2010 HUNTSVILLE STARS
|
MANAGER |
MIKE GUERRERO |
|
PITCHING COACH |
JOHN CURTIS |
|
HITTING COACH |
AL LeBOEUF |
2010 Southern League Managers/Coaches
| BIRMINGHAM |
EVER MAGALLANES |
J.R. Perdew/Andy Tomberlin |
| CAROLINA |
DAVID BELL |
Ryan Jackson/Tom Brown |
| CHATTANOOGA |
CARLOS SUBERO |
John Valentin/Danny Darwin |
| JACKSONVILLE |
TIM LEIPER |
Corey Hart/John Duffy |
| MISSISSIPPI |
PHILLIP WELLMAN |
Garey Ingram/Marty Reed |
| MOBILE |
RICO BROGNA |
Turner Ward/Dan Carlson |
| MONTGOMERY |
BILLY GARDNER, JR. |
Ozzie Timmons/Bill Moloney |
| TENNESSEE |
BILL DANCY |
Tom Beyers/Dennis Lewallyn |
| WEST TENNESSEE |
TIM LAKER |
Andy Fox/Lance Painter |
Monday,
March 8....... Alexandre Periard is optioned
to Huntsville today. Also the Brewers have reassigned #1 picks Eric Arnett
and Kyle Heckathorn to minor league camps. Neither made their way into a
Cactus League game........ In a game televised on the MLB Network, the
Brewers beat the Mariners, 6-2........ Prince
Fielder hit a 2-run opposite-field double and
Corey Hart homered in his second straight game.
Manny Parra pitched three scoreless innings
and got the win. Juan Sandoval pitched a
third of an inning. Eleizer Alfonzo struck
out in one at-bat for the Mariners.
March
is here at last. One of my favorite months for one reason, and it's not
just the NCAA Tournament. March means baseball is not just around the
corner -- it's here. And it's happening in Florida and Arizona.
And relevant to this web site, it means
another season of Stars baseball is around the corner. Exhibition games
actually start Friday, March 19, and I'll be expecting some news from
Maryvale from two sources --
www.brewerfan.net and Chad Anderson, the Stars' new radio voice,
starting March 10. Chad has his own web site and blog page at
www.chadandersonweb.com. In a
conversation I had with Chad a week ago at Appleby's, he said he'll be in
Maryvale and will furnish reports back to GM Buck Rogers, who will relay
them back via his newsletter, and very likely on his web page....... Chad
also has his own twitter account.
A fan asked Buck who will be on the team this
year. Of course, it's still too early to know. Kevin
Melillo was added last year just a day before the Stars arrived in
Huntsville, so anything can happen. But it's fun to conject, and here is
my two cents, and be aware, this is just my educated opinion.
I expect Jonathan Lucroy
to start the season with Nashville. Lucroy (9, 66, .267), who last year
tied Mickey Lopez's record for the club's
longest hitting streak at 22 games, has moved ahead of
Angel Salome on the Brewers' depth chart.
Cameron Garfield, Milwaukee's #2 pick last year, is still at least two or
more years away, so I think we may see Salome, who hit .286, but needs
more defensive work and was injured for part of the season, behind the
plate. If Salome joins Lucroy at Nashville, our #1 catcher will be George
Kottaras, who played for Mobile in 2005-06. Who backs
who up is anybody's guess, but having Salome and Kottaras is not
far-fetched......... At 1st base, let's say Chris
Errecart, who spent most of the year at Brevard County, after
hitting just .149 in 18 games for the Stars at the start of the season.
Some may remember his one big contribution to the first half title -- a
game-winning 2-out, 2-run single that beat the Mississippi Braves, 4-3, in
the 9th inning on April 16th. Steffan Wilson,
who hit a game-winning 3-run home run in his Stars debut to beat the
Smokies in the opening game of the Northern Division playoffs, is also a
strong possibility and both may end up on the final roster. Wilson can
also play 3rd base........ Brett Lawrie made
a quick jump from the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers to Huntsville in
mid-August, and hit .269 in 13 games to mark his pro debut. Will he start
the season in Huntsville or get further pro seasoning in Brevard? I think
it depends on what kind of spring he and Eric Farris have. Farris stole
70 bases for Brevard County last year (3rd in the minors), while
getting caught just 6 times! Both Lawrie and Farris have a chance
to make the team, but I think that Farris will wind up being our 2nd
baseman and leadoff hitter. He's also an excellent bunter who led the
minors with 26 sacrifices last year. That could make him a threat to break
Angel Escobar's 21-year old record........
There's little doubt Yohannis Perez will be
back at shortstop. There is little depth in the Brewer organization beyond
Alcides Escobar, who takes over at short in
Milwaukee. Perez comes next, then Brent Brewer who hit just .222 in his
2nd season at Brevard. Josh Prince, who led the Pioneer League in stolen
bases last year, is two or three years behind. Here is a position where we
could see a free agent signing....... Taylor Green (5, 43, .258), the
Brewers' #20 minor league prospect, will be back at 3rd base for the
Stars.
