Good Not Good Enough for Tatum To Make Double-A All-Star Game

Thought Jose Canseco and Fred McGriff were snubbed for Tuesday’s major league All-Star Game? Try and explain to Milwaukee Brewer prospect Jim Tatum why he was bypassed for today’s Double-A All-Star Game in Huntsville, Ala.

Tatum, the 1984 San Diego Section player of the year from Santana High, is hitting .341 with 12 home runs, eight triples and 90 runs batted in in 79 games for El Paso, Texas.

Tatum, a shortstop, did make the Texas League all-star team.

Add Stars: Initially, Phil Plantier did not make the American League’s Triple-A All-Star squad because he was playing for the Boston Red Sox.

After being sent down last week, Plantier was added to the roster for tonight’s game in Louisville, Ky. He also picked up right where he left off in the minors. In his first three games since returning to Pawtucket, R.I., Plantier was five for 10 with three doubles and a home run. He now has 13 homers, 46 RBIs and a .328 average.

Conversely, Dean Wilkins (Mira Mesa High and Mesa College) made the National League Triple-A team but has since been called up to the Houston Astros. Wilkins was 4-2 with 18 saves and a 3.05 ERA for Tucson, Ariz.

Late (Night) Fill-In: With talk show host David Letterman, ignoring an offer to pitch in a recent exhibition game between the Houston Astros and Triple-A Tucson, Ariz., former U.S. International pitcher Wally Trice was called in from Class A Burlington, Iowa. Trice pitched two innings and got the save in the Astros’ 8-6 victory.

For Burlington, Trice (4-2) has a league-leading 18 saves, a 0.99 ERA, 53 strikeouts and only nine walks in 45 2/3 innings.

Up To Speed: Ray McDavid, a surprise ninth-round draft choice by the Padres last year, has 33 stolen bases for Charleston, S.C., second in the Class A South Atlantic League.

McDavid, a standout basketball player at Clairemont High, did not play baseball his senior year and had only three steals and six hits in 41 at-bats last summer for Scottsdale, Ariz. This season, he’s hitting .245 with six triples, five home runs and 23 RBIs.

Patience Pays: Mark Davis, who was drafted in the fifth round out of Hoover High in 1982, opted to attend Stanford instead of joining the Cardinals’ organization. After his junior year, Davis was drafted in the ninth round by the Padres, but chose to remain at Stanford, where he graduated in 1986.

Again, he was drafted--this time in the 12th round by the Chicago White Sox--and he finally signed.

After an August 1989, trade to the Angels, Davis, 26, made his major league debut last week. He had hit .300 with eight homers, 37 RBIs and 24 stolen bases for triple-A Edmonton.

Tools of Opportunity: San Diego has long been a supplier of major league catchers, and the county currently has five players in Triple-A. Two others play for Double-A teams.

Dan Walters and Todd Pratt head the list. Walters (Santana High) is hitting .338 with four homers and 24 RBIs for the Padres’ affiliate in Las Vegas. Pratt (Hilltop High) is at .302 with seven home runs and 26 RBIs for the Pawtucket Red Sox.

Jeff Grotewald (University of San Diego) is hitting .253 for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Pa.) in the Phillies’ organization, Troy Afenir (Escondido High and Palomar College) .239 for the A’s club in Tacoma, Wash., and Kevin Burrell (Poway High) .226 for the Omaha (Neb.) Royals.

In double A, Jim Baxter (Southwestern College) plays for the Memphis Chicks in the Royals’ organization and Jeff Gay (Santana High) for Birmingham, Ala., in the White Sox chain.

Add Single-A Tools: Eric Christopherson, a former catcher for San Diego State, is hitting .264 with 30 RBIs and seven stolen bases for the Giants’ Clinton, Iowa, club.

Eric Helfand (Patrick Henry) has a .248 average and 28 RBIs for the A’s affiliate in Modesto.