Outfielder Ron Perodin said he has found himself in a brighter situation with the Tucson Toros than when he played for the Yuma Scorpions earlier this summer.
Perodin said he and other Scorpions players were not paid when they played for the Golden Baseball League's Yuma team, leading to a depressing atmosphere.
"It was just miserable for me," Perodin said before Friday's 26-0 victory over Tijuana at Hi Corbett Field. Perodin went 1 for 5 with an RBI and three runs.
"I didn't want to come to the field some days, to tell you the truth, and I never felt that way in my whole career. Then I came here and got over it.
"Just the atmosphere … it was just too much stuff to worry about," he said about conditions in Yuma.
Scorpions players were not paid and claimed they had not received meal money, though Golden Gloves Professional Baseball, the company handling baseball operations for the team, denied the claim, according to the Yuma Sun. Last month, the GBL dissolved its affiliation agreement with the U.S. subsidiary of Golden Gloves Professional Baseball because it did not meet its financial obligations to the team, business partners, vendors and service companies in the Yuma area.
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After the Scorpions released Perodin in late June, the left-handed batter and right fielder joined the Toros within a few days. Perodin knew Toros hitting coach Stan Cliburn from when they both were in the Minnesota Twins organization. Perodin also played with starting pitcher James Garcia in college and with starting pitcher Vince Davis in the Can-Am league.
"I can just come here and worry about the game," Perodin said. "Don't have to worry about extra stuff going on.
"It was kinda easy to fit in. They have a bunch of good guys."
Perodin played four seasons in the Twins organization, reaching High-A in 2004-05, and met Cliburn, who was a minor-league manager in the system, during spring training. Perodin ran into Cliburn early this season when the Toros were playing in Yuma.
"We needed a legitimate leadoff hitter, and he made a major impact at the time he joined us," Cliburn said.
Perodin, who was batting .270 before Friday's game, missed half of last season in the Can-Am league with torn meniscus in a knee but said he is fine now. He started the year with the Northern League's Rockford team in spring training before he was released and joined Yuma - and eventually Tucson.
"It's a better situation here, happier here," Perodin said.
Inside pitch
• Tucson's John Bannister struck out seven in a complete-game shutout.
• Ryan Priddy had five RBIs in Friday's win.
• The Toros' previous single-game scoring record in the GBL was 20 runs against Yuma on July 1.
• Tijuana is 9-64, and its roster has changed drastically this season.
"I tip my cap to (Tijuana manager) Alex Arias and Rusty Meacham, the pitching coach," Toros manager Tim Johnson said. "They're big-league, class guys. They got the toughest job in all of baseball."
today
• What: Tijuana at Toros
• Where: Hi Corbett Field
• When: 7 p.m.
• TV: 1450-AM
