2005 Wilmington Blue Rocks

From SoSH

1 2005 Wilmington Blue Rocks Season-Ending Report

2005 Wilmington Blue Rocks Season-Ending Report

Final Record: 60-80

What is the Carolina League?

The Carolina League (CAR) is full season "advanced" A-ball league. CAR teams are generally made up of players who have gone through at least a year of full season A Ball or high draft picks who competed in an "advanced" short season league (such as the New York-Penn League). A few players from the 2005 Draft Class may get the call to duty in "Advanced" A-Ball, usually after a short stint elsewhere in the system.

How did we do?

By record, Abysmally. The Blue Rocks ended their first season with the Red Sox with the worst record the organization has ever had, ending the season 20 games under .500 at 60-80. The Blue Rocks were the only Continental Based Red Sox team to end the year with a losing record (the only other affiliate to end below .500 was the Dominican Summer League team), and ended the season by not renewing the contract of manager Dann Billardelo.

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Tangents

Now, before I continue, I need to go off on a couple of tangents.

First, this team, despite its record, fascinated me. Mostly because of this amazing fact. In games decided by at least 2 runs, the Blue Rocks had a mediocre record which was likely a better indication of the talent present, 45-47. However, 1/3 of the teams games were decided by exactly one run... and the Rocks were an absolutely amazing 18 games UNDER .500 in those games, finishing the season in those contests with a record of 15-33.

The problem, as will be seen when we look at the players, is that the team had a fairly abysmal offense, as the team scored 4 runs or fewer in 80 of the 140 games played, going 22-58 in those games.

OK, you probably are all saying "interesting, but fascinating? I don't see it." Fair enough. I'll just add one more fact to the file. Blue Rocks pitching LED the Carolina League in shutouts. With 11. Which means that in nearly 20% of the Blue Rocks wins, the opposition did not score. Which makes sense... how else do you win games when the offense scores so rarely. [The Rocks were shutout 7 times.]

Some other fun trivia: The Rocks lost all 7 games they played in where the final score was 6-5. On the other hand, they won each of the three 5-4 games. And... they played a total of 12 games with final scores of 3-2, winning three of them.

OK... tangent #2:

As we all should know, this is the Red Sox first year with Wilmington after an off-season affiliation change. Wilmington has had a history of winning with their previous affiliation, and had not had a losing record since (I believe), 1998. Our affiliate in the South Atlantic League also changed last off-season, moving to Greenville. Greenville used to have an affiliate with a team in AA. This year was the first year Greenville had seen a WINNING team since the late 1990s.

So what, you say. What does this say about the Red Sox. Well, Wilmington's previous affiliate was with the Kansas City Royals... a major league team that can't seem to get out of it's own way. Greenville's previous affiliation? The Atlanta Braves, winner of division titles since 1991.

The point I'm bringing up here is twofold:

1) Good teams, even good farm systems, often have holes within a system and/or have a different mentality about the ultimate endgame of farm systems. In other words, winning and losing are not as important as continual improvement of prospects. 2) Ownership of said affiliates want winners. Not necessarily above all else (For the most part, they care about money... and ultimately most believe (correctly or incorrectly) that won/loss record is important to that economic equation), but enough where there may have to be compromises made by an MLB club in how they run each affiliate.

In many ways, the Red Sox are in a better position than many MLB team, 3 of their affiliates are unlikely to want to leave the Red Sox unless there are major issues. Pawtucket, Portland and Lowell all are big local draws in part due to the Red Sox affiliate. However, the Red Sox need to be careful with the affiliates in the Carolina League and the South Atlantic League. Greenville has a new stadium set to open next season, and Wilmington is often polled as one of the best affiliates in A-Ball. The Red Sox can ill afford to have another season like this one next year.

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Players

First, a note of caution...

I haven't seen these players. I have no idea how they look. I can only base my opinions solely on the stats provided.

Offensive Player of the Year:
Bryan Pritz

I like Bryan. Perhaps more than most people because I have an amazing fascination with the 2004 Undrafted Free Agent Class that is doing really well for the Sox. Bryan, a UFA out of Richmond, put up a line of .299/.396/.369, leading the team in OBP. But, take a look at that line. A sub .800 OPS should not earn PoY honors. And yet... that shows the problems with the offense, doesn't it. Bryan played in 97 games, had 15 doubles, walked 53 times (and stuck out 53 times), and went 18/22 in SB attemps.

