We've moved...or centralized

I'm still doing what I do, to some extent, but this place - obviously - isn't being updated anymore. Point your browsers, bookmarks and links to:Tiger Blog.

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoy the new place.

Kess

The first signs of spring

Today is the first day for pitchers and catchers to report for Spring Training, a sure sign that winter is almost over and summer is on its way. The Springfield Cardinals open their season at home on April 6 - just 49 days away - while Opening Night (it's an event now, not just a game) for Major League Baseball is April 2.

To whet your appetite, we present some Spring Training 2006 factoids for Missouri's Major League teams:

The St. Louis Cardinals begin their ninth spring in Jupiter, Fla., at Roger Dean Stadium and enter camp with a lot of new faces on the roster, including Larry Bigbie (OF), Deivi Cruz (INF), Juan Encarnacion (OF), Braden Looper (RHP), Sidney Ponson (RHP) and Junior Spivey (INF).

The Cardinals play their first exhibition game Tuesday, Feb. 28, against Florida Atlantic at 12:05 p.m. (Springfield time).

The Kansas City Royals are in their fourth season at Surprise, Ariz. They have just as many new faces as the Cardinals as they try to improve on last year's 56-106 mark. The Royals are bringing in five new righthanded pitchers (including Elmer Dessens and Scott Elarton), as well as lefty Mark Redman. Reggie Sanders is a new addition in the outfield, while Esteban German, Mark Grudzielanek and Doug Mientkiewicz look to strengthen the KC infield.

The Royals open the spring slate Thursday, March 2, against the Texas Rangers. First pitch is 2:05 p.m. (Springfield time).

Year two opens for the Springfield Cardinals on March 6 when all St. Louis minor leaguers report to camp. Each squad will conduct its first workout the following day.

There's still a lot of work to be done to figure out the 2006 roster, but there are several familiar faces in camp with the big league birds.

Travis Hanson is on the spring training roster after batting .284-20-97 in 137 games at third base for Springfield. He will likely open the year at Memphis (AAA). He will be joined on the infield by Brendan Ryan, a top prospect in the St. Louis organization. Ryan spent most of the year at Palm Beach (A), batting .303-1-16 in 49 games. He moved up to Springfield and played well at short, going .273-2-9 in 43 games. He will likely be back in Springfield to start the season.

In the outfield are Rick Ankiel and Reid Gorecki. Both spent time in Springfield last year and both were demoted. But while Gorecki stayed down at Palm Beam to get his swing back, Ankiel recovered and finished the year strong.

Gorecki - pegged my local media as the first Springfield star - struggled in 46 games, batting .182-3-16 and with 38 K's. He improved at Palm Beach, going .286-6-41 in 64 games.

Ankiel finished .243-10-30 in 34 games with Springfield and will likely start the year back in AA. Good for us here in Springfield.

There are several familiar names on the non-roster invitee list: Alan Benes (RHP), Andy Cavazos (RHP), Randy Leek (LHP) and Gabe Johnson (C), all of whom spent time in the Queen City last year.

The Q does it again!

Missouri State University president Mike Nietzel showed a gift for the quip when he told the crowd gathered at Hammons Student Center "This is great turnout for such a well-kept secret."

Yeah, we all knew what was going down. Back in the summer rumors surfaced on letsgobears.com that a new arena at MO State was in the works. The announcement was delayed...and delayed...and delayed. Some had lost hope until those rumors resurfaced, with all signs pointing to February.

February 10, 2006 to be exact. Today Nietzel, MSU AD Bill Rowe and hotelier John Q. Hammons announced plans for the new barn, to be located on what is now a parking lot east of Hammons Student Center. Here are the pertinent details:

Hammons is making a gift to the University - via the MSU Foundation - of $25 million dollars to go toward construction of the new arena.

Construction will begin in late fall '06, with the arena to be ready for the 2008-2009 season.

It will be named - of course - JQH Arena.

The building will have at least 12,000 chairback seats on two levels, with 20 private suites and a private club.

It will house the Missouri State University Athletics Hall of Fame.

Total price tag: around $60 million. The University will contribute the initial $5 million to get the project started, along with $5 from Hammons. He'll then provide the remainder of his gift while the University sells $30 in bonds and uses private gifts, suite sales, increased ticket sales and "other sources" to pay the debt service.

JQH Arena will have entrances on the north and south ends, with the main entrance on the east side. The building "faces" east, according to Hammons. The arena and the student center will be connected by a covered walkway.

Wow.

Hammons added the name change to Missouri State hastened his decision to go through with this project. He also credited the leadership qualities of Nietzel. "When I saw that, I knew we could get this thing done."

