Texas League All-Stars Descend On Northwest Arkansas

SPRINGDALE —Brian Poldberg’s goals in his stint as manager of the North Division All-Stars for tonight’s Texas League All-Star Game aren’t complicated.

He wants to allow the players to showcase their talents and make sure they stay healthy doing it.

“I tell them ‘Hey, this is your day. I’m not going to put you in a position where you might get hurt,’” said Poldberg, who is also manager of the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. “

Managing in an all-star setting is something Poldberg understands since it’s the third time he’s been chosen in the last four years to lead one of the teams in the Texas League All-Star Game. But he acknowledged it will be special tonight since the Naturals and Arvest Ballpark are serving as host for the 77th annual Texas League All-Star Game.

“It’s nice to show off the facility,” Poldberg said. “For people who have never been to this corner of the state, it’s a chance to see a great area. I love it. For five months out of the year, it’s my home.”

Fans will also get to see some of the top stars in the Texas League such as Midland’s Anthony Aliotti and Corpus Christi’s George Springer. Aliotti will start at first base for the South All-Stars. He leads the Texas League with a .358 batting average to go with 10 home runs, 45 RBIs and a league-high 25 doubles.

Springer will start in the outfield for the South All-Stars and is tied for the league lead in home runs with 19. He is also second in RBIs, one behind co-leaders Ruben Gotay of Springfield and Jake Geobbert of Midland. Geobbert and Gotay are also All-Star starters.

The game will also showcase pitching led by David Martinez of Corpus Christi, who leads the league with 10 wins and is tied for tops with a 2.09 ERA.

Poldberg said the most difficult part of managing a game like this one is to line up the pitchers and he does that by talking to the other North Division managers.

“You’ve got to find out who can pitch and when they’ve pitched last,” Poldberg said. “We’re the home team so we’ve got to fill nine innings at least. That’s pretty basic, but nobody’s going to throw more than 30 pitches. I’ll have somebody else ready to go.”

But mostly Poldberg will just step out of the way and let the players take center stage.

“If they want to bunt, they bunt. If they want to steal, they steal,” Poldberg said. “They know what their tools are. I’ll tell them ‘Go out there and play hard and have fun and try not to get hurt on my watch.’”

Poldberg has six of his Naturals on the North roster, but only shortstop Orlando Calixte was named as a starter. The 21-year-old Calixte, who is in his first year at the Double-A level, could learn a few things from some of the other All-Star veterans, Poldberg said.

“Orlando got off to a slow start, but has got it going offensively,” Poldberg said. “It could be good experience for him to be around some of these older guys and maybe pick up a thing or two.”

The all-star selection is an honor for a player like Northwest Arkansas’ Mitch Canham. The 28-year-old was signed as a minor league free agent by the Kansas City Royals in December, after spending the latter part of the 2012 season playing in an independent league. This is his fourth season in the Texas League and first time selected as an All-Star.

“It’s a great thing for Mitch,” Poldberg said. “Here’s a guy in Triple-A last year. I remember him in this league in 2007-08. He can teach guys how it’s supposed to be done. When you hear it from your peers it sinks home.”

“It’s a good feeling to put that on my resume,” Canham said. “Making my dad proud is a nice feeling. He gave me a shout when he heard.”

Canham, who ranks second on the Naturals with a .278 batting average, said it should be fun with Poldberg at the helm tonight.

“Polley is a guy who understands,” Canham said. “He’s real easy to get along with. We’ll have a lot of talent on the field. You’ve got to have a little fun. It’s baseball.”