Sal Tepedino

Salvatore "Sal" Tepedino is a third baseman for the Fresno Marauders. One of the most iconic players in team history, he has managed to stay a legend in the organization despite never leading the team in home runs, batting average, stolen bases or runs batted in.

Early Life and Amateur Career
Sal was born to two Italian immigrants in Brooklyn, New York. Sal's paternal grandfather served for Italy during World War II and was imprisoned for life due to war crimes. His mother lived in depression after that and when Sal was 6 years old, committed suicide. Raised by his neighbors, Sal's father lived a hard life up until the age of 20, when married Sal's mother and moved to America.

Sal was born in 1971 and immediately wanted to fit in with other kids. Overweight and speaking little english, Sal was picked on in school. But, one thing redeemed him. From a young age, it was apparent that Sal could hit a baseball. Leading his Junior High and High School teams to championships, Sal was recruited to Arizona State University and was one of their best sluggers. Winning a Golden Spikes Award, Sal was drafted by the Fresno Marauders in the first round of the 1993 DMBL Draft.

Minor Leagues
Despite weighing 250 pounds when he entered a professional locker room for the first time, Sal managed to be one of the best third basemen in the minor leagues. Rising through the ranks quickly, it became obvious that Sal could hit home runs. His managers did not care that he was slow and was a lackluster fielder because he would easily be the best hitter on his team. The Marauders' top prospect, he was promoted to the team in July of 1995 and was ready to make an instant impact.

Dalton Memorial League
When Sal arrived in Fresno, his hot bat continued into the show. Homering in his second at-bat, Sal was thrown into the fire and forced to be "the guy" in Fresno. Finishing his first year strong, he finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting and was ready to take the next step and be the best hitter in baseball.

Unfortunately, he never reached his potential. Over the next 20 years, he established a reputation of consistenly being an All-Star, but never the best player on his team for various reasons. He has managed to stay a legend in the organization despite never leading the team in home runs, batting average, stolen bases or runs batted in. It has been that way since the 1996 season and has been criticized each and every year for not improving to become a team leader in a major category.

Strengths and Weaknesses
Sal's strengths are as follows Sal's weaknesses are as follows
 * Skilled power hitter
 * Leader in the clubhouse
 * Warm and loving personality
 * Slow baserunner
 * Sub-par defender
 * Never able to be "the guy" in Fresno

Trivia

 * The photo of Sal is from "The Shawshank Redemption"