Former Lee baseball All-American Lance Zawadzki thought he had a chance to be a part of history this afternoon (June 16), while his ex-Flame teammate, Michael Valadez, has been called up to the Triple-A Buffalo Bison. However, the annual exhibitation Hall of Fame game was rained out and will not be rescheduled.
Zawadzki was among five players from the San Diego Padres' Class A Fort Wayne Wizards called up for the game in Cooperstown N.Y against the Chicago Cubs.
The exhibition contest wwas scheduled to be the final in a long-standing series of games, which began way back in 1939, according to a release from the Hall of Fame. The game was slated for a 2 p.m. start, and was scheduled for national TV on Chicago's WGN station.
The event was to feature the Cubs against the Padres. Many of the regulars on both rosters were slated to play only two or three innings, if any at all. According to coach Mark Brew, Zawadzki was told he would be starting at shortstop for the Padres. The Fort Wayne team is on a three-day Midwest League All-Star break and the Padres flew the group into the New York area for the scheduled game. However, they will fly right back out tonight.
Valadez got the called up from the Buffalo team when Cleveland Indians All-Star catcher Victor Martinez was placed on the 15-day disabled list. The Indians turned right around and called up C Yamid Haad from the Bison, creating the catching spot for the talented Valadez.
Valadez has been sharing catching duties in the Indians' Class A South Atlantic League this season. He got off to a slow start for the Lake County Captains (Eastlake, Ohio), but has heated up in June. In the last three games for the Captains, Valadez had five hits in 12 times at the plate. He had three hits and three RBIs in a June 9 game against Delaware and also hit his first home run of the year in the same contest.