Tagged: Whitecaps
Baseball Trip for 2012 Finalized
Working for the government, we have to pick our vacation almost a year in advance, which can cause problems in making plans, and planning trips. It used to be we had to pick our vacation days by January or December, which wasn’t bad because most Minor League ball clubs had their schedules posted by that time. Now we have to have them submitted by October, and all I can really do is pick a couple of weeks in May, and hope for the best.
This year the Baseball Gods smiled on me a bit, as I was able to put together a nice little trip in my allotted time, featuring Minor League Baseball, NCAA Baseball, and even a trip to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. There is a lot of fun and excitement for me when the 2012 schedules come out, and I can start writing games down on the calendar and see how everything will fit into place. It’s not always easy, as I like to pack as much baseball into one week as possible, but it is so much fun, and really gives me something to look forward to over the long winter months. Starting the first of the year, I can start making reservations, ordering tickets, and doing some research on the best sports bars in the areas we’ll be at. Here’s a little rundown of our plans for next May, and if the world is ending in 2012…then at least I die seeing the HOF…
The first leg of our trip takes us to Syracuse, New York, to see the Chiefs host the Rochester Red Wings in International League action (Triple-A). Our first game is a Sunday matinée at 2:00 p.m., then after a long drive it’s early to bed, as the Chiefs host the Red Wings again on Monday afternoon, with a 12:00 start time. I absolutely love doubling back to be at the ballpark in the morning when the grass is still wet with dew, and it brings so much more ambiance to the experience. No time to rest on Monday, though, as we travel to Rochester after the Chiefs game to watch the Scranton/WB Yankees host the Durham Bulls (Int. League/Triple-A). Wait..what? Yes, due to the S/WB Yanks renovating their stadium, they will be playing some home games in Rochester while the Red Wings are on the road, so we pick up an extra game due to that…thanks Yanks! I’ve always wanted to see the Durham Bulls play, too, and will probably be part of their cheering section. Ok, take a second to catch your breath…
The next stop on our trip is in fabled Cooperstown, New York, home to the one and only National Baseball Hall of Fame. This will be my first time here, and probably not be able to grasp how amazing it will be until I’ve actually seen it myself. I’ve been to the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, which is breathtaking in itself, but no sport has the history that baseball does. No sport has had an impact on our country’s history the way baseball has, and right now I can’t even comprehend all the things that I will be seeing while there. I’m setting aside a full day and a half to take it all in, and maybe check out Doubleday Field and see if anything is going on there. All I can say is that I’m sure I’ll have lots of pictures to share! After the second day in Cooperstown, we travel south to see the Binghamton Mets host the Trenton Thunder in Eastern League action (Double-A). I’ve heard nothing but good things about the ballpark in Binghamton, and really enjoyed all of our Eastern League games last year, so I’m looking forward to this one. Hold on, though, ’cause we’re not done yet…
The next leg on our trip takes us back west, as we stop in Rochester once again, this time seeing the real home team Red Wings host the Louisville Bats. We saw the Bats a few years ago while in Louisville, so it will be nice to see them in action again, also. After a good night rest in Rochester, we’ll keep heading west to Buffalo, New York, for a pair of games. Our first stop will be the University at Buffalo where the Bulls host the Bowling Green State Falcons of the Mid-American Conference (NCAA). This game starts at 1:00 p.m., and gives us a chance to enjoy the campus before heading downtown for the night game. Keeping with the International League, we’ll be watching the Buffalo Bisons host the Gwinnett Braves in our final game in the state of New York. I actually saw the Bisons play a couple of time back in the 90’s when I was out that way working security for the World University Games and that was my first taste of the Minor Leagues. After the Bisons game we head back to Michigan…but why stop there?
After getting back on our Great Lake State, you’d think we’d just want to get home and get some rest, right? Wrong! Plenty of time to rest later, and while we’re heading back, we go right by Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, and lucky for us the Central Michigan Chippewas will be hosting their biggest rival, the Western Michigan Broncos at 2:00 p.m. in more MAC action (NCAA). After that game, we’ll hit a cross-roads. The Whitecaps will be playing that night, and we could jot down to Grand Rapids to see them play or call it a day, or trip, or whatever, and head home. In all honesty, we’ll be making that a game-time decision. If my dad’s feeling up to it, I’ll be more than happy to take in one last game. The only problem is, I usually need a vacation to rest up after all of this…but that’s what I call a good problem.
