The Nevada Dragons and the Long Road Ahead

[jeheinz72]

Yeah, and it wasn't just any players, it was key players that were performing well. Thiessen was having a career year, and Hui is garbage. Quintana was probably the 2nd best SP for me so far, and at 35, he may never come back the same since he's gone for the year. Talent hits could wipe him out. Coto was just gaining steam, and any talent hit to him makes my trade look horrible.

Very disappointing.

[Chappy]

Originally Posted by jeheinz72

...and Hui is garbage.

???

Hui has almost the exact same ratings as Thiessen. All he needs is a chance!

[Chappy]

Hui
Batting		Contact	Gap	Power	Discipline/Eye	Avoid K's
Overall		7	5	3	3		5
Versus LHP	7	5	3	3		5
Versus RHP	7	5	3	3		5
Talent		8	6	2	4		5

Theissen
Batting		Contact	Gap	Power	Discipline/Eye	Avoid K's
Overall		7	6	2	3		5
Versus LHP	7	6	2	3		5
Versus RHP	7	6	1	3		5
Talent		8	6	2	4		6

[Loompa17]

Waiting for your next update... Figured you should be pretty happy with the results of our trade.

[jeheinz72]

I'm BACK! Finally work has given me enough of a reprieve (no more set schedule, and no more live inbound calls from customers) so I can revive this.

I'll hit the reset button in my mind and pretend my aborted look at 2012 almost didn't happen. I'll start posting recaps of the team and it's major players seasons here in the next few hours.

WAHOO!

[jeheinz72]

Originally Posted by Chappy

???

Hui has almost the exact same ratings as Thiessen. All he needs is a chance!

Oh sure, I see this now after Hui has a stellar 2nd half.

[jeheinz72]

Originally Posted by Loompa17

Waiting for your next update... Figured you should be pretty happy with the results of our trade.

Oh yes, it will be prominent in my re-done recap

[jeheinz72]

At long last, the Nevada Dragons are back and ready to be recapped!

First off, I’ll start with a summary of our season.
It started out OK (16-16 through 5/10)
Then went really bad (23-28 through 5/31)
Then it stayed bad (33-46 on 7/1)
Then it got OK (47-57 on 8/1)
Then it leveled out (61-70 on 9/1)
Then we started tearing it up going 19-12 in Sept/Oct to finish 80-82

“80 wins, that’s not bad” you might say. Well, we really weren’t in the race all year, and 80 wins got us tied for 3rd in the division, 2 games out of the playoffs. Sure, in the end we were right there, but I think we lucked into that to some extent.

We’ve now averaged 81.7 wins in my 3 years with 1 2nd place finish and 2 3rd place finishes. No playoff berths to show for it, and basically the last 2 years we spent the latter 3rd of the season playing very well to make up for early season miscues.

Here are our team statistics

Manager: John Heinz
Record: 80 Wins, 82 Losses, .494 Winning Pct.
Home Record: 38 Wins, 43 Losses
Away Record: 42 Wins, 39 Losses
1 Run Games Record: 23 Wins, 19 Losses
X-Innings Record: 7 Wins, 4 Losses
Record vs LHP: 22 Wins, 23 Losses
Record vs RHP: 58 Wins, 59 Losses

Batting AVG: .243 (13th)
Homeruns: 159 (4th)
Walks: 542 (1st)
Stolen Bases: 154 (6th)
Runs Scored: 727 (4th)

Pitching ERA: 3.81 (18th)
Opponents AVG: .252 (20th)
HRs Allowed: 143 (14th)
Walks Allowed: 496 (19th)
Runs Allowed: 711 (20th)

Offensively, we were right there. I’d love to see a .250 average, with that and the walks we’d be a powerhouse. It’s tough to say our offense really held us back though, as nearly 4.5 runs per game should be solid. Though we were 4th in the league, we actually had the most runs in the GE with only 1 team (105 win Illinois at 715) within 50 of us. Our 159 homers was 2nd in the GE and our .699 team OPS was tied for 2nd, both behind a 105-win team.

Pitching wise, our 18th place ERA and 20th place runs allowed were actually improvements over our mid-season numbers. Those are deceiving though as you will see the bad pitchers were primarily starters who lost us games early then our marvelous pen would come save the day.

