Blake DeWitt Game Used / Game Worn 2007 Inland Empire 66ers Road Grey Jersey Auction
Here is the link for the Jersey Auction http://auctions.overstock.com/item/43878806
Starting bid is $169.99 for a great piece of sports memorabilia. The jersey comes with a LETTER of AUTHENTICITY from the Inland Empire 66ers.
BID NOW and get your chance at a RARE and most likely VERY VALUABLE ITEM!!
DeWitt only spent a few seasons in the Minors so most likely there are not going to be to many Minor League jerseys of his on the market!
GO DODGERS!!!!!
]]>Sorry about the gap in posting however my job doesn't give me a lot of free time ..... just ask my wife!
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Bobby Kielty will play the last 2 games of a 3 game rehab assignmet with the Lancaster Jethawks here in San Bernardino.
His first night with Lancaster included a bench clearing brawl. So I don't know if it will be as much fun here but it is always good to see the Major Leaguers rehabbing!
I will give you guys more info on what goes down tomorrow!
]]>Schmidt pitched three scoreless innings, yielding three runs (two earned) in a fourth inning that included an infield single, a catcher's interference call and two wild pitches. He struck out three without allowing a walk.
He topped out at 91 and said that he felt good. Pitching Coach Charlie Hough said that he looked a lot better than 2007 when he rehabbed with the 66ers.
We were down 8-1 at one point in this game and mounted a strong comeback to win the game by 3 or 4 runs.
Why am I not sure of the final score? Well as you know from my previous posts it is a tradition that when a major leaguer rehabs he gets a spread for the team.
Monday nights spread was from OUTBACK STEAKHOUSE on Hospitality Dr. in San Bernardino. Marc Levy, owner, helped us out greatly a week ago when Esteban Loaiza rehabbed and they came through again for us Monday night.
The guys had chicken, steak, mashed potatos, vegis and bread. It was a great spread however Schmidt joked that next time they are getting 1 taco each from Taco Bell. His rehab time is going to get expensive if he makes to many more starts here!
On Tuesday we had one of those kids day games that started at 11am. 3000 screaming kids that hardly paid attention to the game. We were down again in this game and came back to win. I would write a little more but I have to get my laundry done for tonights game. I went home after the game and enjoyed half a day off!
One last thing ........ a few of you have sent emails wondering how I got into being a clubby. It is simple, you have to love the game, be responsible and be able to put being a fan behind working. If anyone is looking to break into being a clubby check out the Lancaster Jethawks site or the California League on Teamwork online.
Last time we were in Lancaster their clubby had quit so there might be an opening there!!
LATER!!!!!!!!!!!!
]]>It is nice having Schmidt come down to rehab with us and it isn't just because he picks up a post game spread for the guys. He is just a genuinely nice guy. Hopefully in the next week or so he will be back up with the big club and back on track.
Speaking of the spread tomorrow it might be a small challenge because of the holiday. I guess I will have to do some checking to see what is open. Oh the fun of being a clubby!
What's amazing is that sometimes it seems the players care more about the spread than they do about playing baseball.
I will most likely write more after Schmidt's start on Monday!
Have a great weekend and Memorial day!!
]]>It was so ugly that this is all I am writing about it!
]]>If anyone is interested in the line-up cards please shoot me an email at
If photos are not showing try clicking on the X and see if it will show them.
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Loaiza gave up 2 very long doubles which in most ballparks would have been home runs. He got the outs he needed and said that in spite of the tightness he felt good about his trail back.
Where that trail leads ........... at this point no one knows. Last night on the Dodgers telecast Vin Scully mentioned 3 Dodgers that were on the DL including Jason Schmidts rehab starts here. He talked about when they would be back. There was no mention of Loaiza at all.
I guess we will all just have to wait and see what happens. I wish him the best of luck!!
Now onto the spread .....................
Sunday night I got a text message from our trainer saying that he had talked to Loaiza and he wanted the following:
60 IN-N-OUT double doubles - 24 Cokes - 24 sprites and that was for the pre-game meal
then he sent me this ..........
Call Outback and order Steak and Lobster for players and coaches plus 24 cokes and 24 sprites.
I thought for a minute there the trains pulling my leg. Afterall his nickname is POSSUM!
I called the IN-N-Out right around the corner from us and they could not do it because their grill is to small. I had to go to an IN-N-Out 10 minutes away.
Anyway, I got the burgers and soda and the guys were very happy when they came off the field after BP.
Shortly after confirming the Outback order with Loaiza I had my wife call the local Outback Steakhouse. My wife is the greatest when it comes to talking to people and setting this stuff up. She always gets a great deal and extra things thrown in!
