PLAYERS EARN PROMOTIONS AND A YOUNG UMPIRE GETS HIS CHASCE

Several former Independent players have been given nice promotions in recent days in the affiliated minor leagues.  These include:

–RHP Lance Day, who started his pro career at Grand Prairie, TX (American Association), from Class A to AAA by Houston.

–RHP Shaun Ellis (New Jersey, Can-Am League; El Paso, TX, American Association; Gateway, Frontier League), who was signed before spring training, from A to AA by Cincinnati.

–C Jeff Howell (Lincoln, NE, American Association) from A to AAA by Washington.

–RHP Chris Martin, another who started in the Indy game at Grand Prairie, from AA to AAA by Boston.

–LHP David Quinowski (Lincoln and Gary, IN, American Association; Somerset, NJ, Atlantic League) from A to AA by Baltimore.

–INF Vance Albitz (Lincoln) from AA to AAA by St. Louis.

NEW OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUNG UMPIRE

Anthony Sheets is a 22-year-old who has been umpiring, mostly at the high school level, for six years. He went to Shreveport, LA to audition for professional leagues this winter, The Portsmouth (VA) Daily Times reported recently, and the American Association signed him.

“Watching the game of baseball is fun but being in the game of baseball is a whole different level,” the Wheelersburg High School graduate told the newspaper. “I hope that this can be a career path that I can spend 30 years in but only God knows where this leads me.”

 

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TIGERS RELEASE JOHN LINDSEY; GREG SMITH, PEDRO GUERRERO HAVE NEW OPPORTUNITIES

 

The end may have come–at least in the affiliated ranks–for John Lindsey, one of the prominent players to come out of the Can-Am League.

The powerful right-handed hitter now 36 was one of a few intriguing former Independent Baseball players released in recent days. Lindsey was let go in his second season with Detroit’s top farm club in Toledo at a time when he was hitting only .200 (16-for-80, 22 games) although he had four home runs (seven RBI).

Lindsey, who played for the New Jersey Jackals (Little Falls), only reached the major leagues once. He got into 11 games for the Los Angeles Dodgers late in 2010, getting one hit in 12 at-bats.

OTHER RELEASES, SIGNINGS

One surprising release was that of Juan Cedeno (Rio Grande Valley, North American League) from the New York Yankees’ top farm club in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, PA. Not only is he a southpaw, but he was an invitee to the major league spring training camp and he allowed only one earned run in 11 innings spread over 10 appearances in the regular season. He was the SWB team’s All-Star Game representative last season.

The Chicago White Sox cut outfielder Billy Rice from their Class A farm club in Winston-Salem, NC. He formerly played for Camden, NJ of the Atlantic League.

Southpaw Greg Smith, who made six starts for Grand Prairie, TX (American Association) in 2011, one year after spending time with the Colorado Rockies, has a new affiliated opportunity. Philadelphia signed the 29-year-old and assigned him to Double-A Reading, PA.

PEDRO GUERRERO TO MANAGE

Pedro Guerrero had 15 years in the major leagues between St. Louis and the Dodgers and was co-MVP of the 1981 World Series, but he seemed overjoyed when he was announced as manager of the Vallejo (CA) Admirals of the newly-formed Pacific Association (California, Hawaii, Japan) this week. “When (General Manager) Joe (Fontana) called, I was excited; I am still excited,” the 56-year-old Guerrero told The Vallejo Times-Herald. Longtime Dodgers teammate Mike Marshall, the commissioner of the new league, had offered Guerrero’s name among a list of possible managerial candidates.

 

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CATCHING UP WITH KAZMIR, WILLIAMS, RECENT RELEASED PLAYERS AND A KENTUCKY DERBY OFFER

 

How great it had to feel to Scott Kazmir to get his first major league victory since 2010–number 67 in his career–and he did it in style Saturday, limiting Minnesota to two runs and five hits while striking out seven in six innings during Cleveland’s 7-3 triumph. Remember, the lefty, still only 29, was pitching for the Sugar Land (TX) Skeeters in the Atlantic League last year at this time.

Another former Atlantic Leaguer, Jerome Williams, gets a start today for the Los Angeles Angels. The 2011 Lancaster (PA) Barnstormer has been in the bullpen for quite a while, but those six sterling relief innings he gave the Angels recently helped give him this opportunity to quiet Baltimore.

FIGUEROA, BILLY RICE RELEASED

Nelson Figueroa’s time with Arizona’s top farm club in Reno, NV has come to an end with the onetime Long Island (NY) Ducks righty being released. Outfielder Billy Rice (Camden, NJ, Atlantic) was released out of Class A by the Chicago White Sox.

