Posada delivers 500th hit as a Posse to move Wainwright's steak to 14

Adam Wainwright delivered one of his worst starts of his career, but as often is the case, the Posse offense supported their pitchers with a huge seventh inning. As mentioned earlier, Wainwright has started his career by winning 13 straight games but things were not looking good in this game. He headed to the dugout after recording the last out of the sixth inning down 6-3 to the Melbourne Beach Manatees. In the top of the seventh the Posse were able to load the bases for Jorge Posada, who entered the game needing a hit to get his 500th in a Posse uniform. Jorge delivered the big hit, a double over the centerfielder's head to score two runs and put the Posse down by one. After an intentional walk to Chone Figgins the managers got into a battle of the wits contest which was won by the Posse manager. Wilson Betemit was brought in to pinch hit with the bases loaded, but did not get to swing the bat as the Manatees brought in Jimmy Gobble which forced a change to slugger Sammy Sosa. Sosa delivered with a grand slam homerun to give the Posse the lead which they would not lose, winning the game 10-7. Posada became the fifth Posse hitter to get 500 hits in their uniform, following Aramis Ramirez, Derek Jeter, Torii Hunter and Bobby Abreu.

Strat-O-Matic Report

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BOXSCORE: 2008 Oak Ridges Posse At 2008 Melbourne Beach Manatees     6/3/2008

 

  Posse              AB  R  H RBI AVG     Manatees           AB  R  H RBI AVG

  D.Jeter SS          5  1  3  1 .349     E.Byrnes RF         4  2  2  0 .284  

  B.Abreu RF,CF,LF    4  2  1  0 .237     B.Harris 2B         5  0  1  1 .284  

  P.Polanco 2B        4  0  1  0 .369     R.Belliard 3B       5  1  2  2 .296  

  B.Bonds LF          5  2  3  2 .292     P.Fielder DH        4  1  2  0 .278  

E-R.Johnson LF,CF     0  0  0  0 .298     M.Byrd CF           4  1  2  1 .383  

  F.Thomas DH         3  0  1  0 .255     B.McCann C          5  0  1  2 .243  

A-J.Giambi PH         1  1  0  0 .443     J.Payton LF         4  0  0  0 .327  

  J.Posada C          4  1  1  2 .305     S.Hillenbrand 1B    4  0  0  0 .000  

  A.Ramirez 3B        3  0  0  0 .336     T.Pena Jr SS        3  2  1  1 .272  

B-C.Figgins PH,3B     1  1  0  0 .294                                          

  T.Hunter CF         1  0  0  0 .295                                          

C-W.Betemit PH        0  0  0  0 .207                                          

D-S.Sosa PH,RF        2  1  1  4 .227                                          

  C.Kotchman 1B       5  1  1  0 .250                                          

                     -- -- -- ---                            -- -- -- ---      

         Totals      38 10 12  9                 Totals      38  7 11  7

 

A-Pinch Hit For Thomas In 7th Inning

B-Pinch Hit For Ramirez In 7th Inning

C-Pinch Hit For Hunter In 7th Inning

D-Pinch Hit For Betemit In 7th Inning

E-Subbed Defensively (LF) For Bonds In 8th Inning

 

Posse........... 2 0 0  1 0 0  7 0 0  - 10 12  1

Manatees........ 2 0 2  1 0 1  0 1 0  -  7 11  0

 

Posse (52-11)            IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR  PC    ERA

A.Wainwright WIN(12-0)    6 2/3   9   6   6   2   5   0 121   2.76

M.Corpas                  1 1/3   2   1   1   0   3   1  17   1.69

J.Nathan SAVE(23rd)       1       0   0   0   0   1   0  16   2.88

Totals                    9      11   7   7   2   9   1

 

Manatees (15-39)         IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR  PC    ERA

S.Trachsel                6       6   3   3   3   0   1  94   4.84

O.Villarreal LOSS(1-2)    0 2/3   2   5   5   3   0   0  25   6.69

J.Gobble BS(4th)          0       1   1   1   0   0   1   3   9.33

D.Brocail                 1 1/3   3   1   1   0   0   0  25  10.32

R.Betancourt              1       0   0   0   0   0   0  10   5.68

Totals                    9      12  10  10   6   0   2

 

ATTENDANCE- 29,610 DATE- Tuesday, June 3rd 2008 TIME- Night 

T- 3:29

LEFT ON BASE- Posse: 8  Manatees: 8

DOUBLE PLAYS- Posse: 1  Manatees: 0

ERRORS- D.Jeter

DOUBLES- J.Posada(15th), E.Byrnes(9th), R.Belliard(17th), B.McCann(19th)

