Wingo Could See Action With Ogden Thursday. What to Expect?

It is looking as though Mauldin’s Scott Wingo will begin his professional career tomorrow night when his new team, the Ogden Raptors, plays host to Pioneer League rival Great Falls at 9 p.m. ET.

You can listen to the game here. All of the teams in the Pioneer League are in the Mountain Time zone and are two hours behind South Carolina.

Ogden leads the Pioneer League’s South Division with a 19-10 record.

They are affiliated with the Los Angeles Dodgers, who drafted Wingo in the 11^th round of this year’s draft.

Wingo had three at-bats for conditioning purposes in Arizona with Dodgers’ Rookie League team. So, what to expect now that his professional career begins in earnest?

There is a stereotype in books and movies that the minor leagues are filled with long bus rides, half-empty ballparks and sub-standard play.

Though the bus rides may be lengthy, the others are strictly fiction according to Brandon Hart, Ogden’s radio play-by-play announcer. Ogden has led the Pioneer League in attendance for the last 10 years and appeared in the playoffs in 2009 and 2010.

Hart said a number of players like Wingo come to Ogden. Players who were stars on their college team, even All-Americans in some cases, and are getting their first taste of professional baseball. They all find the competition to be better.

“They were the top players on their college teams, so every game is like an All-Star Game when you consider that and the number of players from Latin America,” Hart said. “It requires an adjustment.”

The Raptors aren’t the only show in town, but are probably the most popular one based on their attendance figures. But given its locale, it's no surprise that skiing and snowboarding are very popular. There is a developmental soccer league team and an arena football league team. The teams of the hometown Weber State Wildcats are followed with great interest.

Ogden’s home park has received plenty of praise, having been named Ball Park of the Year in 2007. There is also an excellent view of the Wasatch Mountain Range and was recognized as having the best view in the minors by Baseballparks.com (see the accompanying photo to this story). As a means of comparison, the stadium is larger in capacity than Fluor Field in Greenville, even though the Raptors are a lower team in the minor league classification system (Rookie versus Single-A).

Since almost all of the players on the Raptors are far from home, they are paired with a host family, which helps getting them acclimated to their new life.

And the life is new.

According to Hart, many of the former college players are happy to not have to worry about school anymore. “It’s just baseball,” he said. “Come to the park, get loose, take batting practice and go out and play.”

The competition will be intense. On average, two to three players on the Raptors will make it all the way to the major leagues, Hart said.

The next step in the Dodgers system would be at Single-A Great Lakes, which plays in the Midwest League and are based in Midland, Mich. If Wingo makes it there, he’ll surely have earned it — the starting second-baseman for Ogden is currently batting .325.

He also wears No. 8, the number Wingo has worn in high school and college.