All good news, as is the fact it doesn't look like the school will go to Jeff City to ask for money. That would be a PR nightmare. Enough animosity exists after the name change battle and MU-C's fear that MO State will demand more money. The school is wise to do this project on its own.

This is major red letter day for Missouri State athletics, the Springfield community and the Ozarks. The new arena will be the second-largest in the Missouri Valley Conference and the largest on-campus arena. It will attract concerts the city could not previously get as well as have the potential to bring an NCAA Women's regional to campus - which, despite what Lady Bears bashers say, is a good thing.

I have not seen renderings yet, but there's no reason to think the place will be anything short of spectacular. Look no further than Hammons Field for proof.

If that isn't enough, just meditate on the words of Nietzel and Hammons:

"This project is going to be a stunning one," sayeth the good doctor.

"We're gonna spend enough money to where (the arena) is comfortable," sayeth our sugar daddy.

Let the countdown to JQH Arena's opening BEGIN!

No Bear sightings in AFL

The Arena Football League kicks off its 20th season this weekend. Still considered a fringe sport, it has gained more acceptance in recent years. As it tries to shake its minor league image, the AFL has expanded to 18 teams, gotten a broadcast television package (on NBC) and on Feb. 8 will be the subject of an EA Sports video game.

But, sadly, there are no former Missouri State Bears in the league as it kicks off the 2006 season. Tacoma Fontaine made a big splash in 2004. A standout year as an offensive specialist got him on the AFL All-Rookie Team as a member of the Austin Wranglers.

But perusing the league rosters, it appears he - and every other former Bears - is out of the league. Shame.

So, who to root for? Back it the day, the team here at Briggs Stadium was the Orlando Predators. I actually attended a Las Vegas Sting vs. St. Louis Stampede game at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas back in the late '90's - but both those programs have folded.

The league has a new team in Missouri, with the Kansas City Brigade replacing the New Orleans VooDoo. But the Show-Me State bond isn't enough to break-up me and my current AFL flame - the Dallas Desperados.

Why? It's simple...the Desperados are owned by the Dallas Cowboys. Hey, those ties run deep. The Cowboys have been my NFL team since I was about 4 years old. How could I turn my back on their AFL offspring?

Plus, the Despos have Missouri ties. Backup quarterback and holder Chris Greisen is a former Northwest Missouri State Bearcat, while former CMSU Mule (and Cowboy) Colston Weatherington is an OL/DL on the roster. Western Illinois product Rob Johnson (a WR/LB) is currently on injured reserve.

Dallas kicks off their 2006 season Sunday - ironically against the Kansas City Brigade.

You know, I was all set to throw my support completely behind the Brigade. They are, after all, a Missouri team and KC is just a short drive away. But then they went and paired the name "Brigade" with a Stealth bomber for their logo. Huh? Whatever happened to planes coming in squadrons? It might seem picky to you, but as a uniform/logo freak it was enough to keep me loyal to Big D.

Dallas and KC kick-off Sunday at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast in KC, but not - unfortunately - on NBC.

Ugh...here we go again

It feels like stomach-turning staple of the Barry Hinson era at Missouri State - the key, conference home loss in front of a big crowd.

This time it was Wichita State, 68-62 Sunday afternoon. The Bears were in control of the first half, leading 43-31 at the break, but scored just 19(!) points in the second half. The score was knotted at 58 with 6:41 to play when the MO State offense really went in the tank.

MO State was just 1-for-7 from the floor down the stretch, missing four(!) 3-pointers - all of them coming with MO State down by just two points. The biggest dagger, though, was the missed front end of a one-and-one with the Bears - still - just down by two. MO State turned the ball over just twice in the last six minutes.

Wichita State, meanwhile, was just 3-for-8 and turned it over once. MSU had chances, but shot selection was poor in the closing minutes.

These Bears have not shown a killer instinct. They let Southern Illinois come back from a ginormous first-half deficit, then blow a 12-point halftime lead to Wichita.

But this is the kind of loss that fans have come to expect. Wichita State did the same thing to the Bears last January, winning on a late 3-pointer in front of 8,680 fans. During the '03-'04 season it was Southern Illinois stealing a 59-58 win, sending 6,493 Bears fans home heartbroken - on Valentine's Day no less. Those darned Shockers were the dealer back in 2002-03, winning 71-65 in front of 7,972.

You get the picture.

It's bad PR to lose big games in front of the biggest crowds of the year - plus it really puts a hurtin' on conference and postseason hopes. The Bears have won some important home games - like last Thursday against SIU - and I know these are good teams they're losing to...but if the program is going to take that next step up, these are nights when they have to defend the home court.