What also killed us was Defense. We made 143 errors, 3rd most in the GE (and the leading team, Illinois had just 145). Our .977 F% was tied for the worst in the GE. But what can you do to some extent? Do I deal a great hitter just so I can make 10 less errors?


Next Up: The PLAYERS

[jeheinz72]

Catchers

As usual, we’ll start with our catchers on the recap. Basically Thiessen was our starter all year, with Hui backing up. Thiessen did go down for 5 weeks in late May, and Hui got the majority of the action with Salazar getting the call-up.

Byron Thiessen
.290 Avg, 493 AB, 4 HR, 57 RBI, .323 OBP, .367 Slg

Actually, a solid season from Thiessen, who hit just .243 last year. He opened the season as you may recall with a 20-game hit streak and just kept getting hits, nearly double last seasons total with 143. Fatigue caught him late in the year as he ended just hitting .221 in 122 S/O at-bats. Defensively he was solid, throwing out 32.9% of would-be basestealers, though he did make 11 errors.

MangLi Hui
.284 Avg, 194 AB, 2 HR, 18 RBI, .329 OBP, .366 Slg

The best season yet from Hui, as he finally got both his OBP and SLG over .300. In his time in June starting for Thiessen he hit .282 with a .697 OPS. He seems to be very inconsistent, and if he could hit to his 8 contact rating, he would win the job from Thiessen. He was poor defensively, committing 5 errors for a .967 F% and throwing out just 7 of 37 stealers (18.9%)

Joaquin Salazar
.217 in 23 Abs, 1 HR and 3 RBI
Salazar saw just a touch of action in June and was alright. He hit 23 HR’s in AAA, but it looks for now like he’ll be 3rd on the depth chart at best. He is a very good defender, and this season played 58 flawless innings in the field while throwing out 5 of 8 stealers.

First Base

Ray Festa
.221, 497 AB, 24 HR, 84 RBI, 87 BB, .339 OBP, .404 Slg

Festa had an odd season, besting his career high in homers by 4, but with his lowest career average. His .743 OPS was 2 points higher than last year but he was obviously hit and miss. He did reach base 197 times and with no heir apparent, he’ll have the job next season as well. He was a solid defender. He made 16 errors, but still had a .989 F%.

Melvin Hagberg
.234, 107 Abs, 4 HR, 17 RBI, 9 2B, .272 OBP, .430 SLG

For the 2nd straight year, Hagberg stayed only on the big club where he was a solid backup. He even managed a .904 OPS in 41 pinch-hit at-bats and hit 3 pinch-hit homers. His strikeout rate dropped from 1 per 6 at-bats to 1 per 10. In the field, he made just 1 error in 36 games (182 innings) covering 1B, LF and RF.

Chet Rinehart
.222, 18 AB, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 7 BB, .440 OBP, .444 SLG

Big Chet finally made it back to the big club with a September call-up after spending all of 2011 in AAA. He did very well, especially with his forte, the walk (7 in 25 appearances). He has hit 64 AAA Homers over the last 2 seasons, and he’ll more than likely have a chance to add to that total in 2013.

Next up: Middle Infielders

[jeheinz72]

Second Basemen and Shortstops

2B Rey Moncayo
.263 Avg, 601 AB, 29 HR, 93 RBI, 101 Runs, 32 SB, 24 CS, 17 K, .355 OBP, .466 SLG

Rey was good, but not as good as in past seasons. His 35-year-old body may be catching up with him as his .821 OPS was his lowest since 2005. His 29 homers led the team and allowed him to cross the 200 HR mark and tied for 8th in the league. 93 RBI’s was good for a tie for 7th. His 101 runs was good for 3rd! Defensively he was very versatile, playing 2B (129 G, 13 E, .981 F%), SS (11 G, 1 E, .980 F%), 3B (8 G, 2 E) and 1B (3G, 0 E).

2B Ken Lancaster
.250 Avg, 12 AB, 3 RBI

Ken made it to the big club for the first time since 2009 in limited action. He was ok, but it’d be surprising if he saw much action in the future.

