Beginnings
Pump Jacks open season today; play first home game on Thursday
By MITCH LUCAS sports@kilgorenewsherald.com

Photos by Lester Murray NEW KID(S) IN TOWN - Members of the East Texas Pump Jacks, including Austin Roff (No. 6, left) of Colorado Springs, Colo., met some season ticket holders on Saturday at Driller Park. The Pump Jacks were to open their inaugural season in the Texas Collegiate League tonight at McKinney. The firstever Pump Jacks game at Driller Park is scheduled for Thursday night at 7 p.m.

The preparations for a home opener may be going on today and tomorrow at Driller Park, but the very first game for the East Texas Pump Jacks is being played tonight in McKinney.

The Texas Collegiate League franchise, who announced their intentions to locate in Kilgore in the first month of 2008 and have been steadily winning over fans, will play at McKinney tonight and tom orrow night, then play their first-ever home game at Driller Park on Thursday, a 7 p.m. start - that start will be preceded by normal game traditions, like a national anthem, but also by the first pitch of franchise history.

The club's general manager, Mike Lieberman, was coy about the first pitch, but said the franchise leadership is excited about this week, particularly the first home game, and that the fans will see just what TCL baseball, the Pump Jacks brand in particular, is all about.

PHELPS

The Pump Jacks are coached by Stan Phelps, who was a pitching coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Texas at Tyler. Bringing Phelps on board early was a coup by the Pump Jacks, who are confident in Phelps' coaching and leadership abilities.

"We're so excited to have Stan on board as our first head coach," said Lieberman the week the franchise hired Phelps. "He has had tremendous success in a respected program and he's ready to lead a team of his own. Through his recruiting experience, he knows the talent in the region and has the contacts to attract quality ballplayers."

Phelps, who along with the players took part in a meet-andgreet with some season ticket holders on Saturday at Driller Park, said after he accepted the job that the Pump Jacks will give fans a reason to turn out.

"Our fans are going to enjoy a team that will hustle and be entertaining," he said. "We're going to proudly represent East Texas and our sponsors, host families, and fans."

The team will play 24 games at Driller Park, beginning Thursday, and 24 road games. The players aren't paid to maintain their amateur/ college status, and are being put up by several host families.

The Pump Jacks' club name and colors were unveiled in April, with the name 'Pump Jacks,' a nod to the East Texas oil industry, the winning choice. Rather than choose one mascot, the franchise selected two from fans : a donkey (because the pump jack is regularly referred to as 'a donkey') and a more youth-friendly dinosaur.

The franchise's first-ever signee (signed on April 9) was catcher Andrew Nettune, an Athens native who plays at Texas A&M. Pat McCrory, who was an all-state selection at Kilgore High School and a hometown favorite, was signed late last week. McCrory suits up for the University of Texas.