By the time this trip comes around, I’m hoping to join this century and be able to make Twitter updates from my phone or something, and if anyone is in the area for any of these games, let me know and I’ll be happy to have a ticket waiting for you at the gate. I’ll also be bringing back the ‘Logo of the Month’, featuing each of the home teams until the trip, so keep an eye out for those.
‘Caps Dominate Detroit All-Stars
Recently MiLB.com released the Detroit Tigers organizational All-Stars. Basically they honor the players who had the best seasons in their organization, regardless of age or prospect status. The Whitecaps are highly represented here, in players from the 2011 season, and alumni from previous seasons. Plenty of players here that we’ve seen and met, and hoping to see at Comerica Park someday.
Henry pictured here with the Whitecaps in 2008, is one of the Tigers Organizational All-Stars at an outfielder.
Catcher-Rob Brantly. Brantly was hitting .303 with seven homers in 75 games with the Whitecaps before being promoted to Lakeland. He totaled a .274 average, 10 long balls, and 62 RBI’s between the two leagues.
First Base-Ryan Strieby. Spending the whole Minor League season in Toledo, he led all Minor-Leaguers in home runs with 19, and second with 76 RBI’s.
Second Base-Brandon Douglas. I remember Douglas well from his time in West Michigan. He spent the entire 2011 campaign in Double-A Erie. He hit .281, had a career-high 46 RBI’s, nailed 30 doubles, and scored 72 runs.
Third Base-Nick Castellanos. We saw Castallanos play plenty of times this season, and had the opportunity to see him progress. After a very slow start, he ended up hitting .312, had 76 RBI’s, 36 doubles, and 156 total hits. Tigers are banking on him, but he’s still a few years away.
Short Stop-Audy Ciriaco. Played most of the season with Erie (101 games), but also saw some time in Toledo (14 games). Between the two levels he batted .255, with 58 runs, and 57 RBI’s. This is the third season in a row that he’s seen a little action in Triple-A, so he needs to make the jump for good next season.
Outfield-Justin Henry. Believe it or not, I’ve been sitting on this pic of Henry since 2008 when he was with the Whitecaps, and playing second base. Not sure why they moved him to outfield with the Tigers needing infield help, but maybe Douglas playing the position so well could have something to do with that. All said, Henry split time with Erie and Toledo also. He hit .314 between the two, and stole 23 bases. He drove in 47 runs for Erie to be named to the Eastern League Midseason All-Star Team.
Outfield-Jamie Johnson. In only his third season as a pro, he spent the entire season with Erie, setting personal highs in RBI’s with 51, doubles with 33, and stolen bases with 14. His 93 runs scored was tops in the Eastern League.
Outfield-Timo Perez. Perez is 36, a former World Series Champion, and still going strong. Playing in Toledo, he hit .304 and stole 16 bases. He also pounded out six homers and 32 doubles. Most impressive, though, is that he only struck out 41 times in 473 at bats.
Utiliy-Tony Plagman. Plagman spent the season with the Lakeland Flying Tigers, scoring 97 runs that led the organization. He hit .257, with 18 homers, 32 doubles, and 62 RBI’s. Good turn around for him, as he only hit five homers last season for the Whitecaps.
RHP/Starter-Brennan Smith. Smith played 14 games in Connecticut, and nine games in West Michigan. He was 4-3 with a league leading ERA of 1.53 in the NY-Penn. He had an impressive scoreless streak through 34 2/3 innings.
RHP/Starter-Jacob Turner. Turner played in Detroit this season, but before that he split time between Erie and Toledo, posting a 4-5 record with a 3.44 ERA and 110 strikeouts. Kevin Eichhorn was also mentioned, after an impressive season in West Michigan where he went 11-5 with a 3.61 ERA.
LHP/Starter-Drew Smyly. Smyly pitched 14 games for Lakeland and eight for Erie in 2011. His 2.07 ERA is the lowest in the organization, and went 7-3 in Erie, and with Toledo posted a 1.18 ERA with 53 strikeouts.