TRIPLES- C.Kotchman(3rd)

HOME RUNS- B.Bonds(12th), S.Sosa(1st), T.Pena Jr(4th)

STOLEN BASES- D.Jeter-2(6th), B.Abreu(3rd)

CAUGHT STEALING- T.Hunter

WALKS- B.Abreu, P.Polanco, J.Giambi, J.Posada, C.Figgins, T.Hunter, P.Fielder,

       T.Pena Jr

HIT BY PITCH- T.Hunter, E.Byrnes, M.Byrd

STRIKE OUTS- B.Harris, R.Belliard, P.Fielder, B.McCann-2, J.Payton-2,

             S.Hillenbrand-2

GIDP- B.McCann

WILD PITCHES- S.Trachsel, D.Brocail

Looking toward tomorrow's MLB Draft

As is the case every year, one of the Posse managements favorite days of the year is the MLB draft. Each year, the Posse have a good group of prospects in the draft and this year is no different.



This year the Posse expect to have at least four players chosen in the first round, including a couple in the top ten selections. The number in the first round could reach as high as six if signability concerns decrease.


Leading the charge this year is shortstop Tim Beckham. Beckham is a probable top five pick in this draft and could go as high as first overall. He brings a complete game to the field with very strong defensive skills and a complete game with the bat. Posse management see Beckham competing with Justin Jackson as the future after Derek Jeter.


Also expected to go in the top ten selections is recently drafted Kyle Skipworth. Skipworth will be drafted as a catcher and brings a very strong bat to the field. He has the ability to hit for both average and power. He also has very good defensive abilities and the only concern with him sticking at catcher is whether he gets too big for the position. Posse management hopes he can stay at catcher and compete with Chris Snyder as the successor to Jorge Posada.


The third of the first round probables is pitching prospect Tim Melville. Melville is probably the top rated high school pitcher in this draft with both a plus curveball and plus fastball which he delivers cleanly from hit 6'5" body. Historically teams do not like to take prep pitching prospects in the first round, but that mold was shattered last year with eight selected last year and many of them are seen as top of the rotation starters.


The next four prospects will be really interesting to see where they end up, and for very different reasons. Aaron Hicks leads that group as probably a first round candidate as a toolsy outfielder or a first round candidate as a power pitcher. The question is not whether he goes in the first round but whether he is drafted as an outfielder or pitcher. Posse management is hoping as an outfielder, and that Hicks will have a future role in either centerfield or right field.

Casey Kelly could go in the first round or could go completely undrafted. Kelly brings great defensive skills at shortstop and also brings a potential power bat to the position. He is a great athlete, which is part of the problem as he is also a highly recruited quarterback and could go to Tennessee as a starting shortstop and quarterback. Posse management is hoping he could become a third shortstop prospect with Jackson and Beckham.


Alex Meyer is probably the one that will fall the most from this group. He is still a first round talent, as the 6'7" righthander has a plus fastball and nasty breaking ball. The challenge is he wants to go to college and many will waste a high draft pick on that risk. Meyer will probably either go undrafted or will be taken with a 5th-10th rounder by a team willing to spend. The only way he will not go to Kentucky is if hr is offered first round money.


Isaac Galloway has long be thought of a first round talent, but some concern over his ability to hit has decreased his stock this spring. Galloway has the tools to be a strong offensive player as he has plus bat speed and typically makes solid contact. Whichever team drafts him will probably have to adjust his swing to bring some power into his game. Defensively, Galloway is a gold glove potential centerfielder. Posse management hopes this Torii Hunter clone can make the necessary adjustments to become their Torii Hunter of the future.


Daniel Webb is a power pitching prospect that currently is a work in progress on his secondary pitches. Webb has the ability of being a top of the rotation starter if he learns to throw some secondary pitches or could end up being a closer. Posse management expect he will be drafted in the second to fifth rounds, will start of as a starter but will eventually make the majors as a reliever.


Oh how one's stock can drop...from the next ARod to the next University of Miami third baseman. That is the story of Harold Martinez. Six months ago Martinez was a first round talent that had the tools to become a top five selection. After a horrible senior season, he will most likely be drafted late and will head to Miami. The only way that path will be changed is if someone believes a few tweaks could take advantage of his raw skillset.

