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Pittsburgh, Pa. - After the last game of the season in 2014, a lot of players on the Millers were quick to point out that they all felt that the team improved after the all star break, and were eager to get back to work for the next season.
"This year didn't go as we hoped obviously," shortstop Seth Herrington said surrounded by the media, as longtime clubhouse manager 'T-Bone' Burrell packed up his locker in the background, "We moved on from a bunch of people, friends, teammates, guys who've been around the game for a while, but every team needs their young guys to play eventually, get their feet wet so to speak, and I think that we saw some talent that's going to be with us moving forward."
A lot of what Herrington says is true, and he has been a Miller stalwart since he came into the league in 2008. He's widely respected by his teammates, the fans, and the Millers brass. At the GM meetings in Nashville this past December, Miller GM Mike C and Manager Jerry Russell showed off the new jersey that Herrington will be wearing when the team takes the field.
Don't fret Miller fans, your number '3' Miller jerseys aren't a collectable item, yet, but there is a new addition to his jersey.
The addition is a small 'C' on the chest.
"Seth Herrington is definition of what we strive a Pittsburgh Miller to be like. He's a leader vocally, and by example. We are extremely proud to announce that Seth has been named as captain of our team." GM Mike C announced to the media that day.
Herrington experienced his best offensive season last year, posting career highs in OPS, WAR and RBI. His defense has always been tremendous, and he's earned the respect of his teammates.
Teammates. In case you have been out of the loop, Herrington, and the rest of the Millers, have welcomed some new faces into their clubhouse. The message in each announcement of the transaction has been the same.
"79-83 is not good enough."
This offseason the Millers have added some big name talent starting with 4-Time All-Star, 2-Time DWI Award winner, and 2007 Stout Slugger winner, Abraham Santana. He's coming off a season in Baltimore where he hit .259/.399/.474 with a .874 OPS. He hit 29 HR and 96 RBI and led the Bulldogs as one of the more respected leaders on the team. The 34 year old joins the Millers as one of the new leaders and best bats in the game.
He's joined by another former Stout Slugger.
Ricky Murillo. Murillo was acquired from Carolina in a blockbuster deal that saw prized prospect Ted Kessler and four picks head to the Import League while a superstar outfielder joins an already stout lineup.
The lineup that will be penciled in for opening day sets up as so:
Zhi-Peng Kun, 2B will leadoff. Kun moves from CF to 2B, mainly to accommodate prized prospect, Jamie O’Hearn for his eventual takeover of centerfield. Kun’s no stranger to playing in the infield, however his defense is a major question mark in that position. His bat, however, certainly is not. Kun experienced one of his best offensive seasons of his career last season, where he batted .294/.373/.444 for an .817 OPS. Unexpectedly, Kun demonstrated a power stroke, blasting 17 HR and driving in 73 runs.
Second is the catcher Abraham Santana, .259/.399/.475 .874 OPS
Third is the shortstop, and captain, Seth Herrington, .289/.325/.483 .808 OPS with 20 HR/91 RBI
Fourth is All Star Dave Shook, .299/.363/.561 .924OPS with 38HR/104 RBI
Fifth is the newly acquired LF Ricky Murillo, .287/.375/.497 .872 OPS 27 HR and 90 RBI
Sixth will be Joey Leger, who boasted a career high 17 HR and drove in 53 runs while batting .298/.328/.484 .812 OPS
Seventh will be former cleanup hitter Jamie Monson, who’s .277/.336/.495 and .831 OPS along with 33 HR and 100 RBI will be a welcome addition to the bottom of the lineup.
8th CF Jimmy Peller, who struggled in his time in the BLB with the Millers last season, but had a tremendous season in AAA Allentown, where he hit .303/.360/.454 for a .814 OPS
And finally, batting 9th is 3B Javy Sanchez who produced a .323/.411/.451 and .862 OPS last season, his first for the Millers.
That lineup has the makings to be one of the better lineups in the Domestic league.
“How can you not be excited?” Dave Shook said, “It’s great to know that management will do whatever it takes to make sure we win games, now it is up to us to perform.”
Alright, so historically the Millers haven’t had any issues scoring runs. The pitching was the issue last season.
To improve the weakness, the Millers added ace Todd Taylor, Roger Medina (both acquired in separate moves with Denver) as well as Sid Bourne (former Miller prospect).