DERBY HORSE EARNS TWO-FOR-ONE DEAL FOR YORK FANS

Because of the similarity in names, the York (PA) Revolution are giving fans who attended Saturday night’s Atlantic League game the opportunity to turn in their ticket stub for a two-for-one deal to attend any remaining weekday home game all because the horse Revolutionary finished third in the Kentucky Derby. Rewards would have been greater had Calvin Borel gotten his mount to finish first or second.

MOVING UP

Chris Patterson has quite a resume, pitching at North Dakota State and in three Independent leagues, playing in Germany, France, Italy and Australia, working in various pay-to-play winter leagues and earning Manager of the Year honors in both the Continental and Pecos leagues.

His newest opportunity is to manage Rio Grande Valley (Harlingen, TX) in the re-minted United League. Patterson already has three former Texas Longhorns on the WhiteWings roster.

THE LATEST ON MARK PRIOR

We noted in last week’s Independent Baseball Insider column that veteran major leaguer Mark Prior, who pitched for a time at Orange County (Fullerton, CA) when the Golden League was in operation, had been idle for some time with Cincinnati’s Triple-A farm club in Louisville. He now has gone onto the disabled list although it is only required players be inactive for seven days.

 

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PAYING TRIBUTE TO SPARKY LYLE AND TWO RECENT INDEPENDENT HURLERS

It will be one sentimental evening at TD Bank Ballpark in Somerset, NJ Friday when the Patriots host Sparky Lyle Tribute Night to honor the mustachioed one for his 15 years of managing the Atlantic League team which included five championships and more than 1,000 victories.

Now 68, Albert Walter Lyle also won 99 major league games and saved another 222 plus still more before the first official save rule went into effect. That is a lot of winning baseball for the left-hander now considered manager emeritus for Somerset.

ADDING ON TO KYLE SCHEPEL'S STORY

I singled out Arizona farmhand Kyle Schepel in last week's Independent Baseball Insider column because of the seven-inning no-hitter he threw for South Bend, IN in his initial season after being signed out of an Independent league. Mal Fichman, who signed the right-hander after an invitation-only tryout camp in Joliet, IL last September as one of his final feats before moving on to scout the Indy leagues for Baltimore, added some perspective on just how meaningful it can be to move into a major league organization for anyone who starts his career in a non-affiliated league and for those close to him.

Schepel spent last summer with Rockford, IL in the Frontier League. Fichman said Rockford Manager Rich Austin "may have been happier than Schepel" that his pitcher impressed enough for the Diamondbacks to sign him. While it seems unlikely the manager was actually happier, the comment says a great deal about how much someone like Austin wants the best for his players.
Fichman's email also said "Schepel and his father sat in the dugout for a few minutes (after the signing) to go over some things" before the three of them walked to their cars. "I thought they were going to fly home rather than drive," Fichman concluded.

The 22-year-old Schepel won again Saturday to run his record to 2-0 for four starts, and he has allowed only 15 hits in 24.2 innings while building a 2.55 earned run average.

ADD ONE MORE TO MAJOR LEAGUES

The newest Independent leaguer to reach the major leagues is southpaw Vidal Nuno, now with the New York Yankees less than two years after his contract was purchased from Washington, PA in the Frontier League.

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CURT SMITH, MATES REINFORCE INDEPENDENT IMPACT IN AFFILIATED LEAGUES

 

I had it reinforced one more time the depth of impact Independent Baseball players make on virtually any major league-affiliated game when I took my three grandsons to an Eastern League game this week.

We did not single out this game in order to see former Independent players; it so happens the New Britain (CT) Rock Cats, the Double-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, are the closest to us. It turned into an 11-inning dandy, too, on a sunny day for this 10:35 a.m. school day game. No less than four former Indy stars took part, three of them as starters. Perhaps the most surprising part was that all are position players since pitchers seem to be in the spotlight most often.

I was especially excited to see New Britain first baseman Curt Smith, who had played in both the American Association (Lincoln, NE) and Atlantic League (Lancaster, PA) and was signed by the Twins shortly after his dominant bat played a major role in getting The Netherlands to the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic. I had written about him more than once in this space as well as in my weekly Independent Baseball Insider column.

Smith turned in a very professional game with two singles, one driving in the Rock Cats’ first run in a two-run bottom of the ninth that sent the game into extra innings, playing a solid first base and exhibiting great hustle. I could see the latter in the way he went after foul balls down the line even if he could not get to them. He is making an impact, hitting .343 after eight games with three doubles, a homer and five runs batted in.

Antoan Richardson (Schaumburg, IL, Northern League) was the leadoff hitter and centerfielder and Reynaldo Rodriguez (Yuma, AZ, Golden League) entered as a pinch runner in the eighth and stayed in to play left. For New Hampshire, Toronto’s No. 2 farm club, Amadeo Zazueta played very solid shortstop and had a hit. Like Smith, he had played at Lincoln and the switch-hitter was with Sugar Land, TX in the Atlantic League part of last season before his contract was sold to the Blue Jays.

What a nice day for all of us.

 

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