Posse make Blackburn their second first round selection

The Posse entered the MDBL draft with four first round draft selections. Earlier on they took high school senior Kyle Skipworth as a high ceiling catching prospect that will one day fill the void left by Jorge Posada. With the second selection they went for something that was more immediate, Nick Blackburn. Blackburn is a starting pitcher that is expected to jump into the major league rotation next year. "Yes, we are probably going to need some starting pitching help next year due to Randy Johnson's injury concerns. Right now we have Carlos Zambrano, Adam Wainwright, Fausto Carmona, Mike Mussina, Brad Penny and Randy Johnson. Adding some youth to that mix quickly was very important to us.", stated GM Shawn Luddington.



Blackburn was the 56th ranked prospect by Baseball America in their latest numbers. He is not the typical top of the rotation starter that the Posse Management likes to target, but he will be in the majors quickly. He is a very similar player to Chris Volstad, another Posse prospect that is knocking on the major league door. Blackburn has an above average fastball that tops out in the low 90's, but has good downward life which induces alot of ground balls. Blackburn also has a strong group of secondary pitches, including a plus slider and a solid cutter. "What makes Blackburn inticing is his ability to keep the ball down and throw strikes. He will not walk a ton of batters which means he will be a pretty consistent player, and he will induce many double plays. Another thing we like about him is his ability to get left handers out, typically that is something tough to find in a right handed pitcher.", claimed GM Luddington. With the good comes the bad. Blackburn does not throw overly hard so he will tend to be hit quite a bit, and he has had a checkered injury past with two knee surgeries.

Posse make high school catcher first selection in minor league draft

The Posse announced today the selection of High School catcher Kyle Skipworth with their first, first round selection. Skipworth was the third player selected in the draft behind Geovany Soto and Aaron Crow.



"We are very excited to add Kyle to our organization. He brings a complete package of a power contact bat that also has the ability to field his position well.", stated GM Shawn Luddington. "Not only was he the top rated available player on our board, but he also plays a position that we are focused on stocking right now".

In the short term the Posse probably do not have a need for a catcher as they have Jorge Posada and Chris Snyder in the majors, but in the minors the story is much different. "We have not had much luck building from within on that position. We came into the season with Hank Conger and Danny Rams. Conger is out currently with an injury and we decided to part ways with Rams as he was not progressing to the level we expect. Kyle and Hank should give us two potential star catchers that will be ready when Jorge retires".

Skipworth is a big bodied catcher who has the potential of outgrowing the position. Right now he has the overall skillset to remain at the position. He has plus bat speed, good power, soft hands and an above-average arm.

Posse take series over Sea Dogs

The Oak Ridges Posse moved to 4-2 on the season after taking 2 of 3 from the Portland Sea Dogs.

The first game of the series was highlighted by three plays in the game. The first was an inside the park homerun by Jorge Posada, when Gary Sheffield and Grady Sizemore ran into each other on a ball hit to left center. This gave the Posse a 2-0 lead. After the Sea Dogs got one of those runs back, the second highlight occured in the bottom of the ninth inning as closer Joe Nathan blew the save by giving up a lead off homerun to Kevin Youkilis. The score remained tied until the 12th inning when the third highlight won the game for the Posse. Derek Jeter hit a homerun to the give the Posse a 3-2 lead.

Game's 2 and 3 were not close games at all. In game 2, the Posse scored seven runs in the first inning off starter Jason Bergmann, and took an 11-0 lead by the seventh inning. The Sea Dogs got 5 runs back but lost the game 11-5. The first inning runs were scored on a Jorge Posada 2 run homerun and a Torii Hunter grand slam. Hunter was the star of the game going 3-4 with a run scored and five RBI's.

Game 3 was the reverse as Brad Penny could not stop the Sea Dog offense. Penny gave up 13 runs in 5 innings, and took the 13-7 loss.

Spring Training Report - Jorge Posada

Yesterday's Spring Training Report focused on catcher Ivan Rodriguez, and our Saturday report is on fellow catcher Jorge Posada. Jorge went 1 for 2 with a homerun in his first appearance in spring training. Jorge joined the Posse via a trade with the Fairfield Pioneers back in March 2005. During his two years with the Posse he went to two MDBL World Championships, winning one in the process. In the past offseason, Jorge resigned with the Posse for five more years and is expected to be the teams primary catcher against righties.

Spring Training Report - Ivan Rodriguez

Veteran catcher Ivan Rodriguez is our Friday spring training player of the day. Ivan went 3 for 3 with a homerun during the spring training contest. Rodriguez joined the Posse this year from the Ironmen for Kris Benson and a couple prospects. He is expected to catch against lefties this year in a platoon with Jorge Posada, though there have been rumors that he may be traded for a top prospect.