To close out the games, the Millers spent big in free agency. The first move was to bring back long time Miller closer and fan favorite T.J ‘Tubby’ Mileski.
Tubby left last season and had his best of his career, with rival Indianapolis.
“There are some guys that leave in free agency, some guys get traded, and there are some players who should be with the same team for the entirety of their careers,” GM Mike C said, “I’m not proud of what happened last season in regards to a lot of things, but the thing that hurt me the most was how we handled T.J. I hope that we were able to make up for our mistake by bringing him back.”
There is a difference for Tubby this season, however, is that he won’t be pitching the ninth inning. Instead, that duty will go to the giant man from Pleasant Hill, Missouri.
Travis Gerlach.
Gerlach, a 28 year old, 6’7 255 pound giant, boasts an overpowering 100 mile-per-hour fastball and a ferocious late-breaking curveball. The 6-year veteran spent the first part of his career in Davenport, saving 101 games while pitching to a 2.53 ERA.
This season to finish out games between Mileski (275) and Gerlach (255), the Millers will be throwing out 530lbs of pure 100% FDA approved man to finish the last six outs, or as it is known locally, The remaining ladies at 2 am, closing time, in a local bar in Pittsburgh. Pure Beef
“Travis is a guy that we’ve had an eye on for quite some time. He matches the profile of guys that we want to bring into Pittsburgh, and with his talent, his age, and his success, we knew that he was priority number one. We’re extremely excited to have added all of these guys this offseason, 9 new faces that will be on the opening day roster for us, and we’ve added a few prospects that we’re really excited about.” GM Mike C said when the team introduced Mileski and Gerlach in February.
“With all of our additions we feel good heading into the season. I believe we have tremendous depth to help if we have injuries, and I believe that this season could be a special one.”
For the fans of the Pittsburgh Millers, that one special season has eluded them in the team’s history. This team will head into the season with a lot of hype, it’s going to be fascinating to see if they can accomplish the goal of winning the organizations first ever Brewmaster’s Cup.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Don't miss out on the action on opening day as the Millers take on division Rival Syracuse Monday, April 6th 2015. Be sure to buy your tickets now, visit millerbaseball.com or call (412) Home-Run.
"This year didn't go as we hoped obviously," shortstop Seth Herrington said surrounded by the media, as longtime clubhouse manager 'T-Bone' Burrell packed up his locker in the background, "We moved on from a bunch of people, friends, teammates, guys who've been around the game for a while, but every team needs their young guys to play eventually, get their feet wet so to speak, and I think that we saw some talent that's going to be with us moving forward."
A lot of what Herrington says is true, and he has been a Miller stalwart since he came into the league in 2008. He's widely respected by his teammates, the fans, and the Millers brass. At the GM meetings in Nashville this past December, Miller GM Mike C and Manager Jerry Russell showed off the new jersey that Herrington will be wearing when the team takes the field.
Don't fret Miller fans, your number '3' Miller jerseys aren't a collectable item, yet, but there is a new addition to his jersey.
The addition is a small 'C' on the chest.
"Seth Herrington is definition of what we strive a Pittsburgh Miller to be like. He's a leader vocally, and by example. We are extremely proud to announce that Seth has been named as captain of our team." GM Mike C announced to the media that day.
Herrington experienced his best offensive season last year, posting career highs in OPS, WAR and RBI. His defense has always been tremendous, and he's earned the respect of his teammates.
Teammates. In case you have been out of the loop, Herrington, and the rest of the Millers, have welcomed some new faces into their clubhouse. The message in each announcement of the transaction has been the same.
"79-83 is not good enough."
This offseason the Millers have added some big name talent starting with 4-Time All-Star, 2-Time DWI Award winner, and 2007 Stout Slugger winner, Abraham Santana. He's coming off a season in Baltimore where he hit .259/.399/.474 with a .874 OPS. He hit 29 HR and 96 RBI and led the Bulldogs as one of the more respected leaders on the team. The 34 year old joins the Millers as one of the new leaders and best bats in the game.
He's joined by another former Stout Slugger.
Ricky Murillo. Murillo was acquired from Carolina in a blockbuster deal that saw prized prospect Ted Kessler and four picks head to the Import League while a superstar outfielder joins an already stout lineup.
