Dane Sardinha hopes to earn way to majors
By Stacy Kaneshiro
Advertiser Staff Writer
When Hawai'i's Dane Sardinha gets the call to the big leagues, he doesn't want to "back in" to the promotion.
The 1997 Kamehameha Schools graduate is in the Cincinnati Reds training camp in Sarasota, Fla.
After his junior year at Pepperdine, he was picked in the second round (46th overall) of the 2000 first-year player draft by the Reds, who signed him to a major league contract in lieu of a bonus. That automatically placed him on the 40-man roster and started his options clock.
This season is his third and final option year, meaning he can be sent between the minors and the majors any number of times. But next year, he must be on the 25-man roster, or risk getting lost to another team through irrevocable waivers.
"It kind of puts the pressure on knowing I have to be up next year," said Sardinha before he left here several weeks ago. "You want to earn that call-up, earn that spot on the team. You don't want to be there because it's in your contract. You want to earn it."
The Reds return their three catchers from last year in Jason LaRue (turns 29 March 19), Corky Miller (28 on March 18) and Kelly Stinnett (33). So Sardinha, who turns 23 on April 8, said it is likely he will return to to Double-A Chattanooga (Tenn.) or advance to Triple-A Louisville (Ky.).
Sardinha hit .235 at Single-A Mudville (Stockton, Calif.) in 2001 and .206 at Chattanooga last season. His walks-to-strikeouts ratio was 12 to 97 at Mudville and 14 to 114 at Chattanooga. His on-base percentages were .236 and .206, respectively. But he has shown signs of power. He had 24 doubles and nine home runs in Single-A and 20 doubles and four home runs in Double-A.
"I don't think it will hurt to play another year in Double-A or have a year in Triple-A," he said. "The goal is to get there (big leagues) at halfway or at the end of the season."
The Scouting Notebook, published by The Sporting News, describes Sardinha as "major league-caliber as a catch-and-throw guy right now." But his strike zone judgment, as evident by his walks-to-strikeouts ratios, are a concern. And he knows it.
"I have to swing at better pitches, even out my strikeouts to walk ratio," he said.
He was invited to the Arizona Fall League after last season. He showed marked improvement, batting .311 with eight doubles, four home runs and 24 RBI in 28 games for the Eastern Division champion Scottsdale Scorpions. His on-base percentage was a respectable .348. He walked five times to 22 strikeouts.
"It helped my confidence," Sardinha said of the AFL experience. "Just overall being comfortable and hitting from a comfortable stance. I kind of went back to (how I hit in) high school, tinkered with small things and it worked out all right."
This is Sardinha's third big league camp, so a little of the luster has worn off since his first. But it was a memorable one, he recalls.
"My first was pretty exciting," he said. "I was just in awe when I walked in. There was (Ken) Griffey and there was (Barry) Larkin. But later, you get used to it."
But knowing that he could be playing alongside them one day is motivation for Sardinha.
"It kind of makes you work hard to get where they're at," he said. "It's humbling."