The Stars will, I'm sure, carry four
outfielders. I see returnees Drew Anderson,
the Stars' 8th leading hitter of all-time with a .303 average, and pretty
much a fringe player in the organization now,
Lorenzo Cain, who must come back from a bad left knee injury last
year, but still the Brewers' #8 prospect, and newcomers Caleb Gindl and
Logan Schafer....... Well, Schafer's not
really a newcomer. He played in seven games for the Stars last year, but
fans got to see him just once at home -- a June 11 game vs. Jacksonville
where he walked, was hit by a pitch, lined out and grounded out before he
was sent back to the Manatees. But Gindl, the Brewers' #17 prospect, who
hit .277 in a full year at Brevard will be ready for Huntsville, and he'll
be expected to provide the power that was missing on last year's team.
Gindl hit 17 HRs and will give us 20-30 doubles. (He hit 38 for West
Virginia in 2008). He's a good baserunner and will give the Stars
adequate defense in left field........ At some point during the season, I
think we'll see Kentrail Davis, a 1st round supplemental draft pick by the
Brewers last year, and #6 prospect. Davis, however, has no pro experience.
Pitching is a hard position to forecast, but I
could pick among eight starters who will be in the rotation. The most
likely: David Welch, who threw a no-hitter
for the Stars in 2008, has to rebound from an 8-8, 4.03 season. There's
still a chance he could make it in Nashville, but if he doesn't, he will
be poised to join a list of seven Stars pitchers who have won 20 games for
the franchise. Donovan Hand finished the year
with 8 wins as well, and a fine 3.56 ERA before going on the DL, August
11, but he could also wind up on Nashville's roster at the start of the
season. I think one or both will wind up in the rotation to provide some
veteran help for Amaury Rivas, a 13-game winner for Brevard County last
year, Evan Anundsen, who won 10 games, pitched a no-hitter, and finished
3rd among Florida State League ERA leaders, and Mark Rogers, the Brewers'
#1 draft pick in 2004. After coming off multiple shoulder injuries, Rogers
in 22 pitch-limited starts, came through with a 1.67 ERA and held FSL
hitters to a .201 average. Wily Peralta, the Brewers' #14 prospect, will
see some innings in Huntsville next year. Alexandre
Periard, too, although they would be doing him a favor by starting
him at Brevard. Jeremy Jeffress started the
2009 season as the Stars' #1 man in the rotation, but he has more issues
than Santa has toys and is in danger of wasting his talent on one more
reefer. And Cody Scarpetta skipped Brevard to
make his debut with the Stars on the last day of the regular season, and
while he threw 68% of his 69 pitches for strikes against Jacksonville in a
no-decision loss, I think he'll start the season at Brevard....... Don't
know if Brae Wright will be ready, but he was
6-10 with a 3.74 ERA in 27 starts in 2008.
The bullpen is harder to figure out, but I
believe we'll see Zach Braddock (2-1, 2.87)
again. Braddock is your typical lefty -- off the wall (he's entertained
teammates with his spot-on Harry Caray imitation) and fragile. He's had
repeated elbow and shoulder issues, but was a brilliant set-up man for
Rob Wooten. 10 of his 11 saves last year came
in July and August. John Axford, who pitched
in four levels of the Brewer organization last year, including four games
for the Stars, is a possibility. Axford is ranked 23rd among the Brewers'
prospects according to Baseball America..... Bobby
Bramhall is doing well after undergoing Tommy John surgery in
November. Bramhall will miss the 2010 season. He finished 2009 with a 6-7
record and 5.29 ERA. Omar Aguilar, who saved
8 games for Brevard last year, will probably be back. If there are two
newcomers who seem more likely than others, it will be Brandon Rapoza, who
had a 2.13 ERA in 41 appearances for Brevard and Rafael Lluberes, who had
a 3.51 ERA in 43 appearances.
Gone are Mark Holliman
and Josh Wahpepah, who were released,
Freddy Parejo, who signed a free agent deal
with the Astros, Kevin Melillo, who signed
with the Pirates, and Wes Littleton, who
signed with Seattle. Wahpepah will pitch independent ball this year for
the Kansas City T-Bones of the Northern League.
The season starts on the road April 8 at
Chattanooga and at home April 14 vs. Jacksonville.
The Brewers have 56 players in camp in
Maryvale -- the latest being Steffan Wilson.........
Other Stars also in camp in Maryvale: Mike Jones,
Brett Lawrie, Chris Errecart, Zealous Wheeler, Juan Sandoval, and
Taylor Green...... The first Cactus League
showdown between the Brewers and the Cincinnati Reds was rained out
Sunday. Weather permitting, they'll be back in action, Monday morning
before playing Seattle at 1 pm....... Eric Arnett, the Brewers' #1 draft
pick last year, is scheduled to take the mound, along with
John Axford, Zach Braddock, Tim Dillard,
former Met Scott Schoeneweis, and Chris Smith.......
Mark Rogers appeared in a Brewers uniform for the first time Friday
and pitched two scoreless innings against the A's, throwing 21
pitches......... Asked for his assessment of Braddock, Brewer manager Ken
Macha had one word: "overpowering".
The Brewers are 1-3 so far in Arizona......
Their only win came Saturday in a split-squad 12-1 win, Saturday, over the
Giants. Chris Errecart homered, as did
Alcides Escobar, who delivered a 3-run blast.
The other squad lost to Colorado, 8-6. Alexandre
Periard was socked for 3 runs on 6 hits in 2 innings.