HOPING FOCUS TURNS TO GOLF TODAY
LIV Golf and the defectors to series have dominated talk in run-up to U.S. Open
The U.S. Open isn’t the only American major that has felt like an afterthought, lost among chatter and innuendo about topics unrelated to birdies and bogeys.
Golf was no longer the primary concern going into the 1990 PGA Championship at Shoal Creek in Alabama. The club founder had said Shoal Creek would not be pressured into accepting a Black member. Corporate sponsors began to withdraw TV advertising, protests were planned and Shoal Creek extended membership to a Black insurance executive a week before the PGA.
Until the first tee shot, most of the stories were on the controversy and its ripple effect in golf, not whether Nick Faldo could win his third major of the year.
Battle lines were drawn at the 2003 Masters between activist Martha Burk and her demands that Augusta National have a female member, and club Chairman Hootie Johnson who stubbornly said that day may come, but “not at the point of a bayonet.”
Tiger Woods was going for an unprecedented third straight Masters,
and he got 10 questions from the media about social issues and the chaos at Augusta. And then when Thursday arrived, rain washed out the opening round.
The difference is the U.S. Open has been overshadowed by a development not of its own doing.
Just its luck, a return to The Country Club for the 122nd Open and its century-old heritage came one week after the Saudi-funded LIV Golf rebel series began outside London.
Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson, the two biggest defectors, are among 14 players suspended by the PGA Tour for signing up and who are
the players, kind of highlight them on the (MLB) Network and building excitement for the draft, and let’s us kind of show the personalities and traits of these players.”
Major League Baseball invited top draft prospects here for a series of on-field workouts, interviews, strength and conditioning tests and medical evaluations.
Some of the top high school prospects were to play simulated games Wednesday and today.
Friday’s on-field workouts are open to the public from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Those interested in attending must order tickets (up to four) online at padres.com/combine.
The NFL has spent the past 40 years shaping its combine into an event that provides valuable information for coaches, GMs and scouts who attend. In 2004, it was shown on TV for the first time and has developed a following with hardcore football fans.
MLB has an uphill climb since its top prospects from high school and college do not have anywhere close to the name recognition college football players get from weekly exposure on Saturdays (as well as some weekdays) in the fall.
“It’s something they’re trying to do to promote the game and grow the game,” said a longtime scout who observed the event but did not want his name or affiliation used. “But most of these players have been evaluated pretty fairly by now. The on-field stuff isn’t going to move the needle very much for most guys.
“There are some exceptions.”
For instance, a pitcher coming off Tommy John surgery who was limited during the spring could benefit from the exposure.
“The college guys have all played 60 games,” the scout said. “You’ve seen them take BP. You’ve seen them take infield. High school guys, most of them have been all over the showcase circuit.
“The most valuable part of it might be the face-to-face interviews. There’s teams that get like a dozen or more guys to interview specific players who they might take with their first-round pick.”
Vanderbilt outfielder Spencer Jones, a La Costa Canyon graduate, appreciated the in-person opportunity.
“It’s good being able to do a lot of meetings face-to-face and talk to people,” Jones said. “In the past, it’s been over Zoom calls and you’re not able to get to know these people as well as you would in a face-toface setting.
“Being able to do it in an MLB ballpark is especially special.”
Getting players to participate in pre-draft medical evaluations — “so there’s no surprises,” the scout said — is another benefit.
If, that is, the prospects believe it is in their interest to participate in such evaluations.
MLB tried to compel attendees to do such evaluations at last year’s inaugural event, but it didn’t go over well.
There is an added incentive this year — any player who goes through a medical evaluation is guaranteed at least 75 percent of his draft slot bonus.
That means a drafting team can’t lowball a player based on his medicals, as has happened on occasion in the past.
“That appeals to some guys,” the scout said. “But if you’re already going high in the draft, you know you’re getting paid, you’ve made your case. You don’t need to put anything else on your résumé.”
San Diego State pitcher Troy Melton earned co-Mountain West Pitcher of the Year for his performance this season, but Melton has had injury
U-T issues during his four seasons with the Aztecs, so it was important to him to participate in the medical evaluations.
“Making sure everything looks good and that I’m ready to throw and they’re not concerned about that,” said Melton, who appreciated faceto-face meetings so team officials could get to know him better.
D’Angelo said MLB is excited to see how the combine evolves over the next few years.
“We think it’s a cool way to promote the draft and these players,” he said. “We take the approach that everything here is optional and players should do what they feel benefits them.
“We do have some players who opt out of games or the workouts. I think they get a lot of value from the interviews, the physical testing.
“And we have seen a lot of kids who have played really well and it’s benefited their draft stock.”