On this episode of The Funnville Nine driven by AAA, Richmond Flying Squirrels play-by-play broadcaster Trey Wilson chats with former Flying Squirrels manager and current San Francisco Giants Director of Player Development Kyle Haines. The chat includes Haines discussing his career path after playing ten seasons of professional baseball with the Giants, Cleveland Indians and independent teams, moving into managing in independent baseball with the Frontier Greys in 2014, landing with the Giants as a minor league manager in 2015, leading the Flying Squirrels for the 2017 season and eventually earning his current position as the Giants' farm director. The conversation also goes into how the Giants aimed to continue the development progression of their minor league players without having a traditional season in 2020, including at the Giants' alternate training site in Sacramento and in the upcoming fall instructional league.
On this episode of The Funnville Nine driven by AAA, Flying Squirrels play-by-play broadcaster Trey Wilson chats with former Flying Squirrels pitcher and Richmond native Connor Overton. An alum of Atlee High School in Hanover County, Virginia, just minutes north of the Flying Squirrels' home stadium at The Diamond, Overton has faced several challenges throughout his baseball journey, including injuries, releases and other uncertainties. Overton chats about how he's adjusted to working out with the 2020 MiLB season being canceled, his time playing college baseball at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, being selected by the Miami Marlins in the 2014 MLB Draft, starting his professional career with the Batavia Muckdogs in the New York-Penn League, being released by the Marlins a year into his professional career, signing with the Washington Nationals as a minor-league free agent, playing independent baseball in the American Association with the Sioux Falls Explorers, catching the eye of a San Francisco Giants scout and signing with them in 2016, having to undergo Tommy John surgery, playing for his hometown Flying Squirrels for the first time in 2018, reinventing himself as a pitcher during the 2019-2020 offseason, hitting 100 miles per hour for the first time, signing as a free agent with the Toronto Blue Jays, building a "pitching lab" in his parents' backyard and a whole lot more.
On this episode of The Funnville Nine driven by AAA, Richmond Flying Squirrels broadcaster Trey Wilson catches up with 2019 Flying Squirrels pitcher and San Francisco Giants top pitching prospect Sean Hjelle. The conversation includes Sean discussing adjusting to new dad life, keeping his pitching skills sharp without games in 2020, moving to Lexington, Ky., growing up playing baseball and basketball in Minnesota, how he ended up going to the University of Kentucky for his collegiate career with the Wildcats in the SEC, cheering on the UK basketball team at Rupp Arena, the day the San Francisco Giants selected him in the second round of the 2018 MLB Draft, kicking off his professional career with the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes that summer, opening 2019 in Single-A with the Augusta GreenJackets, the challenges of pitching in the California League with the San Jose Giants, getting moved up to Double-A along with fellow top prospects Joey Bart and Heliot Ramos in August of 2019, the growing pains of facing a higher level of completion in Double-A with the Flying Squirrels, getting an invitation to MLB spring training with the Giants in 2020 and working with catcher Joey Bart.
On this episode of The Funnville Nine driven by AAA, Flying Squirrels broadcaster Trey Wilson is joined by two-time Eastern League All-Star pitcher Tyler Cyr. A Bay Area native, Cyr is currently in the San Francisco Giants' 60-man player pool working for the opportunity to make his MLB debut for his hometown team. Cyr discusses his baseball days through high school and junior college, heading off to play at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and majoring in homeland security with minors in counterterrorism and aerospace engineering, his first tour playing ball in Virginia with the Waynesboro Generals, gas station sandwiches, working his way through the minors with the Flying Squirrels and the San Jose Giants, overcoming a series of bad-luck setbacks, giving back to the Richmond community and much more.
On this episode of The Funnville Nine driven by AAA, Flying Squirrels broadcaster Trey Wilson chats with Nick Elder, the Squirrels' Creative Service and Production Manager. Elder oversees a handful of areas in the Flying Squirrels' operation, including the in-game stadium entertainment on the video board, the sounds you hear through the stadium speakers and much more. He has also led the charge in designing and developing some of the Flying Squirrels' notable branding elements over the last couple years, including the popular Ardillas Voladoras look, the Richmond Hushpuppies "What If?" brand, the "Rocket Squirrel" look for 2019's Lunar Landing Night at The Diamond and much more. Elder discusses the process behind developing and designing some of the looks you see in the uniforms the players are wearing on the field and the popular apparel fans all across the country are sporting.
On this episode of The Funnville Nine driven by AAA, Flying Squirrels broadcaster Trey Wilson is joined by 11-year MLB pitcher and Richmond pitching coach Steve Kline. In their discussion, Kline talked about his time growing up in rural Pennsylvania, where he still lives today, his early days playing in the minors, breaking into the majors with the Cleveland Indians, his years with the Montreal Expos, being a part of some very successful years with the St. Louis Cardinals, closing out his playing days with the San Francisco Giants, moving into a coaching role with San Francisco, his first run coaching with the Flying Squirrels from 2015-2017, the current state of Minor League Baseball and much more.
On this episode of The Funnville Nine driven by AAA, play-by-play broadcaster Trey Wilson is joined by Richmond Flying Squirrels and San Francisco Giants left-handed pitcher Caleb Baragar. The Michigan native discusses how he's keeping ready for baseball's eventual return, various pronunciations of his surname, playing baseball in hot and cold climates, his path to Indiana University, climbing the Minor League ladder, different ways he's learned to adjust his own baseball development, his 2019 Eastern League All-Star selection, winning the Pacific Coast League and Triple-A National Championships and much more.
On this week's episode of The Funnville Nine driven by AAA, Richmond Flying Squirrels broadcaster Trey Wilson chats with outfielder Jacob Heyward. The conversation includes how Heyward has been staying ready for baseball action whenever the currently delayed season begins, his time at the University of Miami and a look at some of his clutch moments with the Flying Squirrels during the 2019 season.