By Karen Boehler Pecos League writer
LAS VEGAS, N.M. It was a beautiful day at Highlands University Tuesday, as the five northern Pecos League teams came to Brandt Field for a trio of spring training scrimmages.
And it was a full day of baseball, as the host Train Robbers opened the day at 9 a.m. against Raton in a game that saw several dozen runs scored in a more than four-hour match. Trinidad and Santa Fe faced off in the middle game, with Las Vegas coming back for the nightcap against Taos a game that ended a bit early as darkness began to fall on the unlighted field.
With a few fans from each of the teams in attendance, along with the entire cadre of Pecos League umpires conducting their own spring training a reality television crew and various other onlookers, most managers used the day as a chance to evaluate their players while charting the pitching and hitting of the opposition.
Most threw a different pitcher each inning and rotated their fielders and hitters to give everyone a chance to show what they could do. Pecos League commissioner Andrew Dunn was there for much of the day, and was pleased with what he saw.
All-in-all, its going great, he said. I think we saw a lot of things here today. We saw all four northern teams (plus Taos, which will compete in the Southern Division) right here in one central location. Beautiful park here at Highlands. Beautiful day and lets do it.
Spring training will continue for another week, with coaches evaluating their players in order to reach the 22 player limit.
Of the northern teams, only Las Vegas will open May 14, traveling to Roswell to face the Invaders. Santa Fe and Taos will start their season at noon May 15 in Taos, with Trinidad and Raton opening the season at 7 p.m. in Raton the same day.
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