Chasen Bradford’s stats
Back with 51s, right-hander vows return to N.Y. bullpen
Chasen Bradford was at his Henderson home the morning of June 22 when manager Pedro Lopez rang him up.
“He said, ‘You have a flight at 12:45 (p.m.) to meet the team in Los Angeles,’ ” Bradford recalled. “I go, ‘What team?’ ”
After spending parts of four seasons in Triple-a, Bradford finally got his first crack at the big leagues in June with the New York Mets.
“It just came out of nowhere,” Bradford said. “I went downstairs and told my mom, ‘You’re going to have to book a flight to Los Angeles. She goes, ‘For what?’ I go, ‘Because 2017
W-L ERA G GS SV With Mets
With 51s IP R ER SO I’m meeting the team there.’ She goes, ‘No way.’ There were some expletives in there but we’ll leave those out. She said, ‘No way,’ and she started crying and she was excited. I think that was the coolest thing.”
It’s been a long path for the right-handed pitcher Bradford, 27, who was a 35th-round draft pick out of Central Florida (via the College of Southern Nevada and Silverado
High) in 2011 and has been in the Mets system since.
He has a sub-3.50 ERA in nearly 400 minor league innings, with a 4.01 ERA and 10 saves in 33 2/3
BRADFORD
Latin Chamber of Commerce.
“Everybody in baseball understands the influence the Latin players have had and will continue to have,” 51s president Don Logan said after his coffee cooled a little. “It’s gonna be fun. The logo’s fun; the whole concept is fun. It’ll be something different. And when you’re having a season like we’re having, it’s very much needed.”
Las Vegas among test markets
In addition to the 51s, the Charlotte Knights, Kane County (Illinois) Cougars and Visalia (California) Rawhide will be part of the August rollout. All four areas have significant Hispanic populations. The plan is to extend the initiative into all 160 minor league markets in 2018.
Logan said reaching out to Hispanic fans is long overdue, and the statistics back him up. And he’s not just speaking of Jose Altuve’s .358 batting average.
With a 2015 U.S. Census tally of 56 million, Hispanics and Latinos make up the largest minority population in the country. Opening Day major league rosters featured an all-time high 32 percent of players of Hispanic and Latino ancestry. The 10 states with the fastest growing Hispanic/ Latino populaces, led by North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee, are home to 45 minor league franchises.
Clark County’s Hispanic population of 663,112 ranks 16th among U.S. counties, and 31.5 percent of
Las Vegas’ population is Hispanic/ Latino. If Logan could sell one in four a Plaza Level ticket, perhaps all those fireworks nights wouldn’t be necessary, and soccer players tearing up the outfield with their cleats wouldn’t be such a pressing concern.
Checking boxes
Minor League Baseball president & CEO Pat O’conner said several criteria were considered in establishing the test markets.
“One, does the market support the initiative? Obviously, Las Vegas supports a community diversity initiative,” O’conner said after the presentation. “Two, do you have a ballclub and a management team in place that is going to allow you to effectively execute? Don Logan and (general manager) Chuck Johnson with the 51s, they check that box. Do you have community support, to give it a fair chance that you could