Reno Weekly Rag: Vegas Press Conference

Gary Sheffield didn't play much in 2006. Instead, he rehabilitated and spent time outside the stadium with fans. The question is: will he be back with the Doggs in 2007?


By: Ehssosicated Press

The following is a trascript from a recent press conference with EHCC Champion Las Vegas Doggs' General Manager, Howe Dogg.

Q (Conor Intabedd; Reno Weekly Rag): Mr. Dogg, do you feel your team is built to repeat in 2007 as is?

A: It is the consensus that if every team goes into 2007 as they left 2006, we have to be the favorite to repeat. We're not that naive however, and realize every team is going to do everything in their power to get better this off-season. As it stands, we are very happy with our current roster and have no plans to move any of our key guys around. We made a lot of moves last off-season so that we wouldn't have to do that in the near future.

Q (Max Power; Vegas Gazette): There's been rumor that you'd like to get an upgrade in your outfield for next season. Any validity to this, and if so who of your current 5 outfielders would be the one being replaced?

A: I've heard such rumors as well. We have five current players roaming the outfield for the Doggs right now. [Jason] Bay and [Carlos] Lee are young enough and have proven themselves enough to earn a guarenteed spot in the corner positions next season as of right now. Chris [Duncan] and Alex [Rios] are great young players who showed us a lot last season. I'd love it if they could prove to me in the Ehrizona Fall League that either one of them deserved the final spot. Gary [Sheffield] is an original Dogg. We drafted him back in 2001 and were lucky enough to trade back for him last off-season. Unfortunately, his injuries kept him out of the lineup most of the season but we're very hopeful he can come back and contribute in 2007, either as one of our outfielders or, perhaps, at a different position such as first base or DH.

Q (Pedro Gammo; EHSPN): If Sheffield were to come back, would you really have room for him? With Jim Thome and Aramis Ramirez manning the DH spot and Albert Pujols at first base, where would Sheffield fit in?

A: Excellent question. We do have quite a few good players at some key positions. It should go without saying that Albert isn't going anywhere. I even rejected a trade that may have gotten us a few key starters and a quality first base replacement for Mr. Pujols. It was just a show of respect for the man. He'll be a Dogg for life. As far as the DH role goes, right now it's up for grabs. Aramis showed us a lot in the final two months, as he usually does, so he's got an edge on everyone else. We have to wait and see what the health will be on Thome and Sheffield going into 2007. Gary may very well come back as our fourth outfielder, depending on whether or not Chris and Alex can show us something in winter ball, or if we're able to pick up a quality replacement from another team in the off-season.

Q (Conor Intabedd): Now that the Doggs' organization seems to have some quality players back in the minor league system, what are the plans for those players? In the past, the organization has drafted very well but has yet to allow any of their ESSEC players play more than two months at the EHCC level. Do the Dogg' still have the same philosophy regarding minor leaguers since you traded away first round pick Cameron Maybin for Carlos Lee during the 2006 season, or are they going to start trusting their picks more and allowing them to blossom on the Doggs' EHCC roster?

A: Let's get this straight, we've always trusted our ability to pick quality individuals in the ESSEC draft. The only reason we felt it was wise to use those picks in trades was because we felt it would put us over the top. So far we've been right in most cases. We still regret letting Matt Cain go to the Piglets, but in 2004 we traded away Felix Hernandez for Mariano Rivera and Greg Maddux. Those two guys helped us win our first championship and are still with us through our second. Trading Cameron was hard, but since we recieved a quality outfilder that could put us over the top immediately, we thought it to be a no-brainer. Plus, outfield is the one position we have a lot of depth at right now, especially with Jay Bruce and Hunter Pence coming up through the system. If we feel it's something that will benefit the team in a major way, we will trade almost anyone, minor league players included. We'd like to see Matt Garza, Homer Bailey, and Jay Bruce come up to Vegas and prove to us, and everyone else, that we made the right decisions on them. That being said, I don't know what could be offered to us in the form of a trade that would pry those three away from us at the moment.

Q (Pedro Gammo): Any big moves planned or in the works?

A: We were in talks with a few teams, just to keep things in perspective. We've recieved some interest in Rickie Weeks, who we'd rather not part with consdiering how much we paid to get him here in the first place. There's been talks specifically with representatives from both Golden and Peoria involving some of our players, but what we could get in return that would aid our team in repeating as EHCC champions is still unclear.

Howe Dogg: That's all I have for today. Thank you all for coming.