This past Sunday was the 20th annual Arizona Fall League Fall Stars Game, featuring 63 prospects from across the Fall League. The Colorado Rockies had four Fall Stars – catcher Jack O’Dowd (HM PuRP), outfielder Jared Thomas (No. 8 PuRP), infielder Andy Perez (No. 25 PuRP), and RHP Fidel Ulloa.
O’Dowd and Thomas started, batting fifth and eighth respectively. Perez entered as a defensive sub at third base in the sixth, and Ulloa came in to face the first two batters of the ninth inning.
O’Dowd went
0-for-1 with a strikeout, but reached first on a wild pitch that scored the Rafters’ first run in the first inning. Thomas went 0-for-2 with two flyouts. Perez went 1-for-2, and Ulloa faced two batters – striking out the first and giving up a double to the second, which came around to score Ulloa’s first earned run of the AFL (though it didn’t count against his season stats). He also earned the hold.
“It feels great,” Thomas said before the game. “(It’s) just a testament to everybody that helped me get here. And then also, it’s great to have the group of guys that we have – me, Andy, Jack – and then a couple guys that we met that we became really tight with over these six weeks. So it’s going to be a fun night.”
“It feels really good, because everything I’ve been working on has been flowering and I’m ready to enjoy the experience,” Perez added through interpreter Elian Soto on Wednesday following the roster announcement.
“It’s cool. It’s very cool. It’s a good opportunity,” echoed O’Dowd. “It’s a lot of fun to be surrounded by so many good players from a bunch of different teams, and it’s cool to get rewarded for playing well and for continuing to work hard this late in the season.”
Plus, O’Dowd participated in both the Fall-Stars Game, as well as the Home Run Derby the night before.
“The Home Run Derby was a ton of fun,” he said. “It was a great experience. I’m very grateful I got to do that, and just the whole All-Star experience, too. They make it really cool for us. And getting to meet so many different guys is one of the best parts, for sure.”
He also had the special privilege of having his dad, Dan, in the broadcast booth.
“It’s amazing to have my dad on the call, and to be playing here at Salt River, too,” O’Dowd said. “It’s all around just a cool night and such a unique opportunity, for sure. Not many people get to play when their dad’s on the call, and that’s cool.”
(As a side note: I asked him if he’d reached out to Kyle Karros about what it’s like to have his dad in the broadcast booth, and he said he hadn’t done that.)
The Rockies sent four prospects to the Fall-Stars Game this year – the most since 2011, when they sent Rob Scahill, Nolan Arenado, Ben Paulsen, and Tim Wheeler.
Fidel Ulloa’s reaction upon learning that?
“Oh wow!” he exclaimed. “That is really cool. I mean, they’re obviously great players on the field, but they’re also great human beings. They’re some of my good friends, so it’s an honor to be here with them.”
“It’s awesome. It’s a testament to who these guys are,” added Thomas. “They work their tail end off all year, and then to come out here and play even more – kudos to them. And (I’m) just glad to be able to share that field with them tonight. It’s going to be fun.”
Perez thought it was especially exciting because they’d spent time together in the minor leagues.
“I feel very excited and very happy,” added Perez, through interpreter Chanel Zapata. “I’ve been in the minors with them, so it feels really amazing to be with them at this stage.”
And for O’Dowd, it shows how deep the Rockies system is becoming.
“Having four of us here, it’s really cool,” he said. “I think it speaks to how many good players are within our system, too. I think we have a lot of talent, and to see those guys play well this fall has been really fun and just to get to know them better. Obviously, I know Jared really well, but the other few guys, it’s really cool.”
Heading into the game, each had pretty much the same goal.
“Having fun,” said Perez.
O’Dowd added that he wanted to “just meet new guys, talk to everyone, and hopefully have a good game.”
“The hard part’s already done,” said Thomas. “We put up enough numbers to get in this position, now the job’s already taken care of, so just go out there and play ball.”
For Ulloa, it was a little bit different being a relief pitcher.
“Heading into this game, obviously I knew I probably wasn’t going to have more than one inning, so just kind of go out there, throw strikes, and show off the talent a little bit,” he said.
But he did get the big moment he hoped for, when he entered in the top of the ninth after a three-run eighth inning put the Rafters on top, 6-3. And how special was that moment?
“That was awesome. That’s exactly the moment I live for.”
There are just two games left in the Arizona Fall League season before the long, dark offseason officially begins. The Rafters currently are in fourth place, just half a game out of third behind the Scottsdale Scorpions. The Championship tournament begins Thursday and runs through Saturday. You can stream all of the remaining games on the AFL website, and the final will be broadcast on MLB Network at 6:00pm MT.
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