BRISTOL, Va. – Bobby Thigpen said the change has been noticeable and exciting.
Following the eventual postponement of Sunday evening’s twice-delayed Appalachian League contest between the Elizabethton Twins and Bristol White Sox at Boyce Cox Field,
Thigpen retreated to the BriSox clubhouse to elude the rain and catch up on phone calls. And while Thigpen flipped through numbers on his cell phone, he found the time to reflect on his second season as Bristol’s manager – one that finds him more relaxed, more comfortable and a lot more at ease.
“[I feel] so much better,” Thigpen said. “The whole offseason and spring training, I was so looking forward to this year, just because I had gotten here last year and kind of been thrown into things. … So, it was exciting for me, coming into this year, because I saw the kids that we were going to have and I knew that I was going to be better at the job.”
According to Thigpen, reliable pitching, consistent small-ball based hitting and much-improved team speed have been the keys to Bristol’s fast start.
“Last year, we had to kind of just sludge around and we had to pound people, and we didn’t have the hitters that could pound, 1-9,” Thigpen said. “This year, it seems like no matter what the lineup, we’ve got a pretty good team.”
The BriSox loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the second inning off Twins (15-4) starter Bobby Lanigan. Bristol then took a 1-0 lead on Kevin Dubler’s sacrifice fly to deep center field, which scored Kenneth Gilbert.
A 45-minute rain delay interrupted the game in the bottom of the third inning, bringing out Tennessee High School’s baseball team, which managed to cover the field just in time with a tarp.
But a heavy downpour and constant lightning in the bottom of the sixth resulted in the suspension of the game with the score tied 3-3.
btsmith@bristolnews.com | (276) 645-2569
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