Mike Britt Back on The Front Range
by Francis Ferry, NLN baseball beat writer
December 20, 2033: Aurora, Colorado - It may well be that tequila is the drink of choice down on the Mexi-Cali border, but at San Luis Rio Colorado, they’ll be drinking some ‘Big Whiskey’ in the Rapidos Blancos locker room.
Today the Borealis introduced Aurora’s all-time homerun leader as the new hitting coach for their Class A club in the NAFTA.
After 1,910 games with Aurora, for whom he hit 363 career homers, Mike Britt took a bit of a detour – playing 467 games for primarily Fargo (266), Arlington (112) and Amsterdam (89) – on his way to a career total of 435 – 4th all-time in PEBA history. He leads all 3B in games, AB, runs, homers, RBI, and walks – though one suspects that Marcos Sanchez and Alejandro Lujan may steal a little of that limelight before all is said and done.
It is two of those qualities – patience and power, that Aurora brass are hoping that ‘Big Whiskey’ will bring to the table as he works with the young hitters in the organization. Long a key leader for the Borealis as a member of all four of Aurora’s titles over the past decade-and-a-half, the 5-time All-Star, Royal Raker and postseason MVP, is extremely knowledgable about the ins-and-outs of hitting and every single teammate, coach and scout in the Aurora system who have spent time with Britt say he should be an excellent teacher of the skills and techniques that have made him a future-Hall of Famer.
“We are thrilled to have Mike join the team,” Aurora GM Will Topham said “his dedication to his craft and what he means to the fan base – in all of our minor league venues, is tremendous.” Britt joins his fellow teammate, the Hall of Fame pitcher, Michel Provost, who is currently managing at SLRC. Aurora fans all around envision a day when ‘Train Arollin’’ and ‘Big Whiskey’ are running the show on The Front Range.
“My time was short – at A ball, when I was with the Blancos, back in 2014,” started Britt, who played in 42 games back in 2015, where he hit 15 HR – hitting .325 with a 1.091 OPS “but it was a good time, and certainly was a launching pad for my future success. I have never forgotten the path I took.”
