking even Jacinto, The Santa Maria Times wrote . "We thought they were unbeatable," Jacinto, the team's starter who gave up only one extra-base hit, told The Times afterward. "I thought it was impossible to beat them." By that point, Jacinto had already been taken in the draft and he would soon sign. His pro career ended up lasting two seasons. He spent both in rookie ball . Jacinto's career began that year in 1990, taken by the Dodgers in the 40th round of the draft out of Southern California College . At Southern California College, Jacinto went 6-3, with a 3.09 ERA as he sported a fastball, slider, off-speed pitch and curve, his hometown Lompoc Record wrote . With the Dodgers, Jacinto then played the season at rookie Great Falls . He saw 17 relief outings and had a 4.29 ERA. That September, The Record featured him and his...

Features on each member of the 1990 Great Falls Dodgers, as included in the 1990 team set of the rookie Pioneer League affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Great Falls Dodgers (33) Dan Andrews  remembered his old college as pro, with donation David Baumann  stuck out bad back for win, saw 2 seasons Eric Blackwell   saw 3 seasons in Dodgers system, family team Helms Bohringer  saw 3 seasons, turned high school coach Mike Busch  made 2 hard decisions, both led to baseball Guy Conti  proved important for Pedro Martinez, others James Daspit  bubbled with college potential, saw 8 seasons John DeJarld  played one season, injury cut short career Keoki Farrish   slid hard, saw three pro seasons, high-A Mike Frauenhoffer  saw 3 NAIA World Series, 1 pro season Dan Gray  handled self as catcher, saw 7 seasons, high-A Tim Griffin  improved power in college, saw 3 pro seasons Ken Hamilton  showed some bulldog in pros, ...

Still basking in the glow of his first call-up to the majors in 1994, the newly minted Dodger Garey Ingram explained the experience to The San Bernardino County Sun . He'd gotten to meet future Hall of Famers, like Ozzie Smith. He'd also gotten great advice since spring training from teammate Delino DeShields, he told The Sun . "It's awesome to me," Ingram told The Sun . "It's awesome to be here. It's much better than the minor leagues. It's three times better." Ingram made the majors in his fifth season as a pro. He went on to see the bigs over three different campaigns and total 82 big league appearances. He has since gone on to help get others there, as a coach in the minors. Ingram's career began in 1990, taken by the Dodgers the year before in the 44th round of the draft out of Middle Georgia State College . Ingram started with the Dodgers in 1990 at rookie Great Falls . He hit .343 over 56 games as an outfielder. He t...

Ken Hamilton pitched into the sixth inning for rookie Great Falls this night in June 1990 and his pitching coach liked what he saw in both Hamilton and his relief, teammate Jason Kerr, according to The Great Falls Tribune . Hamilton's outing included three hits, no runs and seven strikeouts over five and a third innings, The Tribune wrote . "What I liked most about them both," Conti told The Tribune afterward of his two pitchers, "was they showed a lot of 'bulldog' out there. They were aggressive." Hamilton showed that bulldog in his first season as a pro. He went on to play in four campaigns . He topped out at high-A. Hamilton's career began that year in 1990, taken by the Dodgers in the 10th round of the draft out of Patrick Henry Junior College in Alabama. Hamilton was also credited as Kenny Hamilton . At Patrick Henry, Hamilton struck out five in a complete game February 1990 victory, then  struck out 10 in an April win. He st...

John DeJarld went undrafted in 1990, but then went on to have a sterling year that year as a reliever in rookie ball with the Dodgers. So, when he looked toward Year 2 in February 1991, he laid out his plan, one where he had hopes of moving up to AA and even higher, according to The Daily Iowan . "My goal is to have a good enough year to make it to double-A next year," DeJarld told the University of Iowa paper . "Maybe get moved up during the year, but I'd have to do really well to do that." For DeJarld, though, he never got the chance to show what he could do on the mound that season or again. Shoulder problems surfaced that spring, problems that would end his career . DeJarld's brief career began in 1990, signed by the Dodgers as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Iowa . DeJarld was also credited as John De Jarld. At Iowa, DeJarld worked as both as both a starter and as a reliever. On one day in May 1989, he worked as both. He t...