2B Albert Estrada
.250 Avg, 44 AB, 5 RBI, .327 OBP, .295 SLG

After a solid .302 showing in 2011, age caught up with Albert as he split time between the bigs and AAA. He was ok, but his ratings have now dropped enough that he’ll be in the minor leagues only from this point on.

SS Chris Lott
.263 Avg, 536 AB, 27 HR, 95 RBI, 102 R, 103 BB, 10 SB, .384 OBP, .455 SLG

Lott finally bounced back to solid production after a bad 2011 and first half of 2012. He actually topped a .300 average in each of the final 3 months while driving in 55 runs. His OBP was good for 5th in the league, while his .839 OPS made him the 8th best bat in the league. 95 RBIs was 4th and his runs and BB’s were both 2nd. Overall a fine year, though he is a defensive weakness, committing 21 errors for a .969 F%.

That’s all for today, tomorrow/Friday I’ll recap 3B and the outfield as well as the minor league hitters of note.

[Chappy]

Wow, I didn't realize the Dragons were such offensive juggernauts!

[jeheinz72]

Originally Posted by Chappy

Wow, I didn't realize the Dragons were such offensive juggernauts!

Oh yeah, we bring the sticks!
Though typically not until our starter has put us in a 4-0 hole in the 3rd inning.

[jeheinz72]

3B Gene Halpern

.288 Avg, 594 AB, 22 HR, 82 RBI, 26 2B, 87 R, 72 BB, .365 OBP, .443 SLG

Gene had a stellar year, setting career bests in nearly every offensive category and making his first career all-star team. His .807 OPS topped his previous best by 110 points! His 171 hits led the Dragons and placed him 10th in the league. The big issue with Halpern, is defense. He committed 25 errors last year for an abysmal .942 F%. That’s bad. He’s got decent range (7) there, but he also plays 2B. He is a much better fielder there, but his range at 2nd is below-average (4). It’s a good possibility that if we ever deal Moncayo, I’d move him over to 2nd.

2B/OF Cyril Foland

.193, 357 AB, 6 HR, 27 RBI, 12 SB, .245 OBP, .303 Slg

Looks like the end of the road for Cyril, who has been a Dragon for a decade now. He killed us this year after posting 5 straight .700 OPS seasons and 7 in his first 9 seasons. At best, he’ll be a backup for us, but we’ve got better starting options now. Defensively he was bad as well after winning the Mays award in 2011. He committed 17 errors in 107 games split between LF (76 G) and 2B (31). As of right now he’s amassed 1,324 career hits, with 193 Homers and 230 steals, all of which are 3rd all-time in Dragons history.

RF Clarence DiBenedetto

.257, 584 AB, 17 HR, 31 2B, 59 RBI, 49 SB (only 7 CS), .324 OBP, .414 SLG

DiBen also took a step back this year, after 2 straight all-star seasons. He hit in the 2nd slot most of the season and his low OBP probably held us back, though he was a fantastic speed threat this season. He’s 33, so he’s on the edge of decline but he’ll be in the lineup next season. He is fantastic defensively, making just 4 errors in well over 1,000 innings in the outfield.

CF James Lape

.269 Avg, 551 AB, 13 HR, 73 RBI, 29 2B, 23 SB, .320 OBP, .407 SLG

Lape came back into the lineups this season and didn’t disappoint. He had his most consistent playing time and set career highs in many categories (2B, HR, SB, RBI, R). At 31, the former 1st round pick is finally showing some value. Defensively, he’s also fantastic committing only 2 errors, and those were both in RF. He made no errors in 123 games in center.

LF Blair Payton

.211, 342 AB, 3 HR, 39 RBI, 40 R, 19/5 SB/CS, .246 OBP, .289 SLG

Blair, just 20, was pretty much forced into the lineup when it became clear Foland didn’t have it anymore. He spent the first 3 weeks in AAA hitting .322 so I called the 5th overall pick of the 2011 draft up to the bigs. He struggled yes, but both his Avg and OPS increased every month. He’ll probably end up with the big club again, and we expect a moderate improvement. Defensively, very good, just 4 errors in 108 games.

RF Fermin Trujillo

.189, 169 AB, 4 HR, 23 RBI, 6 SB, .285 OBP, .325 SLG

The 35-year-old Trujillo was pinch-hitter by default, since we have very little OF depth. He saw his most at-bats since his rookie year, and I’m actually satisfied with his performance. He hit great with RISP, and his 23 RBI’s show it. He’ll be in the organization in 2013, but not necessarily with the big-club. He played 260 flawless innings in the outfield.

