GLENDALE, Ariz. -- “The roadsides in the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the United States...The roadsides are strewn with dead bodies of guys who -- man, they had a really good arm.”
The point Don Cooper is trying to make here -- other than the fact that he obviously could have a career writing ledes if he wanted it -- is that once a guy is in camp, they’re trying to develop him into a complete pitcher. They're not interested in admiring his potential or filling out a scouting report on him. And there are no radar guns out during sideline sessions in the first week of.