As he entered Cooperstown in 2015, Pedro Martinez recalled a pivotal figure in his career, Guy Conti , according to NJ.com . "Guy Conti was a guy responsible for changing the grip on my changeup," Martinez said, according to the site . "Which that was the pitch that everybody looks at as a big difference maker from the fastball." But Conti's early off-the-field assistance, at rookie Great Falls in 1990 and elsewhere with the Dodgers, helped Martinez make the transition from the Dominican to the U.S., enough so that Martinez referred to Conti as his "white daddy," NJ.com wrote . Conti's career in baseball began long before he met the future Hall of Famer. Conti briefly played himself and even turned to coaching in college before he returned to the pros. His return to the pros would set him through the minors as a coach and eventually to coach in the majors. Conti's playing career began and ended in 1961 out of Clarion University of ...

Jason Kerr picked up his first complete game for Cerritos College in late-March 1990, but he almost didn't go the distance, his coach George Horton told The Monrovia News-Post . Kerr seemed to weaken in the sixth, but convinced Horton he could still pitch - and Kerr went on to strike out the side in the ninth, The News-Post wrote . "I just asked him how he felt, and he told me he still felt strong," Horton told The News-Post . "I decided to stay with him and he finished strong." Kerr finished his college career strong enough to get a look at the pros. His pro career lasted five seasons. He topped out at high-A . Kerr's pro career began that year in 1990, taken by the Dodgers in the eighth round of the draft out of Cerritos College in California. Kerr started with the Dodgers at rookie Great Falls , used mostly as a reliever. He saw 19 appearances, one start. He went 1-1, with a 3.57 ERA and one save. He threw 90 mph in an early July relief ...

Ron Maurer singled early in this April 1990 game for North Carolina and with it, he'd hit safely in 31-straight games, a school record, The North Carolina Daily Tar Heel wrote . "It was a relief (to break the record), because it's a long streak," Maurer told The Daily Tar Heel afterward. "Things just happened to fall for me. I didn't feel any pressure to break the streak; I just kept swinging." Maurer's streak ended there, at 31, a number that remains in the North Carolina record books 30 years later. On the field, Maurer kept swinging afterward from college, on to the pros. His pro career lasted more than a decade, including time hitting in Taiwan. He made AAA, but he never got to hit in the majors. Maurer's pro career began that year in 1990, taken by the Dodgers in the 23rd round of the draft out of North Carolina . At North Carolina, Maurer won first-team all-conference in 1990 and second-team the previous two years. Maure...

Great Falls Dodgers manager Joe Vavra assessed his new players in June 1990, among them a 19-year-old Raul Mondesi , according to The Great Falls Tribune . Vavra saw good things in Mondesi's future, The Tribune wrote . "He's got everything," Vavra told The Tribune . "He's probably the best outfielder in the organization for his age." Mondesi took his everything to the majors in his fourth pro season. He then won National League Rookie of the Year honors in 1994 and made the 1995 All-Star game. By the time his career was over, he'd seen time in 13 major league seasons and hit 271 total major league home runs. He later went from everything to politics in his home country - and then to prison for corruption. Mondesi's career began that season, having been signed by the Dodgers two years earlier out of his native Dominican Republic . Mondesi started with the Dodgers in the minors at Great Falls . He hit .303 in 41 games there. He the...

Ed Stryker got a glimpse of the majors in spring 1989 and he wasn't yet even a pro, according to The Bloomington Pantagraph . The Illinois State hurler got an invite to throw batting practice with the Cubs, The Pantagraph wrote . "It was a real kick being around those guys and seeing the way they worked," Stryker told The Pantagraph . "Just being around the atmosphere makes you hungry to get there yourself." Stryker went on to turn pro the next year, as he signed with the Dodgers, not the Cubs. He saw four pro seasons, but he never saw Los Angeles - or Chicago- as a player. He topped out at high-A . Stryker's career began in 1990, signed by the Dodgers out of Illinois State and Mount Prospect High . He was also credited by his full name, Edward Stryker. At Illinois State, Stryker helped his team to a May 1989 win by striking out two in the ninth inning with the winning run on third. In 1990, he threw seven complete games and went 8-6. He also ...

The Great Falls Tribune featured the local rookie-league Dodgers' first-round pick Ron Walden in early July and the newly minted pro was enjoying his first pro summer. He had been "plagued by bad nerves" in his first pro start, but had gotten out of the gate with a 3-0 record and an ERA of 0.42, The Tribune wrote . "You can't beat this. The treatment is great. The Dodgers treat you like a person, not a player," Walden told The Tribune then. "I was pulling for them (to pick me). I'm glad they did." For Walden, however, that point he spoke to The Tribune essentially proved the high-water mark of his professional career. Soon after, a sore elbow would sideline him for the year. Surgeries and rehab would continue to keep him out over the next two campaigns, only to take the field for one more brief sting in 1993 at high-A Vero Beach . Walden's career began in 1990, taken by the Dodgers ninth overall out of Blanchard High in Ok...