[jeheinz72]

We don’t have much in the minors, but here are some quick blurbs on guys who may have a future impact on the team

AAA
1B Jason Fick - .268 Avg in 120 Games. 7 HR, 19 SB. Our former 2nd round pick was ok in his first season in AAA. With another good season there he could see time as a backup on the big club

OF Mike Doctor – The former team star and 9 time Mays Award winner quietly spent the season in AAA where he struggled. He hit just .193 with 11 homers,

AA
C Shumei Rosanjin – The 4th overall pick last draft has already made it to AA. He hit .339 in 32 A games and got the call-up. In 106 games in AA, he hit a solid .274 with 23 doubles and 18 homers. With a hot start in AA in 2013, he’ll get moved to AAA. I hope to have him in the bigs by 2015, when he’ll be just 22.

RF James Aikin – Our other 2012 1st rounder (14th) started in AA and played well all season. He hit a stellar .299 with 26 2B and 12 HR, even adding 23 steals. At 23 he’ll have to get to the majors quickly, and I hope to have him there at least as a backup in 2014.

3B Scott Heath – The 26-year-old former 2nd round pick of Massachusetts was a throw-in in an offseason deal. He hit an organization leading 38 homers in his first full AA season and has now hit 310 career minor league homers in 9 seasons. He doesn’t really have any future potential, I just want to see how many homers he can hit in the minors.

LF Chad Huson – The 24 yr old got his first taste of AA and played so-so. He hit .264 with 12 HRs and needs to speed up his development to make it big. He’ll be in AA again in 2013.

A
2B David Hetrick - .225, 13 HR. He’ll probably get cut as soon as I need to clear space
CF Matthew Menchaca - .222, 5 HR. Another future cut
C Frederick Boucher - .232, 5 HR. Another cut. I’ve got tons of catchers
C William Prendergast - .252, 25 HR. I’ll probably throw him into AA next year to see what happens
3B Geoff Jasmin - .270, 25 HR. He’ll certainly get moved up to AA next year
LF Mike Evan - .272, 6 HR. 4th round pick last year, he’ll get another shot at A ball.
OF Shawn Codrington - .215, 2 HR. 7th time wasn’t the charm for 25 y.o. He’ll be cut

Next up: PITCHING

[jeheinz72]

We had 10 players start games for us, and it was a mess. First I’ll go over the 5 at the end of the season, then cover the riff-raff.

Jose Leonos
32 GS, 13-9, 2.95 ERA, 189.1 IP, 176 H, 45 BB, 77 K, 1.17 WHIP

Jose was out most consistent starters on the year, bouncing back from a sub-standard 2011 season. He had 20 quality starts and generally kept us in the hunt in most games. He was often a victim of bad run support of bad defense (13 UER). At 36, he is getting older, though I think he has another good season in him.

Jose Langlois
35 GS, 9-13, 2.85 ERA, 211.2 IP, 143 H, 54 BB, 213 K, 0.93 WHIP

We picked up Jose #2 from Massachusetts in mid-June and he’s been great. His record doesn’t reflect it, but he is probably our ace pitcher, and did go 7-7 after coming to us. He’s a true strikeout pitcher, and his 213 K’s was 3rd in the league. He’s just 31, and we picked him up for our #1 pick (we now know is 11th and a former 2nd round pick). He’ll be in the rotation for a long while

SP Brandon Coto
27 GS, 10-10, 3.67 ERA, 147.1 IP, 116 H, 61 BB, 90 K, 1.20 WHIP

We picked up Coto in late April from Washington for another pitcher (Grolsch) and our 2nd and 3rd picks. He actually went 10-6 in his Dragons tenure, which is top-notch really. He missed all of June with an injured bicep and for a #3 pitcher is very solid. He’s 33, but has shown no signs of decline, and I look forward to having him all year next year

SP Cory Bayne
8 GS, 2-5, 3.99 ERA, 58.2 IP, 47 H, 24 BB, 23 K, 1.21 WHIP

We called up Bayne in late August, and the 27-year old made a real impression. His numbers are a touch deceiving, as he lost his first 5 outings by getting a combined 6 runs of support. His ERA was then shot by having a rough last outing (7 ER in 4 IP). In his first 7 starts, he actually averaged 7.75 IP per outing, fantastic. He’ll more than likely make the rotation in 2013, hopefully just as a #5 though.

