It's that time of year again, spring is in the air and for Minor League Baseball fans, it time to familiarize yourself with your hometown teams roster. As camps break and players are assigned, it time to meet your 2009 Hagerstown Suns. According to Hagerstown's Director of Media Relations, Ryan Mock, this year's team is heavy on pitching and defense. Those of you familiar with recent Suns teams are probably accustomed to the opposite as past teams relied of big sticks instead of strong arms.
The Suns 2009 pitching staff is expected to be anchored by Jack McGeary. Baseball America ranks McGeary as the 5th best prospect in the organization. He also possesses the best curveball and control in the system. This 6'3" Lefty took an unorthodox yet increasingly popular rout to professional baseball. Chosen by the Nats in the Sixth Round and considered a steal that late, McGeary agreed to sign with the Nats on condition that he could attend Stanford University and play for the Nats during the summer break.
Marcos Frias, Brad Peacock, Ricardo Pecina and Terrence Engles are expected to round out the Starting Rotation. The bullpen will consist of Patrick Arnold, Austin "The Moustache" Garrett, Kevin Light, fan favorite Chris Lugo, Carlos Peralta, Justin Phillabaum, Sidearmer David Slovak and expected closer Osvaldo Rodriguez.
Expect a lot of Strikeouts on the Susquehanna Bank K Wire this season as these young arms are ready to go.
For the position players, expect emphasis on defense this season.
Wearing the tools of ignorance, the Suns field two highly touted prospects with different skill sets. Derrick Norris is without question the best power hitter and rated as the 6th best prospect on the farm. He is also considered to have the best strike zone discipline in the Nats system. Sandy Leon completes the tandem and is considered the best defensive catcher in the Nats system.
The infield brings a host of 2008 draft pick through Hagerstown. Ronnie LaBrie is the anchor at 1st Base. According to Hitting Coach Tony Tarasco, Ronnie brings lightning quick hand and bat speed to middle of the Suns Lineup. The middle of the infield showcases lead off threat Nick Arata and Steve Lombardozzi in the number 2 slot. The hot corner is manned by Suns returnee Steven Sousa, batting third in the lineup. The infield is rounded out by two other returnees in Jose Lozada, who showed flashes of brilliants in his first professional campaign, and Robbie Jacobson in a utility role playing the corner infield positions, outfield, as well as adding depth at catcher.
In the Outfield, Marcus Jones adds athleticism and a strong arm, while Chris Curran covers ample territory in Center field and can spark the offense from the lead off position. Michael Guerrero and 2008 Sun Stephen Englund round out the spacious Municipal Stadium outfield.
In the dugout, the Suns coaching staff all have several years in the Majors. First year Skipper Matt LeCroy had a monster year as a player in independent baseball, but couldn't pass up the opportunity presented to him by the Nationals to lead your Hagerstown Suns. He has large shoes to fill in replacing fan favorite Darnell Coles, who departed for a AAA position in the organization. Preliminary indications lead me to believe he will do just fine in that department.
Tony Tarasco returns for his second year with the team as hitting instructor and Rich Gale makes his Hagerstown debut as Pitching Coach. His Major League days lead him to the bump for the Royals, Red Sox,Reds and Giants.
Opening night might as well have been sponsored by Sham-WOW! as the ushers were busy drying off the seats of the 2,500 plus in attendance. The Suns lived up to expectations with a strong pitching effort as they went toe-to-toe with the Delmarva Shorebirds. Starting Pitcher Marcos Frias pitched 5.2 innings of three hit ball. His control was amazing as he stuck out 6 Shorebirds and walked none. Unfortunately he was matched in his effort by Delmarva pitcher Oliver Drake. Both pitchers left with the score knotted at 1. The Suns bullpen pitched strong, but couldn't hold the lead as the Suns fell 2-1. Ronnie LaBrie led the offense going 2 for 4 with the lone RBI for the Suns.
This brings me to the first segment of my blog. For each home game I will award a cowbell to the game MVP. The cowbells will be added up to determine the Hagerstown Suns Cowboy Cup winner. I have no idea what this will lead to, but for now its just for pride. For those of you that do not attend regularly, I ring a cowbell every time the Suns score. I will keep standings and post them on my blog. For the home opener I have to tip my ten gallon hat to Marcos Frias for his outstanding pitching effort. Marcos Frias 1, the rest of the Suns 0.
Home game two brought more rain and more offense. The game was completed while intermittent showers peppered the field. The Suns pitchers struck out 10 Shorebirds lead by starter Brad Peacock with 6, but the night belonged to the offense. Derek Norris went 3 for 4 with his 2nd HR of the season and had 3 RBI. Robbie Jacobson was clutch as he had 4 RBI and fueled a 7 run 5th inning with a 3-run double to put the Suns in the drivers seat. Austin "the Moustache"Garret picked up the win with 3 innings of relief work. I had to think about who to award the cowbell to, but I had to give it to Norris. Jacobsen's huge double had me teetering, but I have to give it to Norris for his hits, runs and HR.
Wednesdays game was rained out because I didn't want my chaps to get wet and muddy.
The 1st series of the season is always awkward as I have to get back into the swing of things and don't really get to enjoy the game as I traditionally have had to battle bad weather. The 2006 season brought strong winds and numbers blowing off into the field. 2007 has been the biggest challenge to date as strong winds blew numbers onto the field during the national anthem and there was a blizzard in the middle of the game. Last year opening night was rained out, so all things considered this year wasn't too bad.
At this time I'm going to post part 1 of my initial blog and come back shortly with more segments and updates. I'll be back shortly.
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