Outlaws baseball roster taking shape
Cracking bats and popping gloves resonated throughout Memorial Park on Saturday as the Glacier Outlaws kicked off their preseason training just five days away from the inaugural season of the Mount Rainier Professional Baseball League.
Thirty-seven players are in camp for four days of tryouts and evaluations before the roster must be down to 24 ball players for the Outlaws’ season-opener on Thursday when they’ll host the Skagit Valley Lumberjacks at 6:05 p.m.
“It’s a short period, but I think manager Mike Goss has a pretty keen eye for talent. We’ll give them all a fair shot, and either (Wednesday or Thursday) we’ll announce cuts,” Glacier Outlaws General Manager Bob Lockman said.
Sharing their home ballpark with the defending American Legion A state champion Glacier Twins baseball team, the Outlaws have embraced their new roommates while promoting the game in the community, utilizing the young talent right in front of them.
The Outlaws will scrimmage the Twins on Wednesday at 7 p.m. for one final tune-up on the eve of a four-game homestand with Skagit Valley.
“We’re excited about the way it’s working out,” Lockman said. “The Twins players are down here watching them, helping them prep the field. I think it’s going to be a good working relationship between the Outlaws and the Twins. The Twins players are excited.”
But before the lines are chalked on opening day, the Outlaws must submit their roster, a task becoming increasingly difficult for manager Mike Goss — in a good way.
“There are going to be some extremely tough decisions,” he said. “They’re making it very hard for me. I want to watch them for a couple more days, but I do have an idea of which guys, once the games start and you get in those pressure situations, will be able to come through. I can kind of get a feeling for that, but I don’t want to pass too much judgment to quickly cause it was just the first day.”
Day 1 marked the first live pitching and hitting for the Outlaws’ preseason roster, and while cuts loom as the season approaches, Goss’ blueprint is already laid out for the 68-game season.
“I love small ball, but I also need my middle guys to drive the baseball. The middle guys need to be getting the RBIs,” Green said. “I like a mixture of power and speed and not just one set style of team. I want my 1 and 2 guys and my 7s 8s and 9s to be guys who can run, speedy guys who can get on base. I want 3 through 6 to drive the ball and pick up those runs.
“I’ve got a lot of good players with great work ethic. They’re coming out here and showing me they want to be out here. If you don’t enjoy this game and have fun playing it every day, you’re in the wrong sport. It’s going to be a hard decision. I was impressed with the first day of live pitching and hitting. It was nice to see my hitters get some live looks and the pitchers face some live batters.”