SP Miguel Cordova
26 GS, 7-9, 5.32 ERA, 143.2 IP, 165 H, 50 BB, 69K, 1.50 WHIP

Cordova is our #5 right now, basically by default, though we did pull him from the rotation in September. He runs very hot and cold and has a tendency to just get blown up in some games, never giving us a shot. He’s 34, so he more than likely won’t ever improve.

Other Starters

SP Alfredo Chivara
6 GS, 1-3, 7.94 ERA, 28.1 IP, 37 H, 19 BB, 12 K, 1.98 WHIP
8-6, 3.28 in 17 AAA starts, 7-0, 1.98 in 8 AA starts

We gave Alfredo a shot in September since we didn’t have any real options, and he struggled. He did have a 16 win season overall though, and I think he’ll see the rotation in the next year or two. For now, he’ll be in AAA in 2013.

SP Gene Foxworth
24 GS, 6-11, 5.54 ERA, 130 IP, 150 H, 41 BB, 42 K, 1.47 WHIP

Looks like father time caught up with Mean Gene as he couldn’t follow up his 2 straight solid seasons. He spent September in AAA where he still had an ERA over 4 and his big league career could be over. He’ll be an emergency guy in 2013, called up from AAA as needed

SP Ramon Quintana
9 GS, 4-2, 3.65 ERA, 56.2 IP, 43 H, 32 BB, 26 K, 1.32 WHIP

Well, Ramon would be a great 4th starter, but we lost him in May for the season, and at 35 I don’t know if he’ll ever be himself again. He’s started 296 career games for the Dragons, and barring a trade he’ll be plugged in next season. Cross your fingers.

SP Richard Herron
10 GS, 1-7, 6.18 ERA, 51 IP, 61 H, 22 BB, 9 K, 1.63 WHIP

Herron stunk. He ended the season in AA and will probably get cut. If I just never played him we might have made the playoffs. I don’t think it’s possible for someone to decline faster (23-18, 3.00 ERA over last 2 seasons)

SP Nathan Cramer
4 GS, 1-2, 6.33 ERA, 21.1 IP, 25 H, 11 BB, 11 K, 1.69 WHIP

Another guy I tried to plug in, who stunk. He’s 36, and he ended the season in AA, though he’s got an 8 stuff rating. I’ll probably keep him in the minors for now.

NEXT UP: Relievers!

[jeheinz72]

Our pen could possibly be our strongest asset. This year we had solid contributors at every spot, with only 1 regular sporting an ERA over 4.

CL Herman Trottier
6-5, 63 G, 33 Saves, 2.13 ERA, 76 IP, 53 H, 43 BB, 55 K, 1.26 WHIP

Trottier was fantastic for us, though he does struggle with his control at times. Last year he had a few more saves, 35, but a run higher for an ERA. He is 35, but barring a great offer, he’ll be our closer next season

RP Arnie Stier
3-6, 80 G, 0 Sv, 4.32 ERA, 81.1 IP, 98 H, 39 ER, 19 BB, 17 K, 1.44 WHIP

Arnie was our long man, and worst reliever this year. He was solid last year (3.61 ERA) but couldn’t do the job consistently for us in 2012. He did finish strong, allowing just 3 ER in his final 22.1 innings in the 2nd half. He’s on the edge of being on next years team and at 27 we aren’t in a rush to move him anywhere

RP Moses Tamez
2-1, 62 G, 1 Save, 2.00 ERA, 76.1 IP, 63 H, 17 ER, 25 BB, 17 K, 1.15 WHIP

Big Mo turned in another great season, this time a career best ERA (he’s never been over 2.65, in 4 seasons). If Trottier went down, I’d almost assuredly turn to Mo to be the closer. Mo did get a late start on his career, so at 36 he may only have a couple seasons left.