We ordered 38 9oz. Outback Specials with Crab Legs, Baked Potatos and salad. Outback proprietor Marc Levy threw in 8 bloomin onions, bread plus plates, silverware and serving untensils!
It was truly an awesome spread and all of the guys loved it! Thanks Esteban!
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Tonight the 66ers have Esteban Loaiza throwing for them. Loaiza will be here on a rehab assignment. You will remember that so far this season Dodger starter Jason Schmidt has had 2 quality outings and now it is Loaiza's turn.
Loaiza was place on the DL May 8th (retro May 4th) with tightness in his should and muscle spasms.
He is expected to throw 35-45 pitches tonight and will be our starter.
It is always cool having a Major Leaguer rehab as I mentioned in my previous post. I will write late tonight and let everyone know what Loaiza got the boys for a spread. Actually I alread know but I can't give it away to soon because I am sure a couple of our guys might actually see this!
Later --------- 66ers Clubby
]]>Schmidt seems to think that he might be back a couple of times with us but we will wait and see. This coming week the Dodgers travel to New York and I am guessing that he does not want to make the long trip to NY and then possible throw in a rehab start with Jacksonville on Thursday.
Maybe they will let him stay behind and then he can throw for us on Thursday.
Tonights Post-Game spread provided by Schmidt was:
PAT & OSCARS
Salad, Bread stix, BBQ & Lemon chicken, Pasta with either meat marinara sauce or alfredo sauce and then there were about 15 pizzas.
Now onto the game!!
In the last two nights the Sixers have been down 5 runs on Friday and 6 runs tonight! They came back to win yesterdays game in the late innings. Tonight, well, it was one for the ages!
In the bottom of the 8th inning the Sixers score 3 runs giving us a 1 run lead. Then we get to the 9th inning and Jocobo Meque struggles and he basically walks the bases full. He got out of it only allowing the tying run.
Our half of the 9th was very exciting! Bridger Hunt gets on first and then Matt Berzay attemps a bunt. The ball goes down the 1st base line and was fieled and then thrown away. As Berezay turned to go to 2nd, Hunt was headed to 3rd. As he neared 3rd base the throw came across from the first baseman and got away allowing Hunt to score!
It was wayyyyyyyy more exciting if you see it in person!
So get out here this weekend and spend some time getting to know the dodgers of the future!!
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Monday was a big night for a pair of Angels rehabbing their way back to the Majors via Class A Rancho Cucamonga.
Pitcher Dustin Moseley (tightness in his right forearm) threw 60 pitches in 3 2/3 innings with six strikeouts, two bases on balls while allowing three hits.
Maicer Izturis (strained lower back) played five innings at second base going one for two with single and a strikeout.
The really cool thing about tonight was the fact that the Rancho Clubby decided they did not need him for the evening and he went to the Angels Game instead.
When Mosley came out of the game the trainer sent one of our bat boys after me. I talked to the trainer and then to Mosley and he wanted to get their players some pizzas after the game. It took about 10 minutes and we had 22 Pizza Mia specials coming to the clubhouse.
Unfortunately for Rancho the Pizza could not have tasted that good after a 2-1 defeat at the hands of our 66ers.
Both Moseley and Izturus were really nice guys and I even got a nice little tip for my help with the pizzas!
It was a good day all around with the win and a couple extra $$. Unfortunately the extra $$ went for laundry detergent shortly after I got it!
On tuesday there is an outside chance that we will see Izturus again and then this weekend we should have Jason Schmidt pitching for us again!
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Jason Schmidt, Dodgers starter and 3 time all-star, rehabed with us on Sunday at Lancaster. He threw 12 pitches in the only inning he worked with his fast ball between 86-88. It looked like he felt good and just needed to spot his pitches a little better.
It is always a good day when you win your 3rd game in a row, have scored 40 runs after having a tough time scoring at all on the road and to top it off you get a post game spread from a big leaguer.
The guys were excited after the game when they walked in to find Chili's spread across 2 tables in the clubhouse. It is customary when a big leaguer rehabs that he buys the guys a great spread and Schmidt did just that.
They had Chicken, Ribs, mashed potatos, vegis, corn and even 3 huge appetizer trays. It was definitely well deserved after this weekends wins.
Most likely we will see Jason back with us at the end of the week and possibly a couple of times after that but who knows. I know that we all hope that he is back in the big leagues as soon as possible to help the Dodgers continue their winning ways!!
]]>In the 9th inning with us up about 15-0 it just got way to wierd. Tommy Giles came up and hit a ball that appeared to be 20 feet foul. HOWEVER the umpire behind the plate called it fair and a home run. The entire ball park went crazy except for our bench.
