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BISBEE — After the first weekend of play, the Bisbee Copper Kings have already made some changes for their home doubleheader which begins at 6 p.m. today at Warren Ballpark against the Tucson Stars.
Those changes have primarily affected their pitching staff.
Originally, Bisbee manager Butch Hammett was going to write in Sergio Moreno in his lineup.
But Moreno, who went 6-0 last season, will only be able to make a few starts this season, due to his new job.
 Bisbee Copper Kings owner Tom Mosier poses with the new Copper Kings team bus outside Warren Ballpark in Bisbee. At 6 p.m. today, the Kings will play a doubleheader against the Tucson Stars. (Mark Levy-Herald/Review) |
So the Copper Kings will likely go with either Carlos Chavez, who played for Cochise College after playing for Douglas High School, or Shane Foreman, who played for Eastern Arizona Community College after playing for Willcox High.
“I have a lot of confidence in (Carlos) Chavez or Shane Foreman,” Hammett said on Wednesday during a practice at Warren Ballpark. “Ricky Valdez is another one, we’re also working out his schedule.”
Jason Kimzey, another Willcox High product who is looking at playing for Wayland Baptist University in Texas, is another option for this weekend. Derek Tidball, who played in Japan and spent eight years in the United States Army, is trying out to make the team.
Former Cochise College and Douglas High pitcher Diego Ochoa, who is on vacation this week, will be back for next weekend’s series.
“We’ll be a lot stronger pitching-wise,” Hammett said.
Another possible addition could be Tyler Hardt, who played for Buena High School.
“He is one of our best hitters from the left side,” Hammett said. “He has a sprained meniscus in his knee. He’ll have the MRI results (today), we’ll see then.”
Bisbee right fielder Zach Baldenegro, the leadoff hitter of the team, is one of several returners from last year’s Bisbee Kings team that finished 18-3. Baldenegro also played for the Cochise College Apaches.
“They’re a really good team, but I think we’ll be fine,” Baldenegro said. “A lot of the guys got jobs, so they can show one time a week or only on Sunday. Having the home crowd, we should be pumped up. Last time we threw non-starters, we were asking a lot from them, for their first start for the Copper Kings.”
Foreman started in Game 2, while Bisbee High left-hander Carlos Lopez started in Game 3.
Bisbee has lost its first three games of the season. It took the six-hour bus trip to San Luis, south of Yuma, and lost its season opener on Saturday, 3-0. A 3-2 lead evaporated into a 9-3 loss in the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, then an 11-7 loss followed on Sunday.
“They had nine players who tried out for the Yuma Scorpions of the Golden Baseball League,” Hammett said. “I’d say at least three or four will probably make it. So they probably won’t have those guys the next time we play them. They had about 36 players on their team. We only had about 20.”
Speaking of buses, the Copper Kings bought a new 24-passenger white bus for road trips. The ragtag multiple-car trips are a thing of the past.
The Stars, an All-Star team made up of players in their 20s and 30s who were in the National Adult Baseball Association, have 18 players on their roster.
Andrew Silverstein, the general manager and coach-center fielder for the Stars, played as an outfielder for the Hammett-coached Bisbee High School varsity baseball team until 1995. Silverstein batted .484 for Tucson last season.
Some big changes for the fans will also be prominent. For the first time in the team’s history, beer will be sold for $3 per cup, with hot dogs for $2. Miller Lite, Bud Light and Bud Lite are the options. The tickets cost $5, children under six years old can get in for free.
Bisbee city mayor Ron Oertle will throw out the first pitch in the home opener. At 5 p.m. on Saturday, the first game of a doubleheader will be played against San Luis, with a 1:30 p.m. game on Sunday against the Athletics following that one.
At noon on Sunday, the Sierra Vista/Bisbee Hot Flashes play the Tucson Senior Stix in a women’s softball exhibition game.
Saturday is Bisbee High School athletics appreciation night. Current Bisbee High students who played for any Bisbee High School team or recent Class of 2007 graduates who played for a freshman, junior varsity or varsity team can get in for $3.
Bisbee Copper Kings team president Tom Mosier said there will be 26 advertisements along the outfield fence, along with 12 advertisements in the program, versus six last season. A new public address system that was bought for somewhere between $1,200 and $1,500 was being installed on Wednesday. It will play baseball music from the 1950s, among other music.
“We’ve got a tremendous support from Bisbee and Sierra Vista and from Douglas,” Mosier said. “I think the fans will be entertained and they’ll get their money’s worth.”
