BELIEVE IT: 84 INDY GRADS PLAYED IN MAJOR LEAGUE SPRING TRAINING GAMES IN 2011

It took some time, but I believe I have taken the research about as far as I can go in determining how many former Independent Baseball players got into at least one major league spring training game this year.

There were 50 players in the 30 camps fulltime, either as 40-man roster players or non-roster invitees, including pitchers Chris Jakabauskas and Ryan Drese, who Baltimore added rather late. Jakabauskas has been with the parent club, of course, although he is now disabled with a groin injury. Catcher Shawn Riggans (Milwaukee) was the only one of the 50 not to appear in any regular exhibition games.

The count goes up by an astonishing 35--84 overall--when all of the players brought up from the minor league camp for at least a day are added into the mix. This total is only of those who actually got their name in a box score because a number of others were on the bench (or in the bullpen) if the manager needed them.

Here is the list, including major league team and position with the Independent affiliations in parenthesis:

Arizona: SS Ed Rogers (Bridgeport, Atlantic League)
Atlanta: OF Gavin Dickey (Lincoln, American Association); RHP Jason Lowey (River City and Windy City, Frontier League; Macon, South Coast League); OF Antoan Richardson (Schaumburg, Northern League)
Baltimore: LHP Nick Bierbrodt (Long Beach, Golden League; Bridgeport and Somerset, Atlantic); LHP Alberto Castillo (Newark, Road Warriors and Camden, Atlantic; Schaumburg, Northern)
Chicago Cubs: RHP Austin Bibens-Dirkx (Victoria, Golden)
Cincinnati: OF Brian Barton (Newark and Bridgeport, Atlantic); 3B Mike Costanzo (Camden, Atlantic)
Colorado: C Eliezer Alfonzo (St. Paul, Northern); 1B Jason Botts (Camden, Atlantic); RHP Chris Malone (Chico, Golden); LHP Josh Muecke (Somerset, Atlantic)
Florida: INF Mike Cervenak (Chillicothe, Frontier)
Houston: C Robinson Cancel (Long Island, Road Warriors and Somerset, Atlantic; Edinburg, United League)
Kansas City: INF Anthony Seratelli (Windy City, Frontier)
Los Angeles Dodgers: RHP Stuart Pomeranz (New Jersey, Can-Am League); 3B Corey Smith (Newark, Atlantic)
Milwaukee: RHP Darren Byrd (Fargo, Northern); INF Anderson Machado (Lancaster, Atlantic); LHP Sam Narron (Camden, Atlantic)
New York Mets: LHP Justin Hampson (York and Long Island, Atlantic); 1B-DH Valentino Pascucci (Camden, Atlantic)
Oakland: RHP Jon Hunton (Fort Worth and Coastal Bend, American Association; Somerset and Lancaster, Atlantic; New Jersey, Can-Am)
Philadelphia: RHP Matt Anderson (Bridgeport, Atlantic); RHP Nate Bump (Camden, Atlantic); LHP Derrick Loop (Camden, Atlantic; Chico, Golden); OF Mike Spidale (Kansas City, Northern)
San Diego: INF Jacob Blackwood (Kansas City, Northern)
San Francisco: OF Justin Christian (River City, Frontier; Southern Maryland, Atlantic); LHP Justin Dowdy (Wichita and Shreveport, American Association; Alexandria, United; Calgary, Northern; Rockford, Frontier)
Seattle: RHP Scott Patterson (Gateway, Frontier; Lancaster, Atlantic)
Texas: OF Erold Andrus (York, Atlantic; Florence, Frontier; Tijuana, Golden)
Toronto: OF Jason Lane (Southern Maryland, Atlantic); RHP Vince Perkins (York, Newark and Camden, Atlantic; Joliet, Northern)

Andrus, Botts, Dickey and Hunton have since been released.

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