Batting Leader Steve Moss Is Loving Life in Bridgeport

It has been nearly 30 years since Reggie Smithlast terrorized major league pitchers with an often lethal bat which made him one of the all-time great switch-hitters.  He helped get Bostonto a World Seriesand the Los Angeles Dodgersto three more while hitting 314 regular-season home runs and topping 1,000 in both runs and runs batted in.

      Now 65, Smith still loves helping hitters, as the Atlantic League’sbatting leader happily admits.

      “Reggie Smith is my mentor”, says Bridgeportleft fielder Steve Moss, whose .348 average is a dozen points better than any other qualifier for the batting title.  “He has such a wealth of knowledge, and has devoted his life to hitting.  I can call him any time.”

      Moss, young by Atlantic League standards at 26 and with his best years likely still ahead, is having his best season in a nine-year career.  His top average prior to 2010 had been his .299 season in another independent league (Long Beach, CA, Golden League, 2008)and he had only a .259 career mark, topped out, except for four games in Tacoma, with two Double-A seasons in Huntsville, AL.

     “I think it comes with age”, Moss told me just outside the Bluefishclubhouse.  He pointed to a better “presence of mind; being more cognizant of what is happening; accepting (occasional) failure.  I’m really happy.”

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It Was Nice Matt Watson Did Not Retire

      One would think Matt Watsonhas retirement from baseball far from his mind right now as he savors his long-awaited first major league home run.  “I was really close (to retiring),” the 31-year-old Lancasterresident told the hometown New Era just last week of his thinking during the offseason.  It had been since ‘05 that he had last tasted the major leagues, and then only for 48 at-bats.

      Along with his wife, Nicole, they decided he should give it one more year so Watson devoted himself to better training.  He had back issues when he reported to the Atlantic League’s Barnstormers,one of five teams on two continents (Asia)where he played last season.  This season has been a whirlwind, too, but a positive one with play at Lancaster until May 28 (4-14-.317, .463 on-base percentage, 30 games), then a few weeks at Triple-A Sacramento(8-23-.313 in 28 games) before the parent Oakland Athleticsbrought him up.  He is 1-for-7 with the A’s.

      What makes Watson’shome run off Boston’s Clay Buchholzon Wednesday remarkable was the fact he had only one at-bat since July 7, a span of two weeks.              

Harper’s Homer Breaks 50-Inning Drought in Japan

      One of Matt Watson’steammates at both Lancasterand Sacramentoearlier this season had a notable feat in Japanthis week.  Brett Harperhit a two-run homer for Yokohama, and what made it especially meaningful was the Chunichi Dragonshad not given up a run in 50 innings.

      (These are excerpts from the Atlantic League Notebook.  Subscriptions to the full Notebook are available via www.AtlanticLeagueBaseball.com or www.WirzandAssociates.com .  Bob Wirz also writes a weekly column, the Independent Baseball Insider, as well as a blog, www.IndyBaseballChatter.com. The author has 16 years of major league baseball public relations experience with Kansas City and as chief spokesman for two Commissioners and lives in Stratford, CT.)