As
of Wednesday afternoon, the Boise Hawks coaching staff still has, “no idea” on
the arrival of Hayden Simpson – the first-round selection in the 2010 First
Year Player’s Draft by the Chicago Cubs – according to Hawks pitching coach,
Jeff Fassero.

General
Manager of the Hawks, Todd Rahr was also amiss for a time table on the number
16 pick’s arrival, but said that fans may be able to see Simpson and fellow
2010 draftees as early Friday or on the ensuing home stand against Yakima in
July.

Despite
Simpson’s notoriety to baseball junkies (like myself) and Chicago Cubs executives,
Simpson could slip under the radar of most fans according to Rahr.

“Anytime
you have a number one guy, then that’s a good story for the press and we’ll get
some good media out of it and subsequently you’re hoping that will translate
into ticket sales,” said Rahr, “but in general, especially in baseball, the
draftees are so unknown – no matter if you’re a real baseball fan or not – that
it’s a rarity that a first round draft pick carries enough of a name to really
make a real difference at the game.”

No
matter the skill level of former fifth round draft pick Jeff Samardzija – more notable
for his tenure as a wide receiver at Notre Dame than his wild two-seam fastball
– fans in 2006 chose to buy tickets because they thought they were seeing a “big
name” player, and at that point, they were right.

Unfortunately
for the young draft pick, Simpson and Samardzija have a lot in common. After
his arrival, they will both have entered enormous amounts of expectations and
pressure in Boise. The difference is that Samardzija entered into the Cubs
organization when the club was a first-place playoff team in the National
League Central Division, when the team was a pitching breading ground.

Simpson,
however, is entering a Chicago Cubs organization trying to stay afloat in the
NL Central, where the rotation is bigger mess than Louisiana, something that
Samardzija helped create.  

His
potential is immeasurable and the talent is clearly there, but at the end of
his career, I hope that Hayden Simpson has more than a beer and food vendor at
Memorial Stadium named after himself to show for it.