RP Bobby Hollenback
7-2, 72 G, 2 Svs, 2.28 ERA, 67 IP, 68 H, 17 ER, 6 BB, 11 K, 1.10 WHIP

Bobby was our closer before we acquired Trottier pre-2011, saving 69 games over 3 seasons. He’s got a career ERA of just 3.08 and turned in another great year in 2012 after an abysmal 2011 in which he struggled with his confidence after losing the closer’s job. He’s got pinpoint control and at 34, he’ll be with us for a bit longer

RP Bill Stoops
2-1, 95 G, 1 Sv, 2.81 ERA, 83.1 IP, 71 H, 26 ER, 42 BB, 58 K, 1.36 WHIP

Bill was Mr.Everywhere this year, appearing in nearly 100 ballgames. In his 3rd true big league season, he had his best, posting his first sub-3 ERA and having solid strikeout numbers. He’ll be our middle man again next year, and at 30, he’s the kind of player we’re looking to hold onto.

RP Herman Tucker
8-3, 92 G, 0 Sv, 2.82 ERA, 95.2 IP, 96 H, 30 ER, 20 BB, 35 K, 1.21 WHIP

Herman #2 (as I like to call him) came back from oblivion to pitch very well for us. He pitched for us from 2006-2009 with moderate success (4.43 ERA). This year as a middle man he proved invaluable, often times dominating when in the game. He’ll definitely be with us next year.

CL Tristan Mann
0-0, 0 Sv, 8 G, 3.09 ERA, 11.2 IP, 10 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 3K, 0.94 WHIP

Tristan was a late call-up, giving him a chance to show his wares after saving 25 minor league games this year (9 w/1.59 in AA, 16 w/3.53 in AAA). He’s got 139 minor league saves and he pitched well enough in September to warrant serious consideration for a spot in the pen in 2013. He will be just 24 on Opening Day.

RP Edwin Birmingham
0-0, 0 Sv, 17 G, 6.59 ERA, 13.2 IP, 19 H, 10 ER, 5 BB, 7 K, 1.76 WHIP

Edwin was a filler for us after Barker (see below) went down. I don’t plan on having him be more than that barring phenomenal AAA stats. At 29, he doesn’t have much room for growth, though he has solid ratings (6-7-8, 7-7-9 talent).

RP James Barker
0-1, 0 Sv, 5 G, 5 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 0 K, 1.80 WHIP

Barker had a pen job lined up on Opening Day, but tore his bicep in his first appearance, knocking him out for two and a half months. He came back with 4 lackluster outings and so I sent him to AAA to get his confidence up. He’s been great for us from 2009-2011, getting a 3.26 ERA in 150+ innings. He also has a great shot at the pen in 2013.

Next up: Minor League Arms!

[jeheinz72]

Here is a look at pitchers for down the road, I’m not going to cover guys who had any big league action (like Herron, Mann, etc.)

AAA

RP Bernard Meza, 31 – 1-1, 3.09 ERA, 35 IP. He’s a typical filler reliever. A 4-A guy.
SP Tommy Moxam, 25 – 9-9, 3.16 ERA, 1.26 WHIP. Mox is on the cusp of the bigs, and another solid AAA season will get him a callup next year
SP Robert Midgette, 22 – 5-4, 4.08 in AAA (7-4 2.59 in AA). Robert was a 4th rounder in 2011 and has progress very quickly. He’ll be in AAA all next year, with a shot at the 2014 team.
RP Ralph Brass, 30 – 5-3, 3.45 ERA, 60 IP. 4-A guy
RP Alvin Quinonez, 31 – 5-3, 6 Sv, 3.52 ERA. 4-A guy
SP Kirby Rudolph, 36 – 11-12, 3.55 ERA, 1.31 WHIP. Former big leaguer (8-12 in 2011) will be a possible emergency starter for us. He almost got called up numerous times.
RP Ernest Jones, 29 – 3.31, 2-3,

AA
SP Oscar Meryman, 3-3 in 9 starts in AA, 3-7 in A ball. 3.59 ERA. Oscar was a former 1st rounder who we picked up from Virginia for another prospect. He was actually ok at AA so we’ll try and force him into developing.
SP Leon Hernandez, 30 – 13-10, 2.77 ERA. Leon’s 30 and in AA because we had no room in AAA. He may go to AAA when we have room.
RP Juan Dovando, 22 – 5-6, 5 Sv, 4.04 ERA. Juan was our 3rd rounder in 2012 and went right to AA. He’ll get another shot at it in 2013.
SP Abel Montelongo, 30 – 6-7, 2.71 ERA. Another old AA’er.
RP Scott Sattler, 29 – 2-2, 2.21 ERA. Another old AA’er
RP Gerald DelCastillo, 27 – 4-3, 4.19. Old for this level, we’ll keep him here.