Later in the inning about 3 batters later we had a runner on 3rd and Lancaster had a position player pitching. At this point the score is 19-0 and the home plate umpire for some unknown reason completely lost his mind. He called a BAWK on the pitcher.
All I will say is "WHAT WAS HE THINKING?" Immediately Lancaster Manager Chad Epperson comes flying out of the dugout and got tossed. I can only imagine what he said. I bet it wasn't "Are you going to call you mom tomorrow!"
Epperson went back into the dugout and came out for an oncore of getting in the umpires face. He then took the long slow stroll to their clubhouse down the right field line.
Tommy Giles finished of his 9RBI night with his 2nd home run of the 9th inning (a grand slam) giving us a 10 run 9th and a 25-1 vicotory after a Lancaster guy homered in the bottom of the frame.
It was just way to wierd. The funny thing was on Sunday the umpires got a standing BOO-Vation from the crowd when they came out.
In my next entry I will talk about Jason Schmidts rehab with us on Sunday.
]]>Eduardo Perez homered twice and Josh Wall pitched well for the win. It was great to see the bats come alive and everyone taking a pitch or two tonight. It seemed to work really well.
The bus ride home was just as fun with the team watching the movie "The Wedding Crashers"
There have been rumors of a possible Jason Schmidt rehab assignment with us. As of today the only things that anyone here has heard are the same "RUMORS" that have been floating around. While we do expect to get him at some point today there is nothing that is official.
Obviously with a major leaguer rehabing with us it is always a good time. They usually hook the guys up with a great post game spread. I will let you know what I can but most likely we will all hear it at the same time. As far as making comments on what I think or see ...... I just have to be careful. The less said the better but I will definitely let you know his numbers at the end of the games if he does in fact pitch for us.
Talk to ya'll later!
]]>How did you get into working in baseball and being a clubhouse manager?
In 1995 I went to work for a baseball team in Rockford, Illinois. I worked concessions in 95' & 96' and then a week into the 97' season I was offered the clubhouse job because their clubby had quit. I have done almost everything imagineable in minor league baseball since. I have held the positions of Clubhouse Manager, Director of Stadium Operations, Director of Ticket Sales, Director of Concessions, Sales & Marketing, Grounds Crew and a variety of other odd jobs.
Have any of the players that you had in your clubhouses over the years made it to the big leagues?
Absolutely, here is the list of guys that I can think of and remember:
Chad Meyers, Phil Norton, Kevin Mench, Travis Hafner, Nick Regilio, Colby Lewis, Aaron Harang, Jake Peavy, J.J. Tujillo, Ben Howard, Dennis Tankersly, Travis Hughes, Tim Bausher and one guy that made it to the NFL .... Quincy Carter ... yes he played baseball first!
There were some others but I just can't think of names right now.
What do you have to do every day?
The better question would be what DON'T I have to do! On a normal day at home my day begins with cleaning the clubhouse and getting things ready for the players to arrive. Generally I will get to the park around 9am to have things ready by Noon when the trainer and strength and conditioning coach arrive. Then there is the daily trip to the market to get food for the pre-game spread. Around 3pm it's time to get the stuff out for BP including water and all the equipment. While the team is taking BP I get the spread set up so when they get off the field they have something to eat.
Once we get towards game time and the clubhouse starts to empty out I start on cleaning again as well as washing their BP jerseys and whatever else might need to be thrown in. Generally I wash 125+ towels a night with about 40 of those getting washed during the game.
During the game I occasionally get to relax and go up into the stands and say "HI" to my wife who I seldomly get to see anymore, or so it seems. Then it is back down to the clubhouse to get ready for the post game meal.
After the game is over and players leave it is about an hour or so of cleaning and about 3 hours of doing laundry. I wash the stuff that needs to be hung up first and then come in the next morning and finish off the personals which go into the dryer.
WHEW ......... that was a long one!
Who has been your favorite players to have in the clubhouse?
I would have to say Kevin Mench. In 2000 I worked for the Texas Rangers and he was a blast. At one point he tried to lock me into my office by tapeing and tying every door I had shut. I took me a while to get out but I finally escaped. He was just a great guy and he tipped well ;-)
Do you get any cool stuff from the players?
Just this year I had one of our pitchers give me a glove. I have been given a few gloves over the years and that is usually the best. Occasionally when guys dont have the money or dont want to pay their clubhouse dues they will offer me a bat or something as a trade.
I will answer some more questions later! If you have a question or comment you can either email me at clubhousemgr@gmail.com or just leave a comment here!
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