cubsrams1

It turned out to be only that, a rumor. A former HS QB from Chicago who went on to play minor league baseball is supposed to be enrolled at Marshall. That's how Bo's name got mentioned, because he fit that mold. Thanks for your help.

Well, UBlink, last I checked being able to go from Minor League Baseball to college football is not a problem. Several people have done it. Chad Hutchinson, the QB who went to Stanford and played for the Cowboys, went from the minors to college football. I beleive Quincy Carter did too. I know for a fact JR House went from the Pirates' minor league system to WVU, and now has given up football for baseball (Astros) once again.

Nope. Chris Weinke (FSU), J.R. House (WVU) and others have done it after playing minor league baseball. If they had played pro football it would be a different story.

Thanks!

Does anyone know the status of Bo Flowers? There are a few rumors I'm hearing about him possibly playing college football. He was a top QB prospect in 02.

Anyone have information on the status of Minor Leaguer Bo Flowers? There are rumors he is going to play college football -- possibly at Marshall. Anyone in the know?

I've been told that if it comes to a regular season strike (which doesn't appear to be highly likely), that minor league baseball will have to turn to amatuer umpires. The word is that college umpires have been told not to step in, so that leaves minor league baseball without professional umpires and college umpires. Who's next? I'd say a wide variety.

Here's a story I wrote on the subject: http://www.dailymail.com/news/Sports/2006022012/display_story.php?sid=2006022012&format=prn Minor league umpires seeking a fair shake Matt Lockhart For The Daily Mail Monday February 20, 2006 HUNTINGTON -- Grown men heckle minor league umpires. Wannabe big leaguers try to bully them. For six months, they live from hotel room to hotel room, suitcase to suitcase, while racking up interstate miles like a truck driver. Home-cooked meals get traded in for midnight drive-thru window runs. Oh, and by the way, they don't get days off. So, where's the love? Sure, Major League baseball umpires draw nice paychecks, but their minor league counterparts feel like they aren't getting a fair shake. "They don't see professional umpires being that important at the minor league level," said Chris Ward, a Huntington native who began umpiring professionally two years ago. Ward is talking about the Professional Baseball Umpire Corp. It's the entity that trains, evaluates and recommends who does what in the minor league baseball system. "I think basically they don't see us as an important need," he said. Ward's squabble is one that more than 200 other minor league umpires are dealing with. The Association for Minor League Umpires' contract with the PBUC ran out last year, and the two sides are having trouble reaching an agreement for the 2006 season. "Umpires made more seven years ago than they do now," said Andy Roberts, the union president. "Baseball has had tremendous growth and the pressure on officiating to be next to super human is very evident." Here are the basics of the disagreement between the umpires and the PBUC: The umpires say they haven't received a true pay increase in 12 years. So, they are asking for one. The PBUC offered $100 more a month to the umpires, who make anywhere from $1,800 to $3,400 during that time period depending on the level of baseball they are umpiring. However, the PBUC also proposed a raise in insurance deductibles from $100 per year to $500 per year. Since the average season lasts 51/2 months, the insurance deductible increase wiped out any raise, according to the umpires. "It's evident that they want our services at the lowest possible price," Roberts said. "I guess for future outlook, if we can't come to a better agreement, the last resort is a strike." At the current moment, regular minor league umpires won't be working spring training, which begins in March. Since spring training games are not already in the contract, and the recent squabbles over a new deal have created discontent, the umpires are boycotting. So, does that mean amateur umpires will be getting behind the plate this season at Appalachian Power Park? "What they are going to have to do is dip down into possibly high school umpires," Ward said. "Push comes to shove, that is basically what they are looking at." Ward said he has been told that most college umpire associations have advised crews against turning in college assignments to work minor league games. So, minor league baseball might have to look in another direction for umpires if a settlement isn't reached by March's spring training. While the umpires might not work spring training games, there is still a question mark about the regular season, which begins in early April for the West Virginia Power. Ward and Roberts are hopeful contract negotiations will be settled by the start of the regular season, however. "(Major league teams) want professional umpires on the field because it's important for player development," Ward said. This is where Ward and other umpires really have the problem. "(The PBUC) told us that they could afford to pay us more, but they just didn't want to," Ward said. "They told us what we did is not a career. Yet, on minor league baseball's very own Web site they call it a career three separate times. "There is only one way to get to the big leagues as an umpire and that's to start at the bottom of the totem pole and work your way up." For Ward, his professional baseball journey began in 2004. Since then, he's had to work odd jobs in the offseason to make a living. Right now, he referees high school basketball games, works umpire clinics, sells umpire equipment and works at the YMCA. It's just part of quest to reach the Major Leagues. "That's the only reason I'm doing it," said Ward, who could be working in the South Atlantic League this season. "It's great to work minor league ball, but everybody including the players on the field are working on the same goal." The average salary for Minor League umpires is about $15,000 in Class AAA, $12,000 in Class AA, $10,000 in full-season Class A and $5,550 in Rookie League. They are also given anywhere from $20 to $25 a day per diem. The PBUC offered a dollar more per day. "That works out to about two meals supersized," Ward said. Neither Roberts nor Ward could disclose exactly how much money the umpires were requesting in the new contract. "We aren't trying to win the lottery here," Roberts said. "We are just trying to survive in this career." It's a battle to which they appear dedicated.

Well, thanks!

I saw Patton pitch twice last year in Low-A ball. He has very good stuff and very good control. Interestingly enough, I was talking with a Cubs scout later in the year about Patton and he said the Cubs were going to draft him but he was asking for more money upfront than they were willing to pay.