A
RP Trinidad Zimmerman, 17 – 3-2, 3 Sv, 3.88 ERA. VERY young prospect was a 2nd rounder last year. He’ll go for A ball again but it’d be great if by the end of the year he was in AA ball.

SP Justin Gasaway, 28 – 8-15, 4.90. Former throw-in will be cut once we need the room

Next up: A look into next season

[jeheinz72]

Since we are forever trying to improve our rotation, we made another trade. It's probably a bad deal for us, but I want to give it one more good shot before the core of players is way too old.

We sent our 2014 #1 pick and SP prospect Robert Midgette to Tennessee for SP Thomas Burleson.

Burleson just turned 30 and also just became a starting pitcher. He has fantastic stuff (10) and control (10) but little movement (3). He just became a starter towards the end of 2012, getting 6 starts. He has a 5 endurance rating, and we will aim to get that improved this Spring Training. Last year he was 8-6, 2.97 ERA and 1 Save in 78 games (106 IP). He allowed just 93 hits and 12 walks, striking out 66.

For his career he is 33-27 with 7 saves and a 3.61 ERA in 373 games (419.1 innings). His career WHIP is just 1.05. If you take out the 2007 season, when he was just 24 and really shouldn't have been in the bigs, he is 30-20, with a 2.97 ERA with a 0.98 WHIP.

The real challenge will be if he will have the endurance to stay in the rotation.

Midgette is one of our better prospects, but that isn't saying that much. Plus we feel since Burleson is just 30, he'll be in the rotation for 4+ seasons at least.

[jeheinz72]

Well, in the guise of stealing from Chappy a touch more, here are how some of the Dragons' 2012 hitting performances stack up to team history

Chris Lott's .384 OBP was 10th best in team history. Former stud Alex Garza holds 7 of the top 8 spots, Lott is 7th with .409 in 2009. Moncayo's .390 clip in 2011 is the 9th spot.

Lott's 102 runs are also the 10th best, and Moncayo's 29 bombs were good for 10th as well. The team record is 41 by Gary Crawford in 2001.

Lott's 95 RBI's place 6th while Moncayo's 93 place 3rd. Lott also holds the 4th spot, last years' 101. We've had just 4 100-RBI seasons.

DiBen stole 49 bases, good for 7th. Garza (6) and Mark Delia (3, 1st, 2nd and 4th) dominate the rest of the list.

Lott walked 103 times in 2012, 5th most in team history. It's his 4th spot on the list (5th, 8-10th). Garza holds the other 6 spots.

Career Notes

Mike Doctor retires with the 4th best average in team history, .285. Halpern is 5th, way down at .267, followed by Lape, Foland and Lott.

Lott's .354 career OBP is 2nd to Garza, Halpern's .336 is 5th. Chet Rinehart of all people is 7th at .321

Lott is currently 4th in games played (1231) behind Garza, Doctor and Foland. Because Foland sucks now, he'll be 3rd by end of 2013 barring injury and 2nd at the end of 2014.

Lott now has 1088 hits, 4th all-time (and 4th player to top 1K). Next up is Foland at 1324. His 196 Hr's is 2nd to Garza's 252. Moncayo is already 10th with 59 in just 2 seasons.

[jeheinz72]

This one however, was much more minor. We were in dire need of a 5th OF, so we got to talking with DC and made a trade.

We'll be getting 31-yr-old Eric Pennington in exchange for 24-year old AA SP Oscar Meryman.

Meryman was a former 1st rounder who just crept into AA at 24. Pennington is a standard 4A OF, but sadly, we needed one.

Pennington had just 1 big-league AB last year, but hit .261 with 23 HRs and 38 2B's in AAA. He ain't much, but he'll hopefully give us 80 quality ABs this season.