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Date: Dec 22, 2011

Two American Association Managers Join AWL

(Yuma, AZ – December 22, 2011) The Arizona Winter League, the premier instructional winter league for aspiring professional baseball players, announced today that two managers from the American Association will manage during the Arizona Winter League. John Harris, manager of the Amarillo Sox, is a former Major League first baseman and left fielder who played for the California Angels in the late 1970s and early 80s. Jorge Alvarez, manager of the El Paso Diablos, is a 22 year veteran of the minor and independent leagues who will bring a wealth of knowledge to the AWL. So far, managers from the North American League, the Pecos League, the Frontier League, and now the American Association will be managing teams and signing players to 2012 professional contracts. In addition, international managers and scouts as well as MLB scouts will be on hand at AWL games to procure players for their respective organizations.

John Harris was drafted by the California Angels in 1976 and reached the Major Leagues in 1979 after just two seasons in the minor leagues. In 56 games with the Angels between 1979 and 1981, Harris hit .258 with 5 homeruns and 16 RBI as a first baseman and left fielder. Following his playing career, Harris became a baseball coach at Texas Tech University. He was named manager of the Sox before their inaugural 2011 season, and has managed and been a hitting coach for several independent teams during the course of his coaching career.

Jorge Alvarez played 22 seasons in the minor and independent leagues before becoming manager of the El Paso Diablos last season in 2011. Originally from the Dominican Republic, Alvarez began his playing career in 1988 with the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. He was very productive over the course of 7 minor league seasons with the Dodgers and Florida Marlins before entering the independent leagues. In 2006, he joined El Paso as a player and led the team to a championship in 2007, being named the American Association’s Player of the Year. Now, he brings the experience of 1,998 regular season games played with him to the AWL as he looks to sign players for his 2012 Diablos roster.

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