Crawdads Alumni Report January 28
Birthdays:
Jose Luis Lopez ('00, '02, P) turns 37. Signed by the Pirates as a free agent, Lopez, a native of Corpus Christi, TX had an outstanding season on the mound for the Crawdads in 2000. During that season, Lopez was 3-4 with a save and a 2.35 ERA in 29 games. He started seven games for the team that season and threw two complete games, one for a shutout. He struck out 73 batters in 76.2 innings and allowed only three homers in that stretch. Lopez returned briefly in 2002, pitching in two games and allowing only three hits in six innings and striking out six. He remained in the Pirates sytem at Lynchburg in 2003, then made several independent league stops, the last coming at Coastal Bend (2006-2007) in the American Association. Lopez is currently the pitching coach at perennial powerhouse Calallen High School in Corpus Christi, which won the state 4A title in 2008 and was runner up in 2010 and 2011.
Magglio Ordonez ('93-'94, OF) turns 39. The native of Caracas, VZ was signed as a 17-year old by the White Sox and joined Hickory for two seasons. Ordonez struggled as a 19-year old in his first season, hitting only .216 with 14 doubles, four triples, and three homers in 273 ABs over 84 games. He returned to Hickory for a second full season and took off. In 132 games, Ordonez hit .294 (.431 slugging pct.) with 24 doubles, four triples and 11 homers to go with 69 RBI. More impressive was the drop in strikeouts from 66 in 1993 to 57 the next season. His 86 runs scored in 1994 is currently 9th in team history. Overall, he is 4th in triples, 6th in runs scored, 9th in hits, and 10th in games played, at bats and total bases. Ordonez was also impressive as the Crawdads centerfielder as he still holds the mark for most assists by an OF with 26 over two season, including 16 in 1994.
Ordonez worked his way up to the White Sox and debuted with Chicago on 8/29/97. Over the next 15 seasons with the White Sox (1997-2004) and Detroit Tigers (2005-2011) he became arguably the finest major league product to have come through Hickory. Ordonez made six American League all-star teams, including one start in left field in 2007. He won three Silver Slugger Awards (2000, 2002, 2007), had three 30+ home run seasons, seven 100+ RBI season, and four seasons of 100+ runs scored. His best season came in 2007 when he led the AL in batting average (.363) and doubles (54) to go with 137 RBI and scored 117 runs. He finished second in the MVP balloting that season. The highlight of his career came in the 2006 ALCS when his walk-off homer sent the Tigers to the World Series. Ordonez's career came to an end after he suffered an ankle injury during the 2011 ALCS against Texas.
Transactions:
Jonathan Roof ('10-'11, UT) signed a minor league contract with the Detroit Tigers.
Sunday, January 27
Birthdays:
Adam Forbes ('95, P) turns 38. The native of Sydney, Australia was signed by the White Sox in 1993 and joined Hickory for two games before his release. Forbes allowed four earned runs in 3.2 innings (9.82 ERA) on five hits and tw hit batters. He is currently the head coach at Cambridge Park High School in Sydney.
Kirk Irvine ('97, P) turns 38. Selected by the White Sox in the 46th round of the 1996 draft out of Cal-State Fullertron, Irvine pitched mostly out of the bullpen with Hickory. In 29 games, five starts, Irvine was 3-3 with a 3.39 ERA. He struck out 51 and walked 18 over 63.2 innings, allowing 24 earned runs and 80 hits. He pitched at Mission Viejo in the now defunct Western League (Independent) in 1998.
Venezuelan Winter League:
Romulo Sanchez ('05-'06, P) struck out one during a scoreless 7th inning, but his team, the Lara Cardinales, lost to Magallanes 6-5 in game four of the league's championship series. The two teams are tied in their best-of-seven series at two games apiece.
Saturday, January 26
Birthdays:
Jeff Branson ('05-'06, Manager) turns 46. A member of the USA Gold Medal winning team in the 1988 Seoul Olympics, and former major leaguer, the Silas, AL native has been in the Pirates organizaion since 2003. In his two seasons with the Crawdads, Branson led the team to a 121-150 record. He went on to manage the Pirates High A- team at Lynchburg in 2007-2008 before spending the last four seasons as the hitting coach at AAA- Indianapolis. He was recently named the assistant hitting coach for Pittsburgh.
Bill Ballou ('95, Pitching Coach) turns 73. A native of Oceanside, NY, Ballou spent his lone season in Hickory on the staff of manager Mike Rojas. He then spent 11 years as a pitching coach in the Houston Astros organization, retiring after the 2007 season at Greeneville (Rookie).
Mike Keirstead ('03, OF) turns 32. Signed by the Pirates after his release from the Dodgers, Keirstead, a native of New Brunswick, Canada, pitched in 13 games for the Crawdads, starting 12 of them. He went 0-5 with a 6.75 ERA, as he allowed 46 ERs and 87 hits in 61.1 innings of work, with 38 Ks and 32 walks. Keirstead did not pitch past his lone season in Hickory.
