CHANGING OF THE GUARD : CHEFF TO GLOYD ASSISTANT COACHES For the first time in five seasons, the Alaska Goldpanners of Coach Gloyd will be sup- Fairbanks will be taking the field with a new head coach. After a ported on the field by a solid crew successful run with Lewis-Clark State’s Ed Cheff at the helm, the of assistant coaches this year, in- Goldpanners are heading into a new era with Yuba College’s Tim Gloyd. cluding two who will be doing double Tim, a shortstop on the 1978 Panner club, was the immediate duty as players and coaches. choice to succeed Cheff, who left the team for personal reasons in Clarence Griego, Gloyd’s assis- March. tant at Yuba, will be serving in a During his playing days with the Goldpanners, Tim was the heart similar role this summer for the of a very powerful batting order. His baseball prowess at the time is Goldpanners. Shawn Epidendio demonstrated by his role hitting cleanup between major leaguers Tim and Matt Vogel will also be on hand Wallach and Terry Francona - now head coach for the Boston Red to provide coaching support for Clarence Griego Sox. Following his season in Fairbanks, Tim had a stellar collegiate Gloyd. During the regular season, career, and made a serious run at the major leagues before stalling at Shawn is a coach at Anchbishop the Triple-A level, and then began establishing a name for himself in Mitty High School in California. the collegiate coaching ranks. This summer, he will being seeing Since that time, Tim has amassed thirty years of coaching ex- time as both a player/coach, as will perience. He has held coaching jobs at Pepperdine University (1980- veteran Panner Matt Vogel. Matt 81), on the Sicma Impianti, Italy club (1982), at Los Angeles Valley will shouldering a lot of the infielding junior college (1983), at California State University, Sacramento (1984- responsibility for the club. Matt 94), at Cosumnes River College (1996-97), for the Yuba-Sutter Gold was named the 2005 Alaska Base- Sox professional summer club (2002), and as head coach for Yuba ball League Player of the Year (see college, a position he has held since 1997. He had been slated to p. 8). Shawn Epidendio Matt Vogel manage the North Pole Nicks when financial woes forced the team to sit out the 1988 season. While at Cal-State Sacramento, two Division II World 2007 PERSONNEL DIRECTORY Series titles, and five re- PRESIDENT - William G. Stroecker gional tournaments. In BOARD OF DIRECTORS SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT - Dave Rasley all, he coached eight di- New: Sean Timmons, Cliff Batye, Chris Custer VICE PRESIDENT - E. Chilton Hines vision II All-Americans, coached three division I Cindy Adams B.J. Hall GENERAL MANAGER - Don Dennis All-Americans, and was John Adams Al Hines PLAYER HOUSING - Shirley Stewart the coach for three even- Terry Aldridge E. Chilton Hines CONCESSIONS - Shirley Stewart, Linda Smith tual major leaguers. “He Russ Amerson Lynn Hines BAR-B-QUE - Gail Denning has the unique fit to work Carroll Barber Norm Jenkins TRAINERS - Jim Kimball, Chris Dean summer baseball – Cliff Batye Shirley Jenkins BASEBALL CARDS, WEBSITE - Todd Dennis Alaska League style,” ‘Red’ Boucher Eric Kuntz MEDICAL - Dr. Cary Keller, Sportsmedicine Fairbanks GM Don Dennis said. Tom Brice John Lohrke PUBLIC ADDRESS - Conrad “Gonzo” Gonzalez “The Alaska League is no Wally Burnett Jon McCoy BOOSTER CLUB - Norm & Shirley Jenkins show league like the Charlie Cole GUEST HOUSING - Sheena Cummings Cape Cod has become. Tom Moyer HOSPITALITY - Phil Prax, John Adams It is a down and dirty Chris Custer Phil Prax competition among the John Denning Brian Rasley 50/50 - Cindy Adams, Norm Jenkins cities, and the players Don Dennis Dave Rasley BROADCASTER - Donald Baarnes get infected with that. I Todd Dennis Gretchen Ray STADIUM - Sheena Cummings am extremely excited Jim Dieringer Steve Stephens TICKETING - John Denning that Tim was available to Bob Douglass Bill Stroecker SALES - Robert B. Francis take the position. I felt he Jane Douglass Dave Swanson GROUNDS - Carroll Barber was the right guy from Kevin Fitzgerald Sean Timmons YEARBOOK - Todd Dennis the moment the position Bob Francis Rockne Wilson opened.” Kevin Ginley P.O. Box 71154 Fairbanks 99707 Sam Woodke (907) 451-0095 ; FAX 456-6429 TIM GLOYD (78-07) "The best baseball I ever played was in the summer of 1982 for the Panners. I felt so ED CHEFF (02-03-04-05-06) privileged to be playing in Fairbanks among such talented players and for such a great “I have a lot of respect for Don Dennis. He is one skipper ( Ben Hines ), that it elevated my entire game. I owe that opportunity to Don Dennis of the all-time great guys in amateur baseball.” and I will never forget it." - Indiana State Head Coach Lindsay Meggs BRUCE ROBINSON (72-73-74-75) One thing that is certain about the The waters of the Chena river severely “Don has an amazing eye for baseball talent. That, Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks ballclub overflowed their banks in 1967 and com- combined with his ability to successfully recruit an is a learned approach to decision making. pletely destroyed the ballpark. The club unparalleled number of talented future big leaguers, The team is powered by a volunteer Board nearly found itself swept away as well. The administrate, and coordinate every facet of the of Directors which is behind every move flood’s water line, which embedded itself Goldpanner organization, leaves me in awe of Don's made on and off the field. At the head of on the only remaining plank of the field’s accomplishments the past 40 years. Don is loyal, honest, smart, an astute businessman, a terrific fa- outfield wall, marked the team’s most criti- that body are two main figures: President ther and has been a great friend to me and my two William G. Stroecker, and General Manager cal moment to date. It was in the aftermath Goldpanner sons, Scott (2001-02-MVP and National Don Dennis. of this Fairbanks tragedy that Don was fi- Champs) and Tommy (2005). I feel blessed to count nally pursuaded to come to Fairbanks -- him as my friend. The Goldpanners have had a re- This summer, the Goldpanners are cel- for a committment of two years. He has markable run and owe much of this success and win- ebrating a generation of leadership by both been here ever since then, operating as ning tradition to Don Dennis.” . men -- Stroecker now in his 45th year of the heart and soul for both Fairbanks and ELLIOT STRANKMAN (03-04-05-06) direct involvement with the club, and Den- Alaskan baseball. "Don has been a baseball mentor to many of us, and nis celebrating his 40th anniversary as Years later, Boucher would describe for that I thank him. Sitting around, grabbing a bite, General Manager. these successful negotiations in 1967 as and talking baseball ranks right up there with any “the best thing I ever did for the baseball memory that I have ever had. Don is just a In 1963, Don was working as sports edi- Goldpanners.” Certainly, subsequent special human being" tor of The Daily Sentinel in Grand Junc- events have vindicated the decisions of all JERRY McCLAIN (67-68) three men. Don has built a program that is tion, Colorado. It was at this time that he “Don has touched so many peoples lives with his first met Panners’ team founder H.A. “Red” second to none in the non-professional coordination of the finest place to play summer Boucher. The Goldpanners were barn- baseball world. baseball in the world. He has connected with fami- storming their way to the NBC tournament One key measure of his success has lies to house players, advertisers, sponsors, work- through Colorado, and Red used the op- been the collection of state, national and ers, volunteers, the media, etc.; all of them for one portunity to play the Grand Junction Eagles, international championships won during purpose: to make Fairbanks the jewel of the Alaska League and the greatest experience for the amateur a team for which Dennis was serving as his tenure. In 2002, immediately following his orchestration of a record sixth National baseball player. He has been a business associate, a business manager. mentor, a surrogate father, and an inspiration to Baseball Congress championship, he was many people in baseball. “ As a result of Red’s flamboyant style, described as “the most successful figure and the team’s impressive showing, Den- in NBC history” -- a history that spans 80 GERO VON DEHN (01-02-03-04) nis and the entire town fell in love with the years! Shortly thereafter, his level of “The institution he has built in Fairbanks should achievement was given special recogni- itself be enshrined in the Hall of Fame. Who has Alaskan allure. Though Red almost im- created that kind of history in the baseball world? mediately began lobbying Don to come up tion by his induction into the the NBC World Series Hall of Fame. It's the players on the field who paint the picture to Fairbanks so he could take over manage- but those opportunities would not have been there ment of the Goldpanners, other opportunties Through his generation of leadership, without Don. What would have happened to those Don Dennis has led Fairbanks and the were knocking for him in the publishing hundreds of players that parlayed their Fairbanks Goldpanners organization in their emerge world. It wasn’t until 1967 that they had a summers into major league careers? What would nce above the high water mark in the base- have happened to all the rest of us who simply had dramatic shift in their negotiations -- and ball world -- making the Alaska the best summers of our lives with the Goldpanners? the breakthrough came in the form of a Goldpanners of Fairbanks the most suc- I've never been the same.” flood.