LHP/Starter-Jay Voss. Between Lakeland and Erie, he won 12 games and struck out 131 batters. While with Lakeland, he won an organizational best 15 wins.
Relief Pitcher-Chance Ruffin. Ruffin played in both Erie and Toledo before swept up by Seattle as the ‘player to be named later’ in the deal that brought Doug Fister and David Pauley to the Tigers. While with Erie, he made 10 saves in 14 attempts, with a 2.12 ERA and 3-3 record. In Toledo, he saved nine games in 10 tries with a 1.84 ERA.
Photo property of M.I.B.
Machado Up for MiLBy Award
West Michigan Whitecap Dixon Machado is up a MiLBy Award this year, in the Best Minor League Photo catagory. If you like this pic of Mach ‘turning two’ against the Great Lakes Loons on August 7 at Fifth Third Ballpark, hit this link to vote for it:
The photo is in third place now, with 11% of the votes, so maybe we can push it up a couple of notches for the win.
Photo courtesy Emily Jones/MilB.com
Fifth Third Ballpark to get Facelift for 2012
The West Michigan Whitecaps have extended their relationship with Fifth Third Bank which include the
naming rights to the ballpark.
The original deal made with Old Kent Bank (which made Old Kent Park) in 1994, was continued after Fifth Third Bank merged with Old Kent, and the stadium was re-named in 2001. New to 2012, will be a new state-of-the-art video board, and new manually operated score board, a new electronic sign along US 131, and a new sign to greet fans at the main entrance of the stadium. The new video board will measure 28 feet tall and 55 feet wide. The high-resolution screen is 25% larger than the size of the existing scoreboard and advertising panels combined. The new manual scoreboard will be 24 feet tall by 39 feet wide, and will replace the video board currently in left field. The manual scoreboard will have Whitecaps staff stationed behind it to update the score, and will offer and old-time traditional baseball feel that will offset the high-tech new video board.
“I think that it just makes sense, as we continue to add new high-tech fan amenities like the new video board, that we also stay connected to the traditions of baseball,” stated Lew Chamberlain, who runs the ‘Caps organization. “I’ve always loved the old manual boards like the one at Fenway Park and this old-style scoreboard will play homage to baseball history. It will be great fun for the fans.”
The Fifth Third Ballpark logo will be updated to reflect Fifth Third Bank’s new logo and color scheme, and will replace the existing one along the highway, US 131. Other upgrades to the ballpark include installation of flat screen TV’s throughout the concourse that display the Midwest League standing, league leaders, and player of the week information. This will replace the A-Frame signs around the concourse, and create more room for the fans. There will also be state-of-the-art equipment upgrades in the production room to go with the new video board. These include a wireless camera system for fan shots and close-up baseball action. Posted are some artist renditions of what the changes will look like.
Lots of new stuff to look forward to in 2012. The new schedule is already out, and I’m starting to plan what games to attend. We should be able to get there in April, weather permitting.
Photos courtesy of the West Michigan Whitecaps
Castellanos Named Tigers Top Farmhand
The Detroit Tigers recently handed out some Minor League hardware, with the Whitecaps’ Nick Castellanos being awarded Minor League Player of the Year, and Lakeland’s Drew Smyly awarded Minor League Pitcher of the Year. Both players are from last seasons draft and just completed their first pro seasons.
Castellanos was the top draft pick last season, and is the Tigers top position prospect. He had a slow start adjusting to the Midwest League, but his bat started to heat up with the weather in May. The nine-teen year old ended the 2011 campaign batting .312 with 36 doubles, seven home runs, and 76 RBI’s in West Michigan.
Smyly was Detroit’s second round selection from last years draft out of the University of Arkansas. His award is very impressive, considering the Tigers have prospects like Jacob Turner and Andy Oliver in the mix. He started the season with the Lakeland Flying Tigers, going 7-3 with a 2.58 ERA and 77 strikeouts before being promoted to Double A Erie in July. With the Seawolves, he was 4-3, but pitched himself to a miniscule 1.18 ERA in seven starts and one relief appearance.
Good luck to these players as they move up the latter in the Tigers organization.
Top photo courtesy of the West Michigan Whitecaps
Bottom photo property of M.I.B.