And Barry Hinson's postgame comments didn't help that sick feeling in the stomach. I know he was trying to be funny when he said he even "wore a pink tie" to help break the streak. He went on to say "Life goes on."

Life goes on? Yes, it does, but is that an acceptable answer? I'll try it the next time I have a boss, co-worker or customer questioning my on the job performance. "Hey, life goes on." Think it'll work?

Third period rally pushes MO State past scrappy Northern Illinois

A standing-room only crowd of 975 saw the Missouri State Bears extend their unbeaten streak to 11 with a come-from-behind 7-4 victory over Northern Illinois at the Jordan Valley Ice Park Friday night.

The Bears, playing their first game since Dec. 10, fell behind 1-0 after the first period and trailed 3-1 in the third period. That's when Missouri State went off for three goals in two minutes to take their first lead of the game.

Jake Mowry netted the equalizer just one minute and five seconds into the period as his shot ricocheted off the stick of NIU defenseman Chris Craig and past goalie Robert Martinez, tying the score at 3. Less than a minute later Andy Whitener pounded home a rebound to put the Bears in front. Kent Adams tacked on a power play goal to complete the rally and give MSU a 5-3 lead.


Missouri State is now 7-3-3 in the Mid-America Collegiate Hockey Association's Gold Division. NIU falls to 3-8-0. MSU has not lost a game at the Ice Park this season, going 10-0-1. The two teams square off again tonight at 7 p.m.


Kess' take: Missouri State really outplayed NIU for most of the night, but - as would be expected after a long layoff - struggled to get in synch offensively. The Huskies, on the other hand, were playing their fifth game of the new year. The Bears' aggressive forechecking limited NIU's scoring chances until a late first period goal, just after MSU had killed off a power play.

Things got a little hairy when NIU went up 3-1. The momentum was on their side, the bounces weren't going their way and they couldn't seem to find a way past NIU goalie Robert Martinez.

But you couldn't help thinking the dam - in the person of Martinez - would eventually break. Martinez was solid through two periods before State rallied in front.

The crowd was great. They packed 975 into the Ice Park thanks, in part, to kids from the Boys and Girls Club. They got their money's worth. The Bears continue to do a top-flight job with MSU Hockey, from the slick (and free!) game programs, to updated game notes and rosters, to entertaining between-period promotions. They are, in a lot of ways, more polished than the Jr. A Springfield Spirit (RIP) ever were.

My only complaint is the sound system at JVIP continues to be subpar. The PA mic cuts out a lot and the volume of the music is never as loud as it could be. I love the goal horn sound effect, but I really wish it was loud...like ear-rattling loud.

But that's nit-picking. Stan Melton, Curt Bussen, Benjamin Alexander, et al do an unbelievable job with this program. I'm excited to see what the future of MSU hockey is.

Two more guys who do an unbelievable job are Steve Casson and Dan Lee of WebSports Radio, who were kind enough to let me sit in as a guest during the first intermission. Check out their web site for outstanding coverage of MSU hockey as well as live and archived game broadcasts - and support their advertisers!

Just 85 days until Opening Day!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

That can't be right, can it?

The Springfield Cardinals will be back at Hammons Field before we know it and I'm starting to get a little excited about the make-up of this team. Hopefully in the next week or so I'll get the gumption to post Baseball America's thoughts on some prospects that could find their way to the Queen City of the Ozark this coming season.

In the meantime the 'Birds announced their 2006 coaching staff. The Hammer, Chris Maloney is back as skipper after guiding the club through a 70-70 inaugural campaign. This will be his 11th overall season in the organization. He's 705-608 (.537) in those 11 seasons. Blaise Ilsley is back as pitching coach and Brad LaRosa returns as the athletic trainer.

The new hitting coach is Joe Cunningham, the manager at Quad Cities last season. Cunningham's been a manager in 11 of his 17 seasons in the Cardinals' system. The Swing was 72-67 and went to the play-offs last season. His overall managerial record is 726-788. He was last a hitting coach in 1995, at Triple-A Louisville.

Cunningham replaces Dallas Williams, who moves to Ottawa (Triple-A) in the same capacity.

There will be just one change in the St. Louis farm system this season, with State College (Pa.) replacing the New Jersey Cardinals as the Low-A affiliate. The State College Spikes will share new 6,000-seat Medlar Field at Lubrano Park with Penn State University and play in the New York-Penn League.

Curve Baseball LP - owner's of the Altoona Curve - purchased the New Jersey franchise and moved it to State College in the offseason.


--Kess
Listening to: Emiliana Torrini - "Lifesaver"