Nov. 24, 2008

By Pat Lagreid

For seven weeks under the fall Arizona sun in front of crowds generally numbering less than 500, a pair of former USF Dons have tried to make their case for a shot in the big leagues before scouts and executives from every Major League club.

It's the Arizona Fall League - and while it doesn't carry tremendous name recognition, it's considered one of the final steps and challenges before a player is considered ready for the big leagues.

For outfielder Scott Cousins, it was at USF that he first learned of the league and decided it was something he wanted to be a part of.

"I found out about the Fall League in college - Tagg Bozied told me about it and how exclusive it was. From then on I followed it. I recognized so many names that came through this league, made it to the big leagues and made a name for themselves."

Bozied is one of several Dons that have played in the league, along with Joe Nelson, Jermaine Clark, Jesse Foppert, and Nick Periera

Cousins found out in the last week of August that the dream he started on the Hilltop would be coming true. Some of the Marlins' executives were coming to Zebulon, North Carolina, where Cousins was a member of the double-A Carolina Mudcats.

"They pulled me into the manager's office and sat me down, told me they were happy with how I played this year and that I was being sent to the Fall League."

The 23-year-old was ecstatic when he heard the news. Then he found out who one of his coaches was going to be.

"I found out I'd be on the Mesa Solar Sox, and when a teammate and I went on the Solar Sox' webpage and saw that Ryne Sandberg was going to be a coach, we said `that's going to be awesome!'"

And what does the former Cubs' second baseman and 2005 Hall of Fame inductee think about Cousins?

"He's progressed quite well," said Sandberg. "He brings a lot of tools to the ballpark every day. I see him going about this looking to learn and looking to improve, and I think he has along the way."

Cousins is very complimentary about Sandberg as well. "I can't say enough about him," said Cousins. "I didn't know what to expect, but he goes above and beyond for every player on the team. He's in the cages early and is always willing to sit down and talk with you and help you through all those things you go through."

With Cousins in the southeast corner of the league as part of the Mesa Solar Sox, another former Don plays in the northwest corner of the league for the Peoria Saguaros.

Aaron Poreda, the 25th overall pick in the 2007 draft, was sent to the Arizona Fall League by the Chicago White Sox, where's been under the watchful eye of Saguaros' pitching coach and White Sox minor league pitching coordinator Kirk Champion.

"Aaron had a nice year, giving us 160 innings as a starter," said Champion. "He came to the Fall League and got exposed to what it would be like to being a reliever. He's a plus-fastball talent guy, he's a high profile guy, and seems to be adapting to pro baseball just a couple years out of college."

For Poreda, he laid out a simple challenge for himself upon arriving in the desert.

"The biggest goal was to show people I was ready for big league Spring Training," Poreda said. "That's what I wanted out of this and I think that's what I got."

Whether that's as a starter or reliever is yet to be seen. The 6-foot-8 lefty made 10 appearances through the first six weeks, going 0-0 with a 7.71 ERA in 9.1 innings of work, recording 12 strikeouts along the way.

With White Sox fans already tossing Poreda's name around blogs and message boards at the end of the 2008 season as a possible call-up, knowing that he's in the Fall League has only added to the speculation that he'll be on the south side of Chicago sooner than later.

A third former Don, Stefan Gartrell, joined Poreda as part of the Peoria Saguaros roster. But on October 23, just over two weeks into the season, the White Sox prospect was taken off the team after diving for a ball and suffering a mild shoulder separation. While not a serious injury, the club decided not to risk further injury.

Both Cousins and Poreda are quick to identify USF as a major step to getting into this exclusive league.

"If it weren't for the USF coaching staff, I would not be here right now. It was the best decision I ever made in my life to go to USF," said Cousins.

Poreda was quick to agree: "There's a lot of things I took away from USF; they basically molded me into the pitcher I am today. The mental side, not only baseball but work ethic being able to bounce back, and a never give up attitude."

Both have taken up head coach Nino Giarratano on his invitations to come back to campus and share what they've learned and experienced with the current USF team.

"I love going back to USF and seeing the coaches and players," Poreda continued. "It's a nice place to work out and find someone to throw with. You always have to stay in the USF family."

For Cousins, he knows that his introduction to the Fall League was at USF from a fellow Don, and he might end up talking to a future invitee to the prestigious league.

"Nino loves to keep the family together; he wants guys to come back and hang out, work with the team and teach them," Cousins remarked. "Nino Giarratano is like another father to me. The coaching staff would do anything for me and I'd do anything for them. It's a bond that can never be broken."

Even though more than half of the players picked for the AFL have ended up in the Majors, just being sent to the desert isn't an automatic ticket to The Show. The AFL is considered a serious proving ground that comes at the end of an already long Minor League season and tests both a player's physical ability and mental preparation, which is exactly what Cousins likes about it.

"I love the fact that everybody out here is the elite because it pushes me to become a better player," Cousins added.

Rocket Wheeler, the Solar Sox' manager, sees Cousins rising to the challenge.

"This is a showcase league to play in the big leagues," Wheeler said. "Scotty's played well, his RBIs have come in bunches, and he's showing why he was chosen to be here."

Cousins finished with a league-leading 33 RBI, to go along with a .285 batting average, .385 on base percentage and a .624 slugging percentage. He's picked up six homeruns, and 17 of his 30 hits have gone for extra bases, including four triples, tied for the league lead.

His Mesa Solar Sox advanced to the Arizona Fall League championship game, only to fall to the Phoenix Desert Dogs, who won their fifth consecutive AFL championship. Cousins started the game in centerfield and went 1-3 with a walk in the final contest.

With the season wrapped up, the challenge for Cousins, Poreda, and all the players is to take the lessons learned in the AFL and keep them sharp through the off-season and into Spring Training.

"Remembering what they do what they're doing well and not getting into bad habits is a key to parlaying the AFL experience into a shot in the big leagues," said Sandberg. "Most guys are just a crumb away from a real shot; these are the elite prospects and it's tremendous competition against the best minor leaguers and guys who are just half a step away from the Major Leagues."

Now in its 17th season, the AFL has produced an impressive roster of graduates - 18 rookies of the year, including 2008's winners, Geovany Soto of the Cubs and Evan Longoria of the Rays. Five MVP winners, including Albert Pujols and Dustin Pedroia, winners of the 2008 MVP awards, three Cy Young award winners, and numerous All-Stars have come out of the AFL.

In addition, 15 of the 18 players named 2008 Silver Sluggers were graduates of the Arizona Fall League.

Over 50 percent of players from the AFL end up in the Major Leagues, including 86 players from the 2007 season who appeared in the Majors in 2008, eight of whom were on Opening Day rosters.