WHIV 2060.12- Rectenberg Holds Hustlers Together
Posted: Sat Sep 14, 2024 1:00 pm
We got a chance to sit down with Las Vegas Hustlers' manager Henry Rectenberg, as well as several of his coaches, to get a feel for where the 2060 Hustlers stand after four full months. Their record stands at 58-53 and they are just one game out of the last Wild Card spot despite a lot of numbers suggesting they have no business being there.
"It's been a struggle this year, that's for sure," Rectenberg said without hesitation when asked where the Hustlers stand at the outset of the stretch drive. "Over the last several years we've morphed from a veteran laden team to a very young team overall (the Hustlers are actually the youngest team in either the BBA or GBC by Team Age). Most franchises go through this at some point and there is a much larger drop. It's my job to see that the drop isn't as severe as it could be and that's what we've done this year. Some might call it smoke and mirrors, with apologies to the folks in Long Beach...I mean I don't think they have a copyright on that phrase. So we're five games over .500 right now and by run differential we should be five under. I take a lot of pride in that ten game swing and the fellas should too."
Rectenberg has good reason to be proud of the results, given the ingredients he's been given. Bench Coach Hank Brewer explains. "First year without Tom Rudge," Brewer says. "That's a one in a lifetime franchise icon and now you have to make do without him. Kidane Ata is gone. Stewart Turton is gone. We traded Mike Cox right before the season. Our pitching staff has been in flux all season long. We've got a lot of young guys and guys getting their first real opportunities. Henry does an amazing job of keeping everything together throughout all of the change. It'll pay off down the road."
Brewer isn't the only one who has that opinion. Third base coach Juan Sweetworld is in his eleventh season with the team and has seen the highs and the lows. "This is a different feel this year, a little like an extended Spring Training in a way," said the veteran Sweetworld. "We're shuttling a lot of players in and out and he handles it masterfully."
It can be even more challenging when it comes to pitchers. "There's been a lot of pressure on me this year," said pitching coach Elliot Buckland, his eyes dropping with clear signs of exhaustion. "Pitching has been an issue all season, trust me...I know. I'm getting heat from the guys upstairs on a daily basis. 'What's wrong with Harrell? Why can't you keep Barrera healthy? On and on it goes, and Henry is the only guy keeping me remotely sane. I swear if it wasn't for him I would have set the stadium on fire by now."
Rectenberg is humble by nature, and typically diffuses any praise he receives to his players and his coaching staff. It's no different today. "We all approach every day this season like it's a development opportunity and we celebrate the small wins and coach up the setbacks," said the calm, cool and collected skipper. "This is a lot of fun for me. Certainly not as fun as winning a Monty Series, but you can't win one of those every year either."
We asked Rectenberg which young player has impressed him the most this year. "The easy answer is Randy Wright going from solid regular to a full blown star player," explained Rectenberg. "I want to give a lot of credit to one guy in particular, and that's Tankut Saltik. He was out of options, so he was going to have to be on the team, though he's still not developed fully. He was a long term prospect with tantalizing ability. We finally just handed him right field and said run with it, and he's playing solid baseball."
The manager also wanted to share a success story of a 32 year old rookie who has impressed. "I love giving guys like Chong-xian Shen a shot," said Rectenberg. "He's 32 years old, been in pro baseball since 2044...what's that, 16, 17 years? Never got a shot at the big leagues. Certainly, as we've gotten to know his personality a little bit some of that might be because of his own doing, but we can work with him on the personality things. He can pitch. He's been arguably the most reliable reliever we've had this season and here's a 32 year old rookie who was released by not only three BBA franchises, but also by Cairo in the GBC. Wild story, man. I love that he's getting to experience success at the BBA level. When my bosses want to yell at Buckland about every little thing, I always bring up Shen. Gotta give credit where credit is due."
Claudio Rodriguez is the jewel of the Hustlers system, the #11 prospect in the BBA, and was recently called up to the big club. Rectenberg invoked some greats when discussing the importance of the two months or so he'll experience with the Hustlers this year. "Look, the Hustlers way in the past was always to bring them up, let them work out of the bullpen at first, and ease them into starting roles," Rectenberg said. "I know a couple of Hall of Famers who did it that way. Gary Estes and Manny Bautista turned out pretty darn good. I don't want to put that kind of pressure on the kid but we absolutely have sky high hopes for him. He'll be fun to watch, and it certainly gives our fans something new to watch." Rodriguez pitched in two games against Calgary during his first week in the BBA, allowing just one run in four innings. "Welcome to the big leagues, kid...now pitch against the best team in the Johnson League," chuckled Rectenberg. "He did it, and he did it effectively. Now he's gaining confidence, knowing that he belongs. That's what we're doing with all these kids, whether it's Claudio, or Mauro Rojas or Augusto Dominguez or Don Dulaney or Luigi Canavan. We have to put them in position to succeed and build confidence. That's how you build for the future while trying to win now."
