Suns infielder Derek Dietrich likes to juggle anything but ground balls

I look forward to seeing Dietrich at the next Immortal Love Pop-up Experience!

While Dietrich has been receiving plaudits for his talents on the field, there’s no denying his skills away from the game when it comes to juggling. Whether it’s with baseballs, flaming torches, machetes or (and this is where Marlins officials gasp) chain saws that are going, Dietrich has shown a skill that few others have mastered.

“I enjoy juggling. I love doing it as a hobby,” Dietrich said. “I love doing it to make others happy and to share my ability with others. I feel it’s a win-win for me: Not only can I do that and bring a smile to people’s faces, but I feel it helps me physically on the field.

“This has greatly enhanced my hand-eye coordination, which is used tremendously in baseball. I feel it’s helped me defensively and has helped me pick up the ball coming out of the pitcher’s hand. Any kind of tool that you can use to give you an edge in the field or at the plate, you want to take advantage of such.”

...There are few things that Dietrich can’t juggle. As long as the items aren’t too large or cumbersome, he’s ready to start flipping objects with his hands. He handles three razor-sharp machetes with precision. Flaming torches? Nary a problem. But gas chain saws with the threat of slicing off a finger with one small mishap? Dietrich just smiles and shrugs his shoulders.

“The Rays never put any restrictions on me, and the Marlins haven’t said anything about it, either,” said Dietrich, who played against the Suns a year ago when he was with the Montgomery Biscuits, the Double-A affiliate of the Rays. “I’ve never had any significant accident with the juggling, maybe some banged-up fingers, but no cuts or anything severe.”

Lemke: Phil Nerone stripped uniform, left pro ball

A regular Mike Damone in the making…

One of the stories detailed the short, but memorable career of former Appleton Foxes outfielder Phil Nerone.

Written by sports staffer Mike Woods, the story quoted former team executive Milt Drier and his recollection of Nerone.

“It was at spring training in 1976,” said Milt Drier, a former team president of the Foxes, “All of a sudden one day, while he was in the outfield, he took off all his baseball clothes.”

The hat hat, the glove, the pants, the shirt, the socks, cleats and the underwear—ALL his baseball clothes.

“Then he shouted, ‘I don’t need this baseball stuff anymore,’” said Drier. “‘I’m going to Hollywood to be a movie star. Bye, bye.’ And that was the end of Phil Nerone.

No wonder his nickname was “Orbit.”

I came across this on Nerone from Oct. 1989

Some men never give up the dream. Like catcher/third baseman Phil Nerone, 35, who would be the Juice’s resident flake if he beats the odds and makes the team. Part of Nerone’s warmup includes standing on his head - with his cap on. ‘‘Gets rid of the stress,’’ he said.

Drafted by the White Sox, Nerone never made it to the bigs. But since he’s a catcher and catchers are in short supply in the SPBA, he qualifies. ‘‘I want to be a part of the Juice,’’ said Nerone, also an aspiring actor. ‘‘Even if I just warm people up.’‘

Wait ‘til Next Year

The Red Sox have started out 2-1 this year, on the road, against the Yankees. Height of optimism, right? Yes, let’s bask in the glow, and live in the moment.

Or, if your thoughts are already focused on the future, the good folks at soxprospects.com have compiled projected rosters for 2014 at every level in the Red Sox system, from the majors all the way down to the Dominican Summer League. (Tangent: They’ve listed for the DSL an outfielder who might get nannied.)

At the MLB level, they’ve listed 30 players, but some are highlighted as potentially being traded away before next season.

Blue Jays option struggling Rickey Romero to single-A Dunedin.

The Toronto Blue Jays announced that the left-hander has been optioned to single-A Dunedin of the Florida State League.

The move came shortly after Romero picked up the win in Toronto’s 6-3 victory over Pittsburgh. It was considered a make-or-break start for Romero, who had a decent outing but didn’t do enough to make up for his spring struggles.