Vista has been the surprise team to start 2014 to many but no one is surprised within the Panthers organization.
Sure, GM Jordan Calhoun did not expect his Panthers squad to have the hot start that they did, but according to the young GM "to believe that your team performing well is a surprise is to say that you do not believe in your team." A hot start is nothing new to a Vista organization that had a similarly successful April back in 2011 when the team finished 85-77. But that team is not the same Vista team that is playing at BlackBerry Field today. That team was lead by a 26 year old Ivan Rosales who was batting .300, an injured Emilo Morin in his last hurrah who hit 22 HRs in 92 games, ace Julio Lopez and 19 game winner Warren Piniella.
The only players that remain from that Vista team are Rosales, Cal Rhodes, Sok-man-Yu, Roger Anderson and Butch Hogan who was re-acquired the night before opening day from Los Angeles (Hogan hopped on a red eye from LAX to make it to Reno in time for the first game... also probably why he went 0-5).
It's not only the players who are different. Calhoun even made some changes in the coaching staff. After re-evaluating the roster, the GM made a decision to demote former manager Pedro Alvarado to bench coach in favor of Angel Zavala who seemed to have better views on how to manage a game with the talent that was available. It's also rumored that Zavala had a better way of connecting with the players, especially the rookies.
A new manager and 20 new faces have been brought in to bring Vista back to their winning ways and these 20 new faces are exactly what Hogan felt Vista needed to spark a culture of winning for the Panthers.
"I was really sad to get traded last year. Vista is the team that drafted me and even though Los Angeles meant a bigger stage and more winning I felt like my job in Vista was left unfinished. Luckily I was only a 90 minute drive up the 5 and 405 so I could still follow my boys. It broke my heart to see the team fall apart the way they did last year but I believed in them and now that I'm back I believe in us. I was here when (John) Doby got drafted and it's been amazing to see him work his way through the minors to being one of the stars on the team. Some would say he's even a star in the league already. I sure think he is one."
The Panthers believe in Doby too - they signed him to a 4 year extension to try and avoid what most likely would have been an expensive arbitration decision for the talented outfielder.
Doby has lead the youthful Vista Panthers to a 10-2 start going 5-1 against division rivals Reno, sweeping the star-studded D-bags in Jersey and going 2-1 against rivals St. Luis at home.
Unlike Vista teams in the past who relied on 1 or 2 guys for most of the offensive production, this years team has multiple players who have been producing at a high level to support John Doby who has hit 3 HRs, picked up 11 walks, 6 2Bs and OPSing 1.193.
1B/DH Roberto Bojorquez has been off to a hot start hitting .340 with a pair of HRs, 14 runs and 11 RBI.
CF Kent Hall, who was acquired last year in a trade that sent fan favorites Piniella and Tony Warrilow up the freeway, is above .300 as well with a HR, 11 RBI and stellar defense.
RF Cesar Torres came over at the deadline last year in the deal that sent Lopz to Baffin Island and has picked up right where he left off, rounding out the talented and young Vista outfield and also contributing a + .300 average.
Suddenly a team that struggled to score runs against any and every team last season is finding themselves crossing the plate at a rapid pace. The weakness has shifted to Starting Pitching. The addition of SP John Stricker from Toronto should help, but this could be the downfall to the Panthers hot start. If the Vista rotation can keep it together, or get improved somehow, Vista expects to be competitive all season long.
