Royster proud of ‘98 effort

Tim Graham

Friday, Aug. 14, 1998 | 11:14 a.m.

Jerry Royster is not a braggart by any means. But that won't quell the pride he feels when contemplating his performance as the Las Vegas Stars' manager this year.

Now in his third season with Las Vegas, Royster has guided his team from 16 games out of first place at the all-star break to becoming an outside challenger for the Pacific Coast League's South Division pennant.

What he enjoys the most, however, is the way he and his staff have prepared some of the San Diego Padres' top prospects for the next level.

"This season has been the best for me," Royster said. "I've actually accomplished the most this year.

"There have been years where I've won more, and there have been years where it's been easier, but I have not nearly accomplished as much as in 1998."

Thursday night's 14-3 loss to the first-place Salt Lake Buzz art Cashman Field dropped the Stars to 60-58 and 7 1/2 games behind. But they still have produced for Royster in virtually every facet.

"Our offense has really clicked," Royster said. "Our offense has carried us -- without naming any names because you can count at least seven guys.

"When you get into the situation we're in now, every single guy on your team deserves to play all the time. If the No. 7 guy in our lineup turned out to be our best hitter on any given night, I wouldn't be surprised."

Royster, who once coached for the Colorado Rockies and also managed in the Los Angeles Dodgers and Seattle Mariners chains, was asked how often a team gets in such a groove.

"Never," he replied. "Not once. Nobody on this team has to cover for anybody else at any position. I've never found that anywhere in all my years as a coach."

The Stars are on fire offensively, having recently pieced together an 11-game streak of games with 10 or more hits. They are batting .328 in their last 24 games, going 15-9 in that span. They also have belted 25 home runs in their last 19 outings.

"As a staff, everyone has worked really hard this year," hitting coach Craig Colbert said. "I think with the guys we had coming in this year, we had to do more things with them. The team was younger than what we were used to."

Several Stars have blossomed this season, and since the Stars in the business of developing players and not necessarily winning games, the coaches are happy no matter where the team finishes in the standings.

Putting together solid seasons for their age are shortstop Juan Melo, utilityman Greg LaRocca and outfielder Chris Prieto. Only the 22-year-old Melo had played at the Triple-A level heading into this season.

"That's rewarding," Royster said. "I hate ever talking about it -- because I don't want it to seem like I don't care -- but it doesn't matter what our record is. It's all about getting players ready for the majors. It's about getting done what you need to get done."

Nevertheless, as players started to evolve under Royster, they made up ground in the standings.

"We did a lot of work early in the season and now we're getting to see it pay off in a big way," Royster said.

"We spent the first half of the season on teaching them there's a certain way to go about getting to the majors. If you're a pitcher, it's not about going out and just giving up three runs. That's not enough. Going 15-6 in this league does not mean you're a big league pitcher.

"We've been instilling strategies and selling philosophies. That's what coaching is all about. And that's what really makes you feel good."

Royster also hopes his performance this year will pay off for his career. He felt snubbed he didn't receive any big-league managerial or coaching offers in the off-season.

But for right now, he is concentrating on keep his players consistent and getting them prepared for the Padres. In the process, the Stars should continue to win and possibly compete for a pennant.

"You do the work in April and May to be good in July and August," Royster said. "You like to finish strong. This is how you finish off a season."

archive