Today’s game
Opponent: Yakima Bears
When: 7:05 p.m.
Where: Everett Memorial Stadium
Radio: KRKO (1380 AM)
Probable starters: Everett right-hander Brett Lorin (1-0, 3.63 ERA) vs. Yakima right-hander Ricardo Tavares (0-1, 7.02)
New role for Tolsar
During pre-game batting practice throughout Everett’s current five-game series against Yakima, Mike Tosar can be found perched in front of first base, schooling those players not currently in the cage in the finer points in baserunning.
Tosar may no longer be the AquaSox manager, but he’s still finding ways to get involved.
Everett’s former manager was promoted during the offseason and now serves as the Seattle Mariners’ minor-league outfield/baserunning coordinator. This week his roving duties landed him in his old home.
“It’s always great to come back,”Tosar said. “I was really looking forward to making this trip over here for these five days. It’s great to be back here in Everett, to be greeted and see everybody again.”
Tosar managed the Sox last season, guiding Everett to a 35-41 record and a third-place finish in the Northwest League’s West Division. Prior to that he spent 2006 as Everett’s hitting coach.
Now he travels to each of Seattle’s minor-league affiliates, helping fine tune the players’ skills both in the outfield and the basepaths. Beginning his duties in June, so far he’s been to triple-A Tacoma, short-season single-A Pulaski and Seattle’s academy in the Dominican Republic.
“It’s a different look,” said Tosar, who admitted missing managing, though he’s happy with the promotion. “Instead of dealing with just one club you get to go around and see all the players.”
Tosar said baserunning has been an area of increased emphasis throughout the organization.
“Starting in spring training, we really tried to hammer in the importance of running the bases properly,” Tosar said. “Taking the correct secondary lead, being able to advance first to third. The name of the game is scoring runs and you score runs by running the bases the right way. And we’re starting to make an impact on the baserunning.”
More Tosar: Tosar’s stop through Everett happened to coincide with the arrival of outfielder Dennis Raben, Seattle’s second-round pick in this year’s draft out of the University of Miami. Tosar saw plenty of Raben during the college season as he doubles as a Mariners scout for south Florida.
So Tosar was familiar with Raben and not surprised by his instant impact with the Sox.
“He was one of the guys we were targeting and we were very happy he was there for our second-round selection,” Tosar said.
Slump busting fashions: Everett’s three-game stretch of extending the lifetime of a special jersey because of a streak is not unique.
Much like the Sox have been wearing their American flag jerseys because of a winning streak, Everett did the same with their Frogstock tie-dyed jerseys in both 2004 and 2005. In both instances the Sox snapped losing skids while wearing the alternate jersey and kept wearing them for five games, winning four straight before the magic wore off.
The American flag jerseys proved less potent, sparking the Sox to just two wins before falling 7-6 Sunday.
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