Hi baseball fans! My name is Adrian Cardenas and I was traded this past year from the Philadelphia phillies to the Oakland A’s. I was born on October 10, 1987 and actually turned 21 here in Arizona. I was born and raised in Miami, Florida and I’m Hispanic (both my parents were born in Cuba). I guess a little about me that most may not know is that I started playing the piano when I was 3 years old and played it until I graduated high school (Monsignor Edward Pace) and  got drafted in 2006. It’s pretty funny but my parents didn’t know much about baseball and I really started playing at 5 years old just to keep family ties when my family along with my uncle’s family moved away from the same neighborhood. However, they instilled in me hardwork and dedication, which I am a strong believer that it has carried me here thus far. Since I can’t carry a piano around everywhere I travel, I usually bring my guitar. I’m not very good, but it definitely is one of my favorite hobbies and something I enjoy doing pretty much everyday. Attending the AFL this year was one my goals just because I was eager to be thrown at a young age with the best competition and not only pick people’s brains, but also be exposed and play among some of the best talent in the minor leagues. Although I am here to “show what I got”, I am also here to develop. I am constantely trying to work on things and get better before, during, and after games. I feel content with my playing in the AFL, but realize that there is still a lot work to be done. Hope you enjoyed the blog!

-Adrian

     Welcome back Sports Fans and thanks for taking the time to check out this week’s installment of my blog. It was an exciting week in the AFL with lots of great performances. 5 out of our 6 games this week were won or lost by one run. The Phoenix Desert Dogs went 3-3 to improve their record to 5-6 which is good enough for second place in the National division.

     Let’s start with a little recap of last weeks games, early in the week on Monday we received a great performance from infielder Rusty Ryal (Diamondbacks), with 2 home runs in our 3-2 victory over the Javelinas. Tuesday’s game showcased a come from behind victory on the road by the Desert Dogs. Leading the way was Ryan Patterson (Blue Jays) with a 2 run homerun in the top of the 9th followed later by Scott Campbell’s (Blue Jays) game winning RBI single to give us 3 runs in the frame. Let’s skip ahead to Friday’s game where the Desert Dogs experienced their first walk off victory in the AFL with Eric Young Jr.(Rockies) singling to center to score Ryan Patterson.

     As for me, I pitched in our 8-2 loss to the Peoria Saguaros on Thursday. I pitched 2 innings giving up no runs on 4 hits while striking out 4. It was nice to be able to throw two innings in the same game since the norm for relievers in this league seems to be just pitching one. Thursday was also a great day for me personally because I was able to see some familiar faces. My dad flew in early Thursday afternoon and will be staying with my uncle until Tuesday, who lives in Peoria. Also, my pitching coach from college, who was in the area scouting for his new program Villanova, was able to attend the game. I was thankful to be able to get some innings in while my dad, uncle, and coach were at the game. Whether it’s during the regular season or during fall baseball in Arizona, it’s always nice to see family and friends, because as much as we all love baseball it does bring you back to the real world just a little bit.

     As for the weekend, Sunday is our off day from baseball, so I figured that would be a great day to be able to spend some time with the family. After catching up on some sleep, it was time to head to the Arizona State Fair located in Phoenix to meet up with my dad, uncle and cousin. I really was hesitant at first to jump on the crazy rides that they had there, but I felt obligated to ride because I really didn’t want my little cousin to show me up. So after about 3 or so hours walking around winning prizes and experiencing some rollercoaster’s and rides we headed back to Peoria to watch game 7 of the ALCS and to have a nice Sunday dinner prepared by my Aunt.

I look forward to writing again next week and please don’t hesitate to ask questions.

See you at the Ballpark,

Andrew

     Hello again Sports Fans from Phoenix AZ. Well week 1 is officially in the books and the Phoenix Desert Dogs emerge 2-3.

     Since we had a little over a month off of baseball after the regular season everyone was clearly itching to get back onto the field and play. I was even wondering to myself about how it would be to face hitters again and how I could knock off some of the rust that might have accumulated since bullpen sessions can only get you so far. All I know is that we were all excited about getting back into a baseball routine. The atmosphere in the locker room went from being on practice day 1 like the first day of high school to that of college graduation on game day where you could feel the excitement in the air and the “get to know you curve” was completely out of the locker room.

     Our first AFL game featured an outstanding pitching performance from Max Scherzer (Diamondbacks) who went 7 innings giving up 2 runs on 4 hits, but in the end the Desert Dogs fell short falling 3-2 in 10 innings. With Max having experience in the “Big Leagues” it was nice to see first hand how he went about his business both on the field and in the dugout. I always like to talk to and take some mental notes from guys that have had experience at a higher level of baseball than me. They say you learn something new everyday.

     The second game was held in Mesa which was the first of three road night games. Getting to the field at 4 and after batting practice, I was told by our pitching coach that I would definitely be pitching because that Oakland A’s front ofice personnel would be attending. I was immediately enthused to be given an opportunity to show what I can do, but hey that’s what this league is all about! I came into the game in the fifth inning with the Desert Dogs winning 5-4; it was nice to be able to come into the game with our team ahead and looking for our first win. I pitched a scoreless fifth giving up two hits while striking out two and helped the Desert Dogs earn their first win. The game was highlighted by catcher J.P Arencibia’s (Blue Jays) opposite field game winning homerun in the 5th inning that would have gone out of any stadium. I pitched again on Friday against the Scottsdale Scorpions and I ran into a little trouble in this inning, giving up one run on 3 hits but most importantly getting a groundball double play that helped limit the damage. Lefty reliever Daryl Harang came into the game and finished the inning by striking out the last batter.

     The bats really came alive on Saturday and broke out with 9 runs on 13 hits; including Sean doolittle’s 2 homeruns en route to a 9-4 victory to collect our second win of the young season. The game was a 12:30 start, whch was great because we had plenty of time to get back home and catch up on some college football and also look forward to our off day on Sunday.

     During the course of the past week away from the field we have had a lot of down time. Early in the week a few of my Oakland Teammates (Sean Doolittle, Andrew Carignan, and Jared Lansford) and I moved into a house that we rented in Scottsdale. Along with moving into our new place our week was filled with some workouts at our minor league facility, trips to Fashion Square Mall, and even playing some video games online with Desert Dogs teammates. But most importantly was watching my hometown Phillies take a 2-1 lead in the NLCS.

Thanks again for checking in this week, see you at the ballpark!

     Andrew