Becks Load Up Moving Van--Again

As Chris Beck approached his senior season at The Master’s College knowing he might get drafted, he tried to explain to his fiancee Danielle what that meant to their relationship.

“But even I didn’t really know what it entailed,” the JetHawk right-hander said of life in professional baseball. “I had never known anyone who had gone through it.”

Beck, married in 1993 and drafted in 1994, is an expert now. When the Seattle Mariners moved Beck earlier this week from double A Memphis to Lancaster because of injuries with the JetHawks, it meant move No. 14 for the Becks.

“It wears on you,” Beck said. “If you are young and single and can fit your whole life in a suitcase, it’s a little different than if you have a wife.”

While many minor leaguers have their wives stay at their permanent homes and make visits to the city they are playing, the Becks moved together. Beck has pitched at Bellingham, Wash., Appleton, Wis., Lancaster and Memphis.

“For us, we just figured too many things can happen if you are apart,” Beck said.

Beck started the season in Lancaster, but he was promoted to Memphis a month ago. So Danielle packed up their belongings, moved out of their apartment in Lancaster and drove cross country to join her husband. They were together for two days, then Beck went on a 10-day trip. They were together for three or four more days, then Beck was shipped back to Lancaster--the same day Danielle was to start her job in Memphis.

So Danielle has given her two-weeks notice. Soon she will pack up again and drive back to Lancaster, knowing that as soon as the JetHawks pitching staff gets healthy, they could be moving back to Memphis.

“She’s been a great sport,” Beck said.

*

Outfielder Luis Tinoco underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder earlier this week and is probably done for the season, said JetHawk trainer Troy McIntosh. Right-handers Jeff Farnsworth and Kevin Gryboski had MRIs on Thursday, but the results may not be known until Monday, McIntosh said.

*

Tonight’s Game: Lake Elsinore (Jerrod Riggan, 0-5, 5.79) at JetHawks (Chris Beck, 0-1, 7.43), 7:15.

AROUND THE LEAGUES

Jon McMullen, the Philadelphia Phillies’ eighth-round pick in the 1992 draft out of Rio Mesa High, was released last week after hitting .195 in 21 games with Class-A Clearwater, Fla.

McMullen, a first baseman, never made it above Class A. His best season was 1994, when he hit .297 with 12 homers and 53 runs batted in 65 games with Spartanburg, S.C. He had spent the next two full seasons at Clearwater, hitting .237 and .176.

*

First baseman Robert Fick (Newbury Park, Ventura College, Cal State Northridge) singled in his fifth and final plate appearance for Class-A West Michigan on Friday night, running his hitting streak to 31 games.

The streak is the longest in pro baseball this season and the third longest in the minor leagues since 1988.

*

Scanning Thursday box scores: TRIPLE A--Outfielder Ryan Radmanovich (Pepperdine) hit his eighth home run and drove in three runs for Salt Lake City. . . . Former JetHawk outfielder Jose Cruz Jr. hit his third home run for Tacoma, Wash. Cruz, who figures to be the first former JetHawk to play in the majors, is hitting .252. DOUBLE A--Catcher Del Marine (El Camino Real, Moorpark College) hit his fourth home run for Jacksonville, Fla. . . . Former JetHawk right-hander Ken Cloude improved to 6-1, pitching six innings and allowing three earned runs for Memphis. CLASS A--First baseman Randy Vickers (Glendale College) had three hits for Capital City, which plays in Columbia, S.C.