Pitcher of the Year:
Anibal Sanchez

A really easy choice despite being promoted halfway through the year, Anibal went 6-1 in 14 starts. Anibal threw 78 2/3 innings and ended with a 2.40 ERA. Sanchez walked 24 and struck out 95. His one potential blemish might be that he did get up 7 HRs over his 14 games.

OK... How about the rest?

That's a fair enough question. No real categories this year... just brute force.

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Offensive Players

Iggy Suarez: Iggy was one of the infield mainstays, playing in 116 games. Iggy had a final line of .233/.287/.288 with 20 doubles, 29 walks and 73 Ks.
Scott White: Scott showed his potential power (Hitting 22 doubles and a team high 13 HRs, but did not get on base often enough. Over 123 games, Scott went .238/.316/.384 with 43 walks and 96 Ks.
Bret LeVier: The 2004 UFA made a 7 game appearance for Wilmington, going .238/.385/.286.
Ian Bladergroen: One of the "big" minor league acquisitions for the 2005 Sox, Ian struggled as he came off of wrist surgery in the previous off season. Ian played in 75 games, going .240/.337/.331 with 6 doubles, 3 triples and 4 HRs, walking 30 times while striking out 77.
Jon Devries: Jon had his own series of injuries which limited him to 34 games for the Rocks. Jon was pretty good in this short period, going .283/.400/.478 with 10 doubles and 4 HRs. Now... if only he could stay healthy for an entire year.
Claudio Arias: Arias only had 14 games for the Rocks, going .245/.268/.509 with 2 doubles and 4 HRs.
Matt Van Der Bosch: Matt played in 69 games for the Rocks after earning a promotion from Greenville, going .283/.347/.404 with 11 doubles, 3 triples and 5 HRs. Matt went 16/21 in SB attempts, walked 27 times and struck out 69 times. At the end of the year, he was promoted to Portland.
Chad Spann: Our other young third baseman prospect, Chad put up almost the same numbers as Scott White did. Over 111 games, Chad hit 23 doubles, 4 triples and 13 HRs, ending the season with a line of .248/.322/.423. Chad walked 39 times and struck out 106.
Pat Boran: Pat was released early in the season. Pat played in 5 games, going .250/.357/.333.
Ian Cronkhite: Ian played in 6 games, going .250/.333/.375.
Jeff Ontiveros: Jeff had a legitimate case to be made for being PoY, going .251/.366/.446 with 20 doubles and 13 HRs over 87 games. Jeff also pitched in 1 relief appearance, going 1 1/3 innings, giving up 2 hits and a run.
Zach Borowiak: Another one of the infield mainstays, Zach went .254/.330/.416 over 114 games. Zach had a team high 27 doubles and also hit 11 HRs.
Dusty Brown: Another injury plaugued season for this catcher, Dusty played in 62 games, going .256/.348/.420 with 12 doubles and 8 HRs.
Willy Mota: Willy had a pretty horrifying first 18 ABs in High A Ball, going .056/.190/.222 with a HR.
Luis Segovia: Luis had 24 ABs, going .083/.120/.083.
Greg Stone: Greg Stone played 15 games for the Rocks, going .129/.308/.129 with 7 walks.
Clint Chauncey: Clint played 36 games as a back-up catcher before being released, going .144/.208/.216 with 35 Ks.
Brant Ust: One of the few older veterans on the Rocks, Brant went .262/.312/.395 with 20 doubles and 13 HRs. Brant walked 27 times and struck out 107 times.
Scott Youngbauer: Scott was another of the older veterans brought in, playing in 27 games before being promoted to Portland. Scott went .321/.380/.514 with 5 doubles, 5 triples and 2 HRs.
Dirimo Chavez: Dirimo played 41 games for the Rocks, going .205/.290/.315 with 16 walks and 25 Ks. Dirimo also pitched 1 inning of perfect relief, striking out one.1
Bryan Goelz: Bryan played in 75 games before being released, going .208/.300/.300 with 9 doubles and 28 walks.
Mickey Hall: Hall went .216/.304/.384 over 71 games with 16 doubles and 6 HRs.
Dustin Kelly: Dustin made an 11 game stint in Wilmington, going .229/.289/.257.

