GaryMrMets
07-29-2004, 04:06 PM
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/sports/9267134.htm
Posted on Thu, Jul. 29, 2004
Waiting For the Call
For the last week, minor-league baseball aficionados have been buzzing about an infielder and his hitting streak. The Fresno Grizzlies player had hit in 25 straight Pacific Coast League games. Then 30 straight. Then 32.
Turns out the player is a familiar name to Phillies fans. The hitting streak belonged to David Doster, who spent many years in the Phillies farm system and all of 1999 in the majors with the club.
Doster's streak rose to 32 games on Monday night. The next day he received a phone call from a reporter from Philadelphia. That night, Doster's streak ended.
"No, you didn't jinx me," Doster said with a laugh yesterday, the day after the streak ended with an 0 for 4 in a 10-4 win over Oklahoma. "We had a press conference here [Tuesday]. That might have done it."
Actually, the 33-year-old Doster doesn't believe in jinxes. He hit the ball hard a couple of times Tuesday night, but the Oklahoma infielders made good plays on him.
When the streak ended, Doster took a deep breath.
"It had to end sometime," he said. "In a way, it's nice to have the pressure off. I can finally relax and breathe. If I wasn't already balding, people might have said the stress and pressure were getting to me."
Doster's streak was the longest in the PCL in 22 years, but far from the minor-league record - 61 straight - set by a San Francisco Seals outfielder named Joe DiMaggio in 1933.
DiMaggio, of course, also owns the major-league record - 56 in 1941.
"I thought 30 was crazy," Doster said. "I can't imagine doing it for 56 or 61 straight games, even in the minor leagues, never mind with all the pressure at the big-league level."
Fresno is the top affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Doster, who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates' triple-A team last year, has played all over the infield for Fresno. He entered last night hitting .337 with six homers and 45 RBIs.
Doster hasn't played in the majors since 1999, when he appeared in 99 games for the Phillies. He played at triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2000 and in Japan in 2001. In 2002, he returned to Scranton before signing with the Pirates organization last year.
What keeps Doster going?
"I love the game, and we want to keep our house," he said with a laugh. "It helps pay the bills."
Doster and his wife, Kimberly, have two children, a son, Owen, 7, and a daughter, Ava, 15 months.
Living on a minor-league salary isn't easy, so Doster plays year-round. He has spent the last three winters playing for Hermosillo in the Mexican winter league. He only sees his family at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
"My wife is the greatest," Doster said. "She keeps it all together. And she lets me be a kid at 33."
Doster, the Phils' 27th-round pick in the 1993 draft, dreams of getting back to the majors one more time. He hopes his strong season will earn him a trip to San Francisco in September. But he's realistic about his chances. He is not on the team's 40-man roster.
"I feel I can play in the big leagues," he said. "Everyone in triple A feels that way. If you don't feel that way, you shouldn't be playing. No one is satisfied being in triple A."
But it's still baseball, and that means something to Doster. "When people ask me what position I play, I tell them I'm just a ballplayer," he said. "It doesn't matter. I just love to play."
When Doster finally does stop playing, he might have a future in the Phillies organization. Phillies management always liked the way he played the game and went about his business. The team has spoken to Doster about someday rejoining the organization as a minor-league coach or manager.
That is a chance Doster would welcome. He has played for and learned from many managers. He particularly likes the style of his former Scranton manager, Marc Bombard.
But before Doster moves to the dugout, there are still games to play.
"I'm having fun. I'm feeling good. I'm doing well," he said. "Why stop now?"
Minor matters. Former Phillies farmhand Taylor Buchholz has landed on the disabled list at triple-A New Orleans. The righthander, traded to Houston in the Billy Wagner deal, came down with a sore shoulder earlier this month. An MRI exam did not reveal structural damage, and he should be back pitching in August... . Righthander Alfredo Simon is putting it together at single-A Clearwater. He has pitched two straight shutouts, allowing just six hits in 18 innings. After starting off 2-6 with a 4.70 ERA in his first 10 starts, Simon is 4-3 with a 2.31 ERA in his last 10 and has held opposing hitters to a .217 batting average.