"It's been a struggle this year, that's for sure," Rectenberg said without hesitation when asked where the Hustlers stand at the outset of the stretch drive. "Over the last several years we've morphed from a veteran laden team to a very young team overall (the Hustlers are actually the youngest team in either the BBA or GBC by Team Age). Most franchises go through this at some point and there is a much larger drop. It's my job to see that the drop isn't as severe as it could be and that's what we've done this year. Some might call it smoke and mirrors, with apologies to the folks in Long Beach...I mean I don't think they have a copyright on that phrase. So we're five games over .500 right now and by run differential we should be five under. I take a lot of pride in that ten game swing and the fellas should too."
Rectenberg has good reason to be proud of the results, given the ingredients he's been given. Bench Coach Hank Brewer explains. "First year without Tom Rudge," Brewer says. "That's a one in a lifetime franchise icon and now you have to make do without him. Kidane Ata is gone. Stewart Turton is gone. We traded Mike Cox right before the season. Our pitching staff has been in flux all season long. We've got a lot of young guys and guys getting their first real opportunities. Henry does an amazing job of keeping everything together throughout all of the change. It'll pay off down the road."
Brewer isn't the only one who has that opinion. Third base coach Juan Sweetworld is in his eleventh season with the team and has seen the highs and the lows. "This is a different feel this year, a little like an extended Spring Training in a way," said the veteran Sweetworld. "We're shuttling a lot of players in and out and he handles it masterfully."
It can be even more challenging when it comes to pitchers. "There's been a lot of pressure on me this year," said pitching coach Elliot Buckland, his eyes dropping with clear signs of exhaustion. "Pitching has been an issue all season, trust me...I know. I'm getting heat from the guys upstairs on a daily basis. 'What's wrong with Harrell? Why can't you keep Barrera healthy? On and on it goes, and Henry is the only guy keeping me remotely sane. I swear if it wasn't for him I would have set the stadium on fire by now."
Rectenberg is humble by nature, and typically diffuses any praise he receives to his players and his coaching staff. It's no different today. "We all approach every day this season like it's a development opportunity and we celebrate the small wins and coach up the setbacks," said the calm, cool and collected skipper. "This is a lot of fun for me. Certainly not as fun as winning a Monty Series, but you can't win one of those every year either."
We asked Rectenberg which young player has impressed him the most this year. "The easy answer is Randy Wright going from solid regular to a full blown star player," explained Rectenberg. "I want to give a lot of credit to one guy in particular, and that's Tankut Saltik. He was out of options, so he was going to have to be on the team, though he's still not developed fully. He was a long term prospect with tantalizing ability. We finally just handed him right field and said run with it, and he's playing solid baseball."
The manager also wanted to share a success story of a 32 year old rookie who has impressed. "I love giving guys like Chong-xian Shen a shot," said Rectenberg. "He's 32 years old, been in pro baseball since 2044...what's that, 16, 17 years? Never got a shot at the big leagues. Certainly, as we've gotten to know his personality a little bit some of that might be because of his own doing, but we can work with him on the personality things. He can pitch. He's been arguably the most reliable reliever we've had this season and here's a 32 year old rookie who was released by not only three BBA franchises, but also by Cairo in the GBC. Wild story, man. I love that he's getting to experience success at the BBA level. When my bosses want to yell at Buckland about every little thing, I always bring up Shen. Gotta give credit where credit is due."
Claudio Rodriguez is the jewel of the Hustlers system, the #11 prospect in the BBA, and was recently called up to the big club. Rectenberg invoked some greats when discussing the importance of the two months or so he'll experience with the Hustlers this year. "Look, the Hustlers way in the past was always to bring them up, let them work out of the bullpen at first, and ease them into starting roles," Rectenberg said. "I know a couple of Hall of Famers who did it that way. Gary Estes and Manny Bautista turned out pretty darn good. I don't want to put that kind of pressure on the kid but we absolutely have sky high hopes for him. He'll be fun to watch, and it certainly gives our fans something new to watch." Rodriguez pitched in two games against Calgary during his first week in the BBA, allowing just one run in four innings. "Welcome to the big leagues, kid...now pitch against the best team in the Johnson League," chuckled Rectenberg. "He did it, and he did it effectively. Now he's gaining confidence, knowing that he belongs. That's what we're doing with all these kids, whether it's Claudio, or Mauro Rojas or Augusto Dominguez or Don Dulaney or Luigi Canavan. We have to put them in position to succeed and build confidence. That's how you build for the future while trying to win now."