The Iola Hormigas got in a bit of work ahead of Wednesday’s season opener on the road against the Blackwell Flycatchers.
With multiple players just getting into town over the weekend, and rain dampening much of their attempts to take the field during an abbreviated spring training, the Hormigas made the most of their opportunity while practicing Tuesday on Alumni Field at the campus of Allen Community College.
“We got here, we checked in and we got out here. We’ve been indoors mostly,” Iola manager Derick Dominguez said. “We’re grateful for it, obviously. Not many teams have access to the facilities Allen has to offer. We’re very grateful for that.”
Last season, Dominguez managed the Austin Weirdos, whose name may be a misnomer as the team served as a travel squad without an official team stadium. After spending months straight on the road last season, Dominguez said he is proud to call Iola home this summer.
“This time of year, it’s always when time goes the slowest,” Dominguez said. “When you’re just hanging around. You’re anxious to play the game and we have opening day [Wednesday]. When the season gets going, it will go by fast and hopefully we’ll be on the right side of things.”
Dominguez said he returned only two players from the 2024 Austin Weirdos, so this season he has almost an entirely new roster to evaluate. Five of those players are in the minor league farm system for Bravos De Leon of Liga De Beisbol — Mexico’s longest operating professional sports leagues.
“It’s a new group to me. We have five guys right now from Bravos De Leon in Mexico out here to develop and be in the big leagues in Mexico one day,” Dominguez said. “There are a whole lot of people that make this happen here,” giving credit to Doug Desmarteau, Allen Community College athletic director.
Dominguez said many of the Bravos De Leon players have never experienced the Kansas prairie and seem enamored by its green fields stretching into the horizon. Along with Iola’s aesthetic charm, the players also benefit from Allen’s athletic training facilities, which Dominguez said rival some of the teams in the Mexican League.
“They don’t have anything like that at home. When they get out here, it’s all new to them,” Dominguez said.
While not diminishing the talent of his local and national players, Dominguez said watching the raw talent of his Mexican League imports is worth the ticket of admission. With the season lasting a few months, Dominguez added the future Bravos De Leon players hope to make the most of their time in Iola and turn a few heads south of the border.
“To see it first-hand, the Mexican Baseball League has a great product,” Domingez said. “If you’re involved, you’re doing something right. They know what it takes because they see it every day in Mexico. Coming here, they know they only have a short time. They’re going to take advantage of what we got here.”