Mark Mimbs and Michael Mimbs hadn't been separated in 21 years. That included college - Mercer - the 1990 MLB draft - both taken by the Dodgers - and even their assignments - rookie Great Falls, The Los Angeles Times wrote. But that soon changed, The Times wrote , as the Dodgers learned the two were more competitive than they thought and sent Michael Mimbs off to their short-season team in Yakima. "It was a real sick feeling," Mark Mimbs recalled to The Times later of the separation as Mark remained at Great Falls. "It was like somebody had taken away your best friend." Though separated, the two remained in the same organization, and even rejoined for a time in 1992 at AA San Antonio. But their careers would ultimately take different paths. Michael Mimbs went on to make the majors, after a stint in independent ball. Mark Mimbs went on to play a decade in the pros. He topped out at AAA, but he went on to play in Japan. Mark Mimbs' career bega...

In his second pro season, Brian Piotrowicz characterized his stint in the minors to his hometown South Bend Tribune by looking back to his high school and college days. Piotrowicz then served as a reliever for the Dodgers at high-A Bakersfield , after spending his first pro summer at rookie Great Falls. "It really has been an easy transition for me to pro ball," Piotrowicz told The Tribune  in June 1991. "I think I had a super background learning baseball in high school and college. They're teaching the same ideas and approaches to pitching that I learned at those levels." Piotrowicz took those lessons the next year on to AA San Antonio. Piotrowicz, however, couldn't take them higher. He played four seasons and topped out at AA . Piotrowicz' pro career began in 1990, signed by the Dodgers as an undrafted free agent out of Notre Dame . Piotrowicz showed what he could do at Notre Dame in May 1988 as he threw a no-hitter , his 13th-consecutiv...

David Baumann came out and pitched a gem for Great Falls this night in August 1990, going seven scoreless in the win, according to The Great Falls Tribune . But the outing almost didn't happen, Baumann told The Tribune afterward. "I wasn't sure I was going to make the start tonight," Baumann told The Tribune . "My back has been hurting me and I came in and took some treatment from our trainer." Baumann got through that game, one in his first season as a pro. He then got through more the next year. Those two seasons proved the extent of his career. Baumann's career began that year in 1990, taken by the Dodgers in the 29th round of the draft out of Western New England College . At Western New England, Baumann went 21-5 over four seasons and struck out 276 over 206 innings. He made the school's Hall of Fame in 2007. With the Dodgers, Baumann went 7-3 overall, with a 3.03 ERA in 13 outings, 11 starts. That June, he went five scoreless a...

After Dan Andrews arrived at rookie Great Falls in 1990, The Great Falls Tribune asked Dan Andrews and his teammates their greatest thrill. For Andrews, he looked back to his college days at Cal Poly, and the time he went 5 for 5 in a game. He later remembered his college in a bigger way, with a $400,000 donation toward the school's new stadium project in 2012, Andrews then the head of Dan Andrews Farms, a fruit and vegetable growing business in California. "Danny's dedicated service to the university and generous gift to launch the new baseball stadium project is truly inspirational," Cal Poly athletics director Brian Swanson said in a statement then. "His vision and desire to revitalize the baseball stadium will provide generations of Broncos an unprecedented student-athlete experience. Everyone at Cal Poly Pomona is greatly appreciative of this gift from Danny Andrews." In between his college career and his career in produce, Andrews played ...

The College of DuPage baseball team emerged from sectionals in 1990 confident and infielder Burgess Watts expressed that to The Arlington Heights Daily Herald . "There isn't anybody they can throw against us that we can't hit," Watts told The Daily Herald that May. "That's the way we think. That's the way we feel." Watts took that confidence from college on to the pros. His pro career lasted four seasons, including two seasons spent on the mound. He topped out at high-A . Watts' pro career began that year in 1990, taken by the Dodgers in the 19th round of the draft out of DuPage . Watts went to DuPage out of Wheaton Central High School in Illinois, where he also played quarterback in football. He played quarterback well enough there that his coach told The Chicago Tribune in August 1984 that Watts could be "the best we've ever had here." On the baseball field at DuPage, Watts hit a May 1989 grand slam that sealed a ...