More Accolades for 2011 Whitecaps
Three Whitecaps are Midwest League post-season All-Stars
Third baseman Nick Castellanos, second baseball Hernan Perez, and catcher Robert Brantley have been named to the 2011 Midwest League All-Star team for the post season. Castellanos had a slow start to his first full pro season, but became one of the best players in the league though-out the course of the season. The nineteen year-old is fourth in the league with a .310 batting average, a team leading 71 RBI’s, and six home-runs. Castellanos is leading the league in hits with 147 (the ‘Caps record is 158 set by Robert Fick in 1997) and is tied for the league lead in doubles with 34. He’s solid in the clutch, also, batting a whopping .398 with runners in scoring position.
Lily posing with Nick on Opening Day
The twenty year-old Perez, from Venenzuela, returned from the Whitecaps last season to become the starting second baseman in 2011. He played shortstop for the ‘Caps last year, and has made some great plays on the infield at Fifth-Third Ballpark. This season he’s hitting .267 with eight home-runs and 40 RBI’s. He leads West Michigan with 67 runs and 22 doubles. He represented the ‘Caps at this seasons All-Star Game also.
Despite being promoted to Lakeland last month, Brantly has been honored as the top catcher in the MWL. He hit .303 with seven home-runs, and 44 RBI’s, and had 16 doubles. Behind the plate he threw out 34% of the runners trying to steal against him. I’m glad we had a chance to watch these guys plays this season, and look forward to following them up through the Tigers system.
Burgos MWL Pitcher of the Week
Whitecaps hurler Alex Burgos has also been named the Midwest League Pitcher of the Week for August 22-28. The left-hander threw eight scoreless innings last Thursday against the Lake County Captains, helping his team to a 12-innings 1-0 victory. Since joining the Whitecaps in June, Burgos has gone 6-4 with a 2.20 ERA in 14 starts. He’s struck out 82, while only giving up 55 hits this season, and has allowed opposing batters to only hit .190 against him. Burgos is the second West Michigan hurler to win the award this season, joining Kyle Ryan from July. We were lucky to see Alex pitch the Whitecaps to victory on Star Wars night on July 9.
Burgos hits the mound on Star Wars night July 9th
Photos courtesy of the West Michigan Whitecaps and M.I.B.
Whitecaps’ Ryan MWL Pitcher of the Week
West Michigan’s Kyle Ryan has been named the Midwest League’s Pitcher of the Week for his efforts against the Lansing Lugnuts last Thursday. In the first game of a double-header, he threw six hitless innings, struck out three, and walked three. He even picked off a baserunner and retired 17 of the 20 batters he faced off against. Ryan never allowed a runner to reach scoring position and came three outs from the Whitecaps first no-hitter in just over a decade. He was pulled after the sixth innings after his pitch count reached 80.
Ryan was a 12th round pick of the Detroit Tigers in 2010 out of Auburndale High School in Florida. So far this season, he is 4-8 with a 3.46 ERA and has a team high nineteen starts. He leads the Whitecaps in quality starts with 13, and has allowed only 122 hits, has struck out 69, and only walked 26 in his 109.1 innings of work. The quality pitching of hurlers like Ryan, Alex Burgos, and Kevin Eichhorn are instrumental in the ‘Caps moving up from 5th place in the MWL Eastern Division. The team is only five games back, so there is still hopes for the playoffs.
In Eichhorn’s last outing, he threw a complete game, and had his own no-hit bid going until the sixth inning in a game against the Bowling Green Hot Rods. He ended up only allowing four hits by the Hot Rods, gave up one earned run, while striking out two and walking one hitter. Sixteen of his outs were ground balls. At one point in the game, he retired fifteen batters in a row. Eichhorn increased his record to 8-3, but is 5-0 in his last ten starts. His ERA is 3.47, but was only 2.69 in those last ten outings. His eight wins leads the team.
Following up Eichhorn’s complete game, Burgos struck out a career high ten batters in the Whitecaps victory over the Dayton Dragons. He retired 17 of the first 19 hitters he faced off against, and took a one-hit shutout into the seventh inning. The left-handed Burgos is now 6-2 on the season. A fifth-round draft pick in 2010, he missed the first two months of the season after developing bicep tendonitis during spring training in his throwing are.
