A potpourri of late developments plus thoughts, facts and quips, we just could not fit into this week's Independent Baseball Insider.
Gary Carter had to really, really want the Long Island (NY) Ducks managerial job in the Atlantic League when he surrendered what had to be a comfortable position of leading the Orange County Flyers in his hometown of Fullerton, CA. The Hall of Fame catcher had taken the Golden League position in part to be closer to some of his relatives, he had developed what from all accounts had been a great relationship with Flyers Owner Alan Mintz, and he brought the league title to Orange County in his very first season (2008).
This is not in any way to diminish the fact he now will be in a full-season league with more experienced players and the Ducks' reputation could not be much better with the nightly full house and the management team led by Frank Boulton and Carter's New York Mets teammate Bud Harrelson.
One can only hope Carter is not talking himself into the fact since he will be managing in the Mets' back yard he will be better positioned to one day take over the National League team, a role he has openly coveted in the past. The Mets already had his phone number and knew his credentials if they decided to hire him.
BRIAN DAUBACH TAKES THE REIGNS IN NASHUA
Add one more former major leaguer to the already lengthy list of Independent Baseball managers.
Brian Daubach will lead the American Defenders of New Hampshire, the previous Nashua Pride, in the Can-Am League under Dan Duquette. It was Duquette who brought Daubach to Boston as a free agent when he was the general manager of the Red Sox. Daubach drove in 73 runs in only 110 games when he was getting his first solid major league opportunity and trying to take up at least a good part of the slack for the departure of Mo Vaughn at first base. Daubach homered 21 times in each of his first two seasons.
A friend tells me Duquette was very open during a radio interview he and Daubach did on Boston's WEEI that he still hopes to get back into a major league position.
Duquette reminded this reporter recently before officially promoting Daubach from hitting coach to manager that this onetime effective left-handed hitter had played for and learned under two of the major league managers generally regarded as among the best in Tony LaRussa and Jim Leyland.
THE FUNNY THINGS COSTE AND HINE DID IN FARGO
Steve Hine had so many funny and memorable things to say about things he and Chris Coste did when they were teammates at Fargo, ND in the Northern League. I could not fit them all into the Independent Baseball Insider, which I was interviewing the former second baseman for at his busy Steve Hine School of Baseball in Orange, CT.
The best story might have been about Coste ordering pizza loaded with sausage, bacon and extra cheese. The thing is, when the pizza arrived the health-conscious catcher would scrape everything off. "He would only eat the dough," Hine remembered. Why? "Too much fat", was Coste's response. The flavor in the dough had to be pretty tasty. I may have to try it.
Hine recalls of his friend back in 1998 and 1999 when they first played together, "to him, playing in Fargo was like he was playing in the big leagues."
And Coste soon will have his Philadelphia Phillies World Series championship ring as a reminder of everything he experienced along the way.
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