The lineup that will be penciled in for opening day sets up as so:
Zhi-Peng Kun, 2B will leadoff. Kun moves from CF to 2B, mainly to accommodate prized prospect, Jamie O’Hearn for his eventual takeover of centerfield. Kun’s no stranger to playing in the infield, however his defense is a major question mark in that position. His bat, however, certainly is not. Kun experienced one of his best offensive seasons of his career last season, where he batted .294/.373/.444 for an .817 OPS. Unexpectedly, Kun demonstrated a power stroke, blasting 17 HR and driving in 73 runs.
Second is the catcher Abraham Santana, .259/.399/.475 .874 OPS
Third is the shortstop, and captain, Seth Herrington, .289/.325/.483 .808 OPS with 20 HR/91 RBI
Fourth is All Star Dave Shook, .299/.363/.561 .924OPS with 38HR/104 RBI
Fifth is the newly acquired LF Ricky Murillo, .287/.375/.497 .872 OPS 27 HR and 90 RBI
Sixth will be Joey Leger, who boasted a career high 17 HR and drove in 53 runs while batting .298/.328/.484 .812 OPS
Seventh will be former cleanup hitter Jamie Monson, who’s .277/.336/.495 and .831 OPS along with 33 HR and 100 RBI will be a welcome addition to the bottom of the lineup.
8th CF Jimmy Peller, who struggled in his time in the BLB with the Millers last season, but had a tremendous season in AAA Allentown, where he hit .303/.360/.454 for a .814 OPS
And finally, batting 9th is 3B Javy Sanchez who produced a .323/.411/.451 and .862 OPS last season, his first for the Millers.
That lineup has the makings to be one of the better lineups in the Domestic league.
“How can you not be excited?” Dave Shook said, “It’s great to know that management will do whatever it takes to make sure we win games, now it is up to us to perform.”
Alright, so historically the Millers haven’t had any issues scoring runs. The pitching was the issue last season.
To improve the weakness, the Millers added ace Todd Taylor, Roger Medina (both acquired in separate moves with Denver) as well as Sid Bourne (former Miller prospect).
To close out the games, the Millers spent big in free agency. The first move was to bring back long time Miller closer and fan favorite T.J ‘Tubby’ Mileski.
Tubby left last season and had his best of his career, with rival Indianapolis.
“There are some guys that leave in free agency, some guys get traded, and there are some players who should be with the same team for the entirety of their careers,” GM Mike C said, “I’m not proud of what happened last season in regards to a lot of things, but the thing that hurt me the most was how we handled T.J. I hope that we were able to make up for our mistake by bringing him back.”
There is a difference for Tubby this season, however, is that he won’t be pitching the ninth inning. Instead, that duty will go to the giant man from Pleasant Hill, Missouri.
Travis Gerlach.
Gerlach, a 28 year old, 6’7 255 pound giant, boasts an overpowering 100 mile-per-hour fastball and a ferocious late-breaking curveball. The 6-year veteran spent the first part of his career in Davenport, saving 101 games while pitching to a 2.53 ERA.
This season to finish out games between Mileski (275) and Gerlach (255), the Millers will be throwing out 530lbs of pure 100% FDA approved man to finish the last six outs, or as it is known locally, The remaining ladies at 2 am, closing time, in a local bar in Pittsburgh. Pure Beef
“Travis is a guy that we’ve had an eye on for quite some time. He matches the profile of guys that we want to bring into Pittsburgh, and with his talent, his age, and his success, we knew that he was priority number one. We’re extremely excited to have added all of these guys this offseason, 9 new faces that will be on the opening day roster for us, and we’ve added a few prospects that we’re really excited about.” GM Mike C said when the team introduced Mileski and Gerlach in February.
“With all of our additions we feel good heading into the season. I believe we have tremendous depth to help if we have injuries, and I believe that this season could be a special one.”
For the fans of the Pittsburgh Millers, that one special season has eluded them in the team’s history. This team will head into the season with a lot of hype, it’s going to be fascinating to see if they can accomplish the goal of winning the organizations first ever Brewmaster’s Cup.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Don't miss out on the action on opening day as the Millers take on division Rival Syracuse Monday, April 6th 2015. Be sure to buy your tickets now, visit millerbaseball.com or call (412) Home-Run.
*Image produced by Bdub creative design and co.*
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