Photo courtesy of the West Michigan Whitecaps
Jacob Turns Heads in Debut; More Former ‘Caps Traded
Jacob Turner MLB debut vs. the California Angels
Jacob Turner made his Major League debut this afternoon, just one season away from pitching in Single-A with the Whitecaps, and two seasons out of high school. Turner is the 15th ranked prospect in all of baseball right now, so this shouldn’t be too much of a suprise to those who’ve been following his career. He didn’t disappoint, either, only giving up two runs against the talented Angels over 5 1/3 innings. He gave up three hits, walked three, and struck out six. Unfortunately, he took the loss, thanks to the efforts of Tigers relief pitcher Phil Joke Coke. Turner recieved a standing ovation from the sold-out crowd at Comerica Park for his efforts.
“Once they started cheering, I don’t even know how to describe it,” Turner stated. “My body felt like it went numb. That was probably the highlight of my day, to be honest.”
The 20-year-old right-hander also impressed his manager as well as the Tiger fans in attendance and watching him on TV on Fox’s Game of the Week.
“I thought he’d do well,” manager Jim Leyland stated. “I wasn’t sure he’d do quite as well as he did, to be honest with you. But I thought he’d do well.
Turner gave the Tigers a chance to win the game, but the thanks to the anemic offense and the struggling bullpen, he took the loss. He didn’t stay with the Whitecaps too long last season, so we didn’t get a chance to see him pitch down there. He was 2-3 with a 3.67 ERA, and 50 strikeouts with West Michigan in 2010. I look forward to seeing him on the mound in Detroit in the future.
Formers Whitecaps Wells and Furbush traded to Mariners
The Detroit Tigers traded Charlie Furbush, Casper Wells, Francisco Martinez, and a player to be named later to the Seattle Mariners for starting pitcher Doug Fister and relief pitcher David Pauley. Martinez is the Tigers 4th ranked prospect, but thought to be expendable due to Nick Castellanos’ progress in West Michigan. The move gives the Tigers a solid number five starter and beefs up the bullpen at bit. It also give Furbush and Wells a chance to be Major League players in Seattle. So far this season with the Tigers, Furbush is 1-3 with a 3.62 ERA in 17 appearances. With the Whitecaps in 2007, he was 4-1 with a 2.17 ERA and 46 strikeouts. Wells started the season with the Tigers, batting .257 with four home runs in 64 games before being optioned to the Toledo MudHens (Triple-A). In 2008, Casper batted .240 with ten home runs in 50 games with West Michigan. I wish them both the best with their new club. They can join former Whitecap pitcher Luke French who was traded to the Mariners in 2009 in a brilliant move that brought pitcher Jarod Washburn (who?) to Detroit.
Photos courtesy of the West Michigan Whitecaps
Below’s Above Average Debut; Cruz Cruises Across The Field
Duane Below makes MLB debut with the Tigers
Duane Below with the Whitecaps in 2007
Everyone loves a ‘local boy makes good’ story, so this should make some readers ecstatic. Britton, Michigan native Duane Below made his Major League debut Wednesday night against the Oakland A’s at Comerica Park, about an hour away from his home town. The Tigers lost 7-5, but Below pitched well in his first game and gave his team a chance to win. He threw five innings, giving up three runs on five hits, but only one run was earned. He also had two strike outs in the game. Below seemed pleased with his performance, though.
“It’s nice, it’s exciting,” Below told MLB.com. “[I was] just trying to continue to feel it out and feel what I have to do to get better. I’m still kind of nervous a little bit, I’m still excited, not sure how to take it, because it’s still settling in. It’s a dream. Hopefully I can continue to stay here and help the team win.”
I love it when players sound like little kids when their dreams come true. We were lucky enough to see Below pitch when he was with the Whitecaps back in 2007. The game was a sell-out at the time, with a local boy on the mound, and the ‘Caps picking up an 8-4 win over visiting Fort Wayne. Below also pitched five innings in that game and gave up one run. He posted a 2.97 ERA with West Michigan in 2007, and had a record of 13-5. He was named the Tigers Minor League Pitcher of the Year and the Whitecaps Pitcher of the Year after leading the Midwest League in strikeouts with 160 in 2007. I was able to scrounge up a couple of pics from that game before my MLBlog days, but nothing real good of Below.