Josh Sharpless ('04, P) turns 32. Selected by the Pirates in the 24th round in 2003 out of Allegheny College, Sharpless was a mainstay out of the bullpen during the Crawdads SAL championship season. In 44 appearances, Sharpless was 6-2 with 5 saves and a 3.03 ERA. The righthander struck out 109 batters in 74.1 innings, giving him the highest K-per-9 inning ratio (13.20) in team history (min. of 50 innings). Sharpless quickly worked his way up to the Pirates, making his debut August 1, 2006. He spent parts of two seasons with the Bucs, before moving on to the Giants system in 2008 (AA- Connecticut) and finally to York (Atlantic League- independent) in 2009. He is currently spending his second season as a volunteer assistant coach at LaRoche College (PA).
Adam Simon ('08, P) turns 29. Selected by the Pirates in the 24th round in 2006 out of San Diego St., Simon pitched in 26 for the Crawdads two seasons later. He went 0-2 with two saves and a 6.00 ERA. In 42 innings, Simon struck out 35, walked 12 and allowed 28 earned runs and 54 hits. He did not pitch after his release by the Pirates following the season.
Transactions:
Justin Lord ('04, P) was named the pitching coach at Delmarva (Low A- Baltimore). Blaine Beatty ('00, pitching coach) was named the pitching coach at Bowie (AA- Baltimore)
Puerto Rico Winter League:
Carlos Rivera ('99, 1B) singled in a run, walked, and scored a run to help Caguas blast Mayaguez 13-3 in the clinching game of the league's championship series. Caguas took the series four games to two.
Venezuelan Winter League:
Romulo Sanchez ('05-'06, P) retired the only batter he faced for Lara in its 4-2 over Magallanes. The Cardinales now lead the best-of-seven series two games to one.
Friday, January 25
Birthdays:
Jeff Martin ('99, P) turns 39. Acquired by the Pirates in a 1996 with Kansas City, the product of Bishop Gorman High School (Las Vegas, NV) joined the Crawdads for a brief stint in 1999. In 13 games out of the bullpen spanning 24 innings, Martin was 0-2 with a 1.88 ERA. He allowed 19 hits, struck out 23 and walked 8. He stayed in the Pirates system one more season at Lynchburg (High A) and Altoona (AA) and last pitched in the Reds system at Stockton in 2002.
Eddie Prasch ('06-'07, 3B) turns 27. A 3rd round pick by the Pirates in 2004 out of Milton High (Alpharetta, GA), Prasch was the starting third basemen both of his seasons in Hickory, holding the second spot in most fielding categories in club history. After a rough 2006 season in the field (31 errors in 105 games), Prasch made only 13 errors and turned 22 double plays in 104 games at third in 2007. His .954 fielding pct. in 2007 is second in club history for a season. At the plate, Prasch hit .236 with 13 HRs and 89 RBI in his two seasons. Overall, he is 6th in team history with 225 strikeouts and being hit by a pitch with 18. Prasch worked his way up to AA- Altoona in 2009, then spent as season at Wilmington (High A- Kansas City) in 2010.
Gregg Ritchie ('98, hitting coach) turns 49. Ritchie was on the staff of Mark Haley's in 1998, the last season of the White Sox's affiliation with Hickory. He moved up the White Sox's organizational chain, making it to AAA- Charlotte in 2003-2004. Ritchie served as the minor league hitting coordinator for Pittsburgh 2006-2010 before his tenure as the Pirates hitting coach the last two seasons. A member of the George Washington Univ. athletic hall of fame, Ritchie recently returned to his alma mater as the head coach of the baseball program.
Transactions:
Nyjer Morgan ('04, OF) signed with the Yokohama Bay Stars in Japan. He spent the past two seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Steve Watson ('99, Pitching Coach) was named the pitching coach at SS A- Hudson Valley (Tampa Bay). Wuarnner Rincones ('94, IF) returns to the Rays Gulf Coast League team for a second season as its hitting coach.
Venezuelan Winter League:
Romulo Sanchez ('05-'06, P) tossed 1.2 scoreless innings of relief for Lara in its 3-0 win over Magallanes in the best-of-seven league championship series. The two teams are squared at one game apiece.
Thursday, January 24
Birthday:
Timmy Rodriguez ('09, OF) turns 26. A native of Centennial, OR, Rodriguez was drafted by the Rangers in the 37th round in 2005 out of Mt. Hood Community College (OR). He played a part-time role is his only season in Hickory, hitting .217 with two HRs and 11 RBI in 35 games. A fan favorite, Rodriguez was best known for his back flips as he ran onto the field for Sunday games. He went up to High A- Bakersfield, then onto stops at Yuma and Victoria in the now defunct Golden League in 2010.
