Scranton Yankees News

SCRANTON YANKEES BASEBALL

 

SWB Game Notes 4-3-14

Attached, please find game notes for this afternoon’s season opener in Syracuse.

SEASON OPENERS: The SWB franchise has traditionally not fared well in season openers. Since the franchise first moved to NEPA in 1989, it has gone 8-17 when it was time to "Play Ball". The first-ever season-opening win did not come until year three for the team in 1991. The location and opponent for that 9-2 triumph? Syracuse. SWB has not won a season opener since defeating Buffalo 1-0 in 2010 at home. It has not won a road game to begin the year since an 11-3 drubbing the IronPigs at Lehigh Valley in 2009.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: The only manager SWB has known during its run as the New York Yankees' top minor league club (2007-Present), Dave Miley, celebrates his 52nd birthday today. This off-season, Miley was named a 2014 inductee to the International League's Hall of Fame. He will be formally inducted on June 7 when the club celebrates its prior 25 seasons with an anniversary celebration. Part of the fanfare will include a statue giveaway of Miley's likeness. Winner of well over 1,000 IL games, Miley earned his induction in the midst of a distinguished career. The two-time IL Manager of the Year was at the helm for the only Governors' Cup titles in the history of both the Louisville and SWB franchises. The former Cincinnati Reds manager added to his legendary resume in 2013 when he skippered the Triple-A All-Star game for a record-tying third time. He was named Manager of the Year in all of minor league baseball by Baseball America when he led SWB to an IL North crown without a home ballpark in 2012.

HOMETOWN KID: Earlier today, the New York Yankees formally announced the RailRiders' Opening Day roster. The highlight - NEPA's own Russ Canzler. The Hazleton Area High School product boasts a .271 career Major League average between his stints with the Tampa Bay Rays (2011) and Cleveland Indians (2012). He also claimed IL MVP honors in 2011 with that year’s IL South champion, Durham. Canzler spent most of last season in the IL with Norfolk where he hit .276/.369/.430 over 86 games before concluding the year with Indianapolis.

INFIELD IN: The rest of the infield includes a variety of versatile veterans in Carmen Angelini, Corban Joseph, Jose Pirela, Scott Sizemore and Zelous Wheeler. Angelini played mostly shortstop of time with Advanced-A Tampa and Double-A Trenton in 2013. Joseph and Pirela saw time in SWB last season, with the former getting his first crack at the big leagues as well. Pirela saw regular time with Trenton both on the year (124 games, .272/.359/.418), mostly at second base, and during the Thunder’s run to the Eastern League title. Sizemore has played in 160 big league games highlighted by his 2011 efforts with Oakland when he thundered 21 doubles and 11 home runs. He has suffered a torn left ACL twice in the last couple of years. Wheeler spent most of last season in the IL with Norfolk where he posted slashes of .268/.340/.421 with 10 homers over 90 games. During that time he had multiple starts at second base, third base and shortstop.

WHAT A CATCH: The catching position features two highly-touted players on the Yankees’ farm in catchers John Ryan Murphy and Austin Romine. Neither man is a stranger to SWB. Murphy, ranked by Baseball America as the Bombers' fourth-best overall prospect entering this season, made both the Triple-A ranks and the big leagues in his fourth year as a pro in 2013. The 2009 second-rounder also made waves defensively, leading the Double-A Eastern League’s backstops in caught-stealing efficiency (.480) at the time of his SWB promotion. The converted catcher was dubbed the Yankees’ system’s “Best Defensive Catcher” entering 2014. Romine held that tab and top-20 prospect status entering last year as the RailRiders’ primary receiver. His stay proved productive and brief. After 14 games and slashes of .333/.391/.405, Romine leapt back to the big leagues where he appeared in 60 games as the Yankees’ back-up backstop.

OUTFIELD QUARTET: Zoilo Almonte, Ramon Flores, Adonis Garcia and Antoan Richardson make up the outfield. Almonte established himself as one of SWB’s best hitters in his first year at the Triple-A level in 2013 (.297/.369/.421). The switch hitter started in all three outfield spots for SWB and in both corner roles over 34 games with the big club. Flores, the organization’s 20th-best prospect according to Baseball America, spent all of last year with Trenton where he played in 136 games for Tony Franklin’s Eastern League champs. He closed the year with a bang, hitting .292 after the All-Star break including a .309/.406/.447 effort in 30 August contests. Garcia, a Cuban defector, reached the RailRiders last season in his second stateside campaign. He started in all three outfield spots over 50 games played after his July 1 debut. Garcia posted the Yankees’ best batting average in big league spring training (.441/.457/.559) in 34 at-bats. Richardson, who has big league time with the Atlanta Braves, spent most of last season in the IL North with Rochester. As the usual leadoff man, he led the team with 52 walks and 25 stolen bases. He has amassed 318 swipes over nine seasons of minor league baseball.