West Michigan beats Fort Wayne 8-4 with Duane Below on the mound
Cruz traded to Kansas City Royals
Now-former Whitecaps pitcher Antonio Cruz was traded to the Kansas City Royals yesterday, in a deal that brought infielder Wilson Betemit to the Tigers. Lucky for Cruz, the Whitecaps were hosting KC affiliate Kane County Cougars, so he just walked across the field to his new dugout and team. He first joined the ‘Caps as an 18-yr-old in 2010, going 2-0 with a 2.79 ERA during ten late season relief appearances. This season, the left-handed hurler was 2-6 with a 3.11 ERA. At the beginning of the season he was a starter, but was moved to the bullpen to limit his innings pitched.
With the acquisition of Betemit, former Whitecap and Tigers staple third baseman Brandon Inge has been designated for assignment and has reported to the Triple A Toledo MudHens. He needs to clear waivers next Monday, but Inge can’t really picture himself playing anywhere but Detroit.
“I could’ve made the decision not to accept the assignment, and maybe get picked up by another team,” Inge stated. “But i live here, my kids go to school around here, I’ve made this home. I still feel, no matter what happens–and no matter what will ever happen–that this is home for me. I’ve spent so many years here, and still plan on spending a lot more here. Everyone goes through rough patches in their career. This is definitely on of them. But I’m a big believer that everything happens for a reason, and I opted not to push them into making a decision where they could release me.”
Inge is a fan favorite, and one of my favorites, but this had to be done. I wish him the best, and hope he can turn things around.
Antonio Cruz traded to the Kansas City Royals
Below photo courtesy of Joel Dinda/mwlguide
Whitecaps game photo property of M.I.B.
Cruz photo courtesy of Emily Jones/MiLB
Star Wars Night-Episode II: Attack of the Kids
West Michigan Whitecaps vs. Bowling Green Hot Rods: Fifth Third Ballpark-Comstock Park, MI
Our favorite game of the year is Star Wars night for sure. This time we brought Brian down for the fun, too. It was a beautifull night for baseball, but the real thrill for the kids was seeing all of their favorite movie characters. Me being a Star Wars freak since I was like, five, they’ve been exposed to the movies (original trilogy) for a number of years. We were able to get pics with most of the characters on hand, especially Darth Vader and Boba Fett, who is simply the greatest. There were some Jedi and X-Wing pilots hanging around, but the kids, especially Trevor, favor the Empire and thier legions of Stormtroopers, Snowtroopers, and pilots. Brian wanted no part of Darth Vader, either, as you’ll see he’s not in the picture with him. Darth Vader also threw out the first pitch, and had a little duel with Crash, the mascot. The night ended with a fireworks display with Star Wars theme music. The Whitecaps also wore special Star Wars jerseys. Of all the game I’ve been to so far, I think we’ve only seen the regular ‘Caps jersey’s once! There was a huge crowd again this year, season high 10,528, but we still got to see who we wanted and had time to play in the park there, too. I’m not sure what our next game will be, but it will be hard to beat this night.
Starting pitcher #20 Alex Burgos
In the game, the Whitecaps had a solid offensive effort, beating the Hot Rods 11-3. Top prospect Nick Constellanos had two home runs the game, and went 3-4. He was recently named the Detroit Tigers Minor Player of the Month for hitting .375 with 20 RBI’s in June. He now leads the Midwest League with 94 hits, leads the ‘Caps with 52 RBI’s, and is one of the MWL leaders in batting average with .306 and doubles with 23. Castellanos is a good bet for next seasons Furtures Game if he keeps this pace up. On the mound, Alex Burgos was solid in the win. He allowed three runs on five hits while striking out six, to up his record to 4-1. Three of the hits he gave up were infield singles.
Aren’t they a little short for Stormtroopers?
“If Trevor won’t turn to the Dark Side, then perhaps his sister will…”
The most feared Bounty Hunters in the Galaxy…
I need to win this…for the kids, that is
Lead off hitter #16 Luis Castillo
At 85 degrees, it was more like Tatooine than Hoth…
Photos property of M.I.B.
Minoring In Baseball 