Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, April 2, 1995                   TAG: 9504050013
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B-11   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: MARK BULLOCK
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

SALEM IS RIGHT PLACE FOR ROCKIES

It's a long way - literally and figuratively - from Class A baseball in Salem, Va., to the major leagues and Denver.

But it all makes perfect sense to the Colorado Rockies, who completed a piece of their minor-league puzzle by placing a team in the Carolina League this season.

With affiliates in Asheville, N.C., and New Haven, Conn., the addition of Salem gives Colorado a pipeline to the majors that offers a convenient stop each step of the way.

The Rockies introduced the Asheville Tourists last season as a member of the Class A South Atlantic League. It only made sense to pursue Salem when that franchise was wooing potential suitors, said Rockies farm director Dick Balderson.

``I really like that area of the country,'' said Balderson, a Virginia native who pitched at the University of Richmond in 1970. ``When Salem and [parent club] Pittsburgh divorced after last season, we saw an opportune time to move into that market.''

Besides the obvious attraction of a new stadium, Salem offered the Rockies a natural fit with its teams in Asheville and New Haven, which competes in the Class AA Eastern League.

``With Salem's geographic location to our other clubs, we can get players between those clubs in a matter of hours instead of days,'' Balderson said.

The team that will be playing in Salem replaces the Central Valley Rockies, who competed in the Class A California League last season.

Personnel moves involving Asheville, Central Valley and New Haven were a logistical nightmare, Balderson said. When the team's agreement in Visalia, Calif., expired after the 1994 season, the Rockies began a search that led them to Salem.

As the season progresses and players are promoted, the Avalanche will get most of its players from Asheville. Those who move up from Salem will go to New Haven, then on to the Class AAA Colorado Springs Sky Sox and, finally, to the Rockies.