Article: Review of Ballplayer: Pelotero

I moved down to the Dominican Republic in 2009 with three other crew members to make a film about Dominican Baseball. I met Miguel Sano when he was 15 and was there from January to September of his signing year. I know Miguel and his family intimately and have been following him through every level. Our film just came out in theaters and On Demand and we really need your support. I've got a couple hours to answer any questions about Miguel, the Twins DR operation, the DR system in general, or anything else that tickles your fancy.


The film is out now and is playing in Minneapolis at the St. Anthony Main theater. Tickets: http://www.stanthonymaintheatre.com/
Download the film on iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/movie/bal...ro/id535668512

Here is the trailer if you are curious:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9jfhRyoljA

cool. i've been hoping to check this out. i believe the story centers on two players - sano and someone named bautista. who's bautista? not sure if you're aware, but the 2009 international class could turn out to be legendary with guys like profar, sano, bogarts, hanson and a whole slew of others showing well. also, curious how you'd characterize the twins player development compared to other organizations from what you've seen.

The second player featured in the film is Jean Carlos Batista who signed with the Astros for $200k. He is playing rookie ball in the appalachian league at the moment.

The 2009 Dominican class was truly incredible. I know or have met most of these guys personally and have seen nearly all of them play. And these guys CAN PLAY.

I have to give a lot of credit to the Twins organization in the DR. In the case of Miguel, all 30 teams should have been lining up to sign him. He was the best prospect anyone had seen in the DR in as much as 10 years (scouts' words, not mine). Rene Gayo and the Pittsburgh Pirates were able to scare off many other teams because of unfounded concerns about Miguel's age. The Twins did a very brave thing by stepping up and signing him. And hopefully they will be rewarded for it for years to come. Fred Guerrero the DR scouting director is a really great guy and knew from day one that this kid was special.

Their academy compound in the DR is fairly typical. It is neither one of the brand spanking new palaces like the Rays, or the Pirates, nor the dilapidated 80's structures like some other teams I won't name. It is part of the Baseball City compound in Boca Chica with about 6 other teams. A dorm, 3 or 4 fields, a mess hall and offices. It gets the job done though.

I really wish you the best. I will be watching for sure. This sounds like it was quite a project.

Living 7 hours from the Twin Cities (north), I'm really hoping to see this somewhere soon! Been looking forward to seeing it for a year or more!! Sounds like it is getting a ton of attention. Hopefully that means lots of viewers for it!! Thank you for letting our readers here know about it. Is there somewhere we can find a bigger list of where it will be showing and when since we have readers all over?

Hey Seth, Big fan of the blogs as a newly mined surrogate Twins fan. Thanks for asking.

The full list of cities it is currently playing is: New York, LA, San Francisco, Boston, Washington DC, Houston, Minneapolis, Seattle, Lake Worth FL, and starting this Friday the 20th in Denver.
Links to these locations are all on the See The Film page on our website www.Ballplayerpelotero.com

The film is also available RIGHT NOW on iTunes so you can watch it with one click. That link again is: http://itunes.apple.com/us/movie/bal...ro/id535668512

I know Twins fans will love this film as a chance to get to know Miguel Sano. More than that though it is an intimate look at a largely misunderstood system that is crucial to understanding baseball today. Please check it out, and if you like it share it with your friends. This is a small independent film and we really need grassroots support to succeed.

The next project for us is to continue following Miguel through the minors all the way until hopefully one day he walks out onto Target field. If that is a film you want to one day see, the best thing you can do is support this film now by downloading it or seeing it in theaters.

I'm trying to decide if I want to download it right now, or wait until after the TWins game! I've heard that there could be a follow up movie... I'm hoping to be in Beloit Aug 2-5. I was there in early June for a couple of games. Without having even seen more than the trailers so far, I'll promote it. I can't wait to see it and then really tout it!

It can probably wait until the end of the game. It's not going anywhere. Thanks for the support Seth and thanks for helping us get the word out!

I realize you're here primarily to pimp your movie, but want to say I think it's pretty awesome of you to stick around and answer questions.

Who would you say are the top 2 or 3 teams in terms of developing and signing players in the Dominican?

Wow, this looks amazing. Looking forward to seeing it in NYC tomorrow!

Where do you think Sano ultimately ends up position wise?

I am here to pimp my movie, can't hide that. But I'm a baseball fan and that's what this is all about. I just want other baseball fans to get a chance to see it and better understand the Dominican system.

The Rangers have been extremely agressive in past years and have a lot of top prospects coming out of the DR including Jurickson Profar who was signed the same year as Miguel and is now Keith Law's #1 prospect. The Rays do a lot with a little down there and are probably the best team at educating and protecting the kids they do sign. The Yanks are always a presence in Latin America but tend to prefer Venezuelans. Other than that it changes year to year who gets in big.

I think Miguel will end up sticking at third. The kid has the ability to do whatever he wants baseball wise. He is that naturally talented. Keep in mind he is still 19 and don't worry so much about those 31 errors. It is his bat that will move him forward though!

I convinced my GF that we should go see it! We were hoping it would come to Lagoon or Uptown in MPLS, but we'll make our way up to St. Anthony Main.

Glad to hear it. You do not have to be a baseball fan to like this movie. It is a very human story with universal themes. I hope you guys enjoy it! Definitely come back here and let me know what you think. I will continue to check in.

I just finished watching Pelotero, and it was terrific. It was great on several levels. It was fun to see what happens at these Dominican academies, but also at the "academies" of Astin and Moreno. I know it's controversial now among MLB types, but I dont' think anyone thinks that there aren't a lot of questionable things happening in the process. It is cool in that Twins fans can see a lot of the personality of Miguel Sano, the "maturity", his nickname, his family, etc. I watched it on iTunes and really enjoyed it. I was having some volume issues with my computer which had me struggling at times, but it's very well done. Nice work!

Glad to hear you liked it Seth!

I will be chatting all things Ballplayer: Pelotero and Miguel Sano with La Velle E. Neal on KFAN 100.3FM at 10:15. Tune in!

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Originally Posted by Scheherezade

I convinced my GF that we should go see it! We were hoping it would come to Lagoon or Uptown in MPLS, but we'll make our way up to St. Anthony Main.

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You poor thing, those theaters are practically on opposite sides of the planet (3.7 miles)

Also, the Uptown theater has been closed for renovations since January.

Thanks for coming by and talking about the movie. I saw the trailer for this a while ago and I'm really excited to see it.