Transaction:
Nyjer Morgan ('04, OF) signed to play in Japan with the Yokohama Bay Stars. He spent the last two seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Puerto Rican Winter League:
Carlos Rivera ('99) walked and scored in the third, then hit a two-run double in the fourth to lead Caguas to a 4-2 win over Mayaguez in game five of their best-of-seven series. Caguas now leads the championship series three games to two.
Wednesday, January 23
Birthdays:
Ricky Bennett ('93, P) turns 43. Signed by the White Sox as a non-drafted free agent out of Oklahoma, Bennett made 41 appearances - 4 starts - on the mound for Hickory. Bennett went 8-7 with six saves and a 3.29 ERA> He led the team in wins (8), innings pitched (112), strikeouts (98) and his walk per 9 inning ratio of 1.85 is 10th in club history. Bennett pitched one more season in at South Bend (Low A- Chicago WS) and with independent league teams at Erie and Chillicothe. After his playing days, Bennett spent time in the front office at Detroit before going to Houston, where he was the Director of Player Development (2005-2010) and the Director of Scouting (2011-2012). He was recently hired as a pro scout by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Jonathan Roof ('10-'11, UT) turns 24. Drafted by the Rangers in 2010 the 8th round out of Michigan St., the Paduch, KY native joined the Crawdads soon after his selection. Roof played at three different infield positions, as well as the outfield. In 117 games for the Crawdads over parts of two seasons, Roof hit .269 with 19 doubles, two homers and 49 RBI. He joined the Padres organization last season, playing at Eugene (SS A), Lake Elsinore (High A) and Tucson (AAA).
Braden Tullis ('10-'11, P) turns 23. The Boise, ID native was drafted by Texas in the 8th round in 2009 out of Skagit Valley College (WA). Most of his time in Hickory was during the 2010 season, when he made 32 appearances, including 12 starts, going 6-3 with three saves and a 4.21 ERA. He pitched in four games out of the bullpen the next season before his release by the Rangers. Tullis had a knack for the comebacker that was turned into double plays, turning four, which is a club record for a pitcher. He pitched the rest of 2011 at Florence (Independent- Frontier League), then at Abilene (North American League) last season.
Transaction:
Juan Oviedo ('02-'04) signed a minor league contract with the Tampa Bay Rays.
Tuesday, January 22
Birthdays:
David Bingham ('94, OF) turns 42. Signed by the White Sox after his release by the Braves, the Walla Walla, WA native played joined the Crawdads for his only season with the White Sox system. In 45 games, Bingham hit .258 with two homers, 29 RBI, and scored 25 runs. He went on to make stops with independent league teams at Tri-City (Western), Moose Jaw (Prairie) and West Manitoba. He spent one season as an assistant coach with his alma mater at Lewis-Clark St in 2003. (ID).
Brian Dayett ('09, hitting coach) turns 56. The New London, CT native has been in the Rangers system since 2005, joining the Crawdads as part of Hector Ortiz's staff in 2009. He spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Spokane (SS A) and will spend his second season this year as a special assignment rover for the Rangers.
David Fitzpatrick ('93, P) turns 40. Received by the White Sox in a trade with the Dodgers, the Kingsport, TN native appeared in only six games with the Crawdads in their inaugural season. Fitzpatrick went 0-1 with a save and a 7.50 ERA. In his 12 innings of work, he struck out 13 hitters, but gave up 10 earned runs, including two homers. He pitched one more season with the White Sox affiliate at South Bend.
Andrew Walker ('09, C) turns 27. Drafted in the 5th round in 2007 out of TCU, Walker joined the Crawdads as the starting catcher until injuries shortened his season in the second half. In 56 games, Walker hit .256 with seven homers and 29 RBI. He played in the Pirates system at Low A- West Virginia in 2009 and at High A- Bradenton in 2010.
Brent Wilhelm ('95, 3B) turns 40. He joined the Crawdads after being picked in the 28th round by the White Sox out of Kansas. In 67 games, Wilhelm hit .225 with nine doubles, two triples, two homers and 24 RBI. He stayed in the White Sox system two more seasons, last playing for Winston-Salem in 1997. Wilhelm is currently an assistant coach at Harrisonville High School in MO.
Transcations:
Ronny Paulino ('00)signed a minor league contract with the Seattle Mariners.
Dominican Winter League:
Johan Yan ('10) served up three hits, but allowed none to score in 2.2 innings. However, Aguilas Cibaenas lost to Escogido 3-2 and fell into a 4-0 deficit in their best-of-nine championship series.
Venezuelan Winter League:
Jose Castillo ('00) had a pair of singles, two RBI, and scored a run to lead Caribes to a 6-3 win over Zulia.