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Pitching

Ryan Schroyer: This reliever pitched in 13 games for the Rocks, pitching in 26 innings. Ryan went 1-1 with a save and a 4.50 ERA, walking 14 and striking out 22.
Randy Beam: Randy pitched in 19 games and 28 innings before his promotion to Portland, going 2-3 with 5 saves and a 2.25 ERA. Randy walked 11 and struck out 28.
Justin Sturge: Justin pitched in 13 games (2 starts), going 3-1 with a save and a 3.58 ERA. Justin walked 6 and struck out 18 in 32 2/3 innings.
Jose Vaquedano: Jose pitched in 28 Rocks games (23 starts), going 8-7 with a save and a 3.75 ERA. Jose walked 50 and struck out 117 over a team high 146 1/3 innings.
Edgar Martinez: Big Edgar continued his transition from catcher to relief pitcher, going 34 1/3 innings in 28 appearances. Edgar went 1-1 with 7 saves and a 2.10 ERA, walking 12 and striking out 46.
Felix Romero: Felix was the most active of the Rocks pitchers, participating in 34 games (3 starts), going 5-7 with a save and a 2.93. Over 73 2/3 innings, Felix walked 11 and struck out 87.
Tommy Hottovy: Tommy had a difficult season for the Rocks, pitching in 25 games (23 starts) and going 3-12 with a 5.45 ERA. Hottovy pitched 104 innings, giving up 37 walks and striking out 82. Besides leading the team in losses, Tommy also led the team in another negative category, giving up a team high 18 HRs.
Pete Fischer: Pete pitched in 26 games for the Rocks (1 start), going 1-4 with 8 saves and a 3.89 ERA. Pete pitched 41 2/3 innings, walking 14 and striking out 26.
Jarrett Gardner: Gardner pitched in 10 games for Wilmington, starting 7 and going 1-2 with a 6.00 ERA. Over 42 innings, Gardner walked 7, struck out 35 and gave up an amazing 13 HRs.
Gene Flores: Gene pitched 2 innings late in the year, giving up 4 hits, 2 runs and striking out one.
Randy Newsom: Randy pitched in 2 2/3 innings, giving up 2 walks, an unearned run and striking out two.
Steve Langone: Langone pitched in 18 games (5 starts), going 3-4 with a 3.92 ERA. Langone pitched 43 2/3 innings, giving up 5 walks and striking out 34.
Kyle Tabeek: One of this years UFA, Kyle pitched in 3 2/3 innings, giving up 9 hits and 6 walks, allowing 8 runs while striking out 3.
Wade Miller: Wade had a 5 inning rehab stint in Wilmington, giving up 6 hits and a run, striking out 6.
Kyle Bono: Kyle pitched in 24 games out of the pen for Wilmington prior to being included in the Jose Cruz trade with Arizona. Bono went 2-2 with a 4.07 ERA over 48 2/3 innings, walking 32 and striking out 56.
Juan Cedeno: Juan pitched in 22 games (12 starts), going 2-6 with a 5.49 ERA. in 80 1/3 innings, Juan walked 37, struck out 71 and gave up 11 HRs.
David Pahucki: Dave pitched in 4 games (7 1/3 innings)... and got 3 decisions (2-1). David gave up 7 hits, 3 walks, 3 runs (1 earned) and struck out 6.
Luis Mendoza: Luis started 22 games (23 appearances) and went 4-9 with a 6.34 ERA. Over 119 1/3 innings, Luis walked 36 and struck out 60, and giving up 17 HRs.
Joe Rogers: The knuckleballer played in 6 games (1 start) and 14 innings before being released. Joe went 1-1 with a 2.57 ERA, walking 6 and striking out 8.
Barry Hertzler: Barry played in 33 games (1 start), going 5-3 with a save and a 4.21 ERA. Over 83 1/3 innings, Barry gave up 24 walks and struck out 58.
Mike James: Mike played in 14 games (17 2/3 innings), going 0-1 with a 3.06 ERA. Mike walked 7 and struck out 12.
Cla Meredith: Cla made a 1 inning relief appearance, giving up a hit and striking out 2.
Brett Rudrude: Brett started his way back from arm surgery, going 2-1 with a 0.46 ERA in 14 relief appearances (19 2/3 innings). Brett allowed only 13 hits, but walked 14 and struck out 18.
Andrew Dobies: Andrew started all 16 games he appeared in, going 4-6 with a 4.40 ERA. Over 86 innings, Andrew walked 18 and struck out 50.
Scott Shoemaker: Scott made 5 starts at the end of the year, going 1-3 with a 7.94 ERA over 22 2/3 innings. Scott gave up 9 walks, struck out 13 and gave up 5 HRs.
Travis Rios: Travis pitched in 16 games out of the pen, going 2-1 with 2 saves and a 8.49 ERA. Over 23 1/3 innings, Rios walked 14 and struck out 15.
Matt Goodson: Matt pitched in 9 games for Wilmington, starting 4 and going 1-1 with a 4.38 ERA. Over 24 2/3 innings, Matt walked 13 and struck out 24.