Not just working on field in the off-season

This is a story from the Everett Herald and it is worth a look. Roger Hansen, a frequent visitor to Appleton during the Mariner years, and Greg Halman ('07) met up recently....in the Netherlands.

That was a first for Roger Hansen, the Mariners’ minor league catching coordinator. He spent five days there last month talking with highly regarded outfield prospect Greg Halman and his parents.

Halman, a native of the Netherlands, had just completed a challenging season with the Mariners’ Class AA West Tennessee team, having struck out more than anyone in the organization.

Halman was the object of some very specific instruction on plate discipline and pitch recognition not only during West Tennessee’s season but after games ended as well. The Mariners had him take part in their instructional league program for 21/2 weeks last month at their training facility in Peoria, Ariz., and want him to return there well before spring training begins to get him a head start on the big-league camp.

Mom and dad, obviously, had questions about how the organization is handling their 22-year-old, and all parties — the parents and the Mariners — agreed face-to-face communication was needed. So Hansen flew from Phoenix to Detroit, then to Amsterdam — 14 hours of flying to get there.

“The parents care so much,” Hansen said. “He’s such a huge prospect that it was good for me to go there and put everything to rest. Basically, I told them, ‘Here’s what it takes to get ready for the big leagues.’ They were very thankful that I came over.

Check it out.