Posted on Thu, Jul. 29, 2004
Waiting For the Call
For the last week, minor-league baseball aficionados have been buzzing about an infielder and his hitting streak. The Fresno Grizzlies player had hit in 25 straight Pacific Coast League games. Then 30 straight. Then 32.
Turns out the player is a familiar name to Phillies fans. The hitting streak belonged to David Doster, who spent many years in the Phillies farm system and all of 1999 in the majors with the club.
Doster's streak rose to 32 games on Monday night. The next day he received a phone call from a reporter from Philadelphia. That night, Doster's streak ended.
"No, you didn't jinx me," Doster said with a laugh yesterday, the day after the streak ended with an 0 for 4 in a 10-4 win over Oklahoma. "We had a press conference here [Tuesday]. That might have done it."
Actually, the 33-year-old Doster doesn't believe in jinxes. He hit the ball hard a couple of times Tuesday night, but the Oklahoma infielders made good plays on him.
When the streak ended, Doster took a deep breath.
"It had to end sometime," he said. "In a way, it's nice to have the pressure off. I can finally relax and breathe. If I wasn't already balding, people might have said the stress and pressure were getting to me."
Doster's streak was the longest in the PCL in 22 years, but far from the minor-league record - 61 straight - set by a San Francisco Seals outfielder named Joe DiMaggio in 1933.
DiMaggio, of course, also owns the major-league record - 56 in 1941.
"I thought 30 was crazy," Doster said. "I can't imagine doing it for 56 or 61 straight games, even in the minor leagues, never mind with all the pressure at the big-league level."
Fresno is the top affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Doster, who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates' triple-A team last year, has played all over the infield for Fresno. He entered last night hitting .337 with six homers and 45 RBIs.
Doster hasn't played in the majors since 1999, when he appeared in 99 games for the Phillies. He played at triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2000 and in Japan in 2001. In 2002, he returned to Scranton before signing with the Pirates organization last year.
What keeps Doster going?
"I love the game, and we want to keep our house," he said with a laugh. "It helps pay the bills."
Doster and his wife, Kimberly, have two children, a son, Owen, 7, and a daughter, Ava, 15 months.
Living on a minor-league salary isn't easy, so Doster plays year-round. He has spent the last three winters playing for Hermosillo in the Mexican winter league. He only sees his family at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
"My wife is the greatest," Doster said. "She keeps it all together. And she lets me be a kid at 33."
Doster, the Phils' 27th-round pick in the 1993 draft, dreams of getting back to the majors one more time. He hopes his strong season will earn him a trip to San Francisco in September. But he's realistic about his chances. He is not on the team's 40-man roster.
"I feel I can play in the big leagues," he said. "Everyone in triple A feels that way. If you don't feel that way, you shouldn't be playing. No one is satisfied being in triple A."
But it's still baseball, and that means something to Doster. "When people ask me what position I play, I tell them I'm just a ballplayer," he said. "It doesn't matter. I just love to play."
When Doster finally does stop playing, he might have a future in the Phillies organization. Phillies management always liked the way he played the game and went about his business. The team has spoken to Doster about someday rejoining the organization as a minor-league coach or manager.
That is a chance Doster would welcome. He has played for and learned from many managers. He particularly likes the style of his former Scranton manager, Marc Bombard.
But before Doster moves to the dugout, there are still games to play.
"I'm having fun. I'm feeling good. I'm doing well," he said. "Why stop now?"
Minor matters. Former Phillies farmhand Taylor Buchholz has landed on the disabled list at triple-A New Orleans. The righthander, traded to Houston in the Billy Wagner deal, came down with a sore shoulder earlier this month. An MRI exam did not reveal structural damage, and he should be back pitching in August... . Righthander Alfredo Simon is putting it together at single-A Clearwater. He has pitched two straight shutouts, allowing just six hits in 18 innings. After starting off 2-6 with a 4.70 ERA in his first 10 starts, Simon is 4-3 with a 2.31 ERA in his last 10 and has held opposing hitters to a .217 batting average.