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1988 Syracuse Slammers Preview
Starting Pitchers:
Tommy Lang
Charlie O'Rogan
Shunshen Miyamoto
Julian Orozco
Stanton Colin
The glaring weakness of the Slammers, GM Jake Wolf brought 8 starting pitchers in to spring training. The group - comprised of the five arms above, Don Stevens, Tajo Hernandez, and Clarence Nicholson - were oddly made aware of their invitation to camp last October, immediately following the 1987 season. The eight men spent the entire offseason training together in Lang's hometown of Houston. Lang, the surprise leader of the Syracuse staff considering he was just picked up mid season, put each pitcher up in his suburban Houston home for the winter months.
The much maligned Lang is poised for a turnaround in Syracuse now that he is out from underneath the pressure of former Pittsburgh owner JJ Linn, who often found himself calling out his players in the clubhouse and the media due to an unimaginable desire to win. Lang has often been heard during Spring Training commenting on the relaxing atmosphere around the Syracuse organization. "I enjoyed my time in Pittsburgh and my time playing for Mr. Linn," he commented after his third straight scoreless appearance this spring. "But the pressure was intense. When I signed my contract, some big expectations came along with it. When I didn't deliver immediately, I started pressing. Eventually, for whatever reason, our team became two guys in his eyes, me and Ev (Miller 1B Everado Gremades), instead of 25 guys working together. It hasn't been until this offseason, working with these young guys, that I've felt good about my command again."
Nicholson and Hernandez now find themselves back in AAA, and after four months as teammates and roommates, it will be interesting to see how the remaining six (SP Don Stevens earned a spot in the Slammer bullpen) handle losing two members of their close knit group. How they respond - and how the Slammers get out of the gate - will fall on the shoulders of their new #1 Lang. Whether he looked for it or not, once again, the pressure is back on Tommy.
Middle Relief
Don Stevens
Edgar Ventriss
Toraidio Gardea
Joe Barrantes
The story here is Stevens, the former #1 pick, #1 prospect, and #1 target of the Syracuse administration. A 1986 rotator cuff injury sent the phenom to rehab yet he has seemingly not yet recovered from the injury. Scouts still grade Stevens with top control, but the nasty movement that was his staple through high school has disappeared. Will a move to the bullpen help? After getting shelled in his first two spring starts (22.50 ERA), Stevens only relinquished one run in 7.1 innings in relief.
Spot Starter/Mop up
Bill Gillespie
Gillespie is a total scrub.
Setup
Pat Reardon
Reardon, the former Slammer closer, has been the consumat teammate and a natural fan favorite over the past few seasons. Despite saving 81 games over his first two BLB seasons, Reardon lost his closing job to Max Oliver, who is currently playing independent ball with the Long Beach Armada of the Golden Baseball League. After Oliver fell from favor in Syracuse, Wolf signed arguably the best closer in BLB history, Casimiro Cabezas. Although Reardon hasn't neccessarily lived up to his early hype and numbers, his team first attitude and acceptance of his new role has been just as valuable.
Closer
Casimiro Cabezas
Cabezas chose to follow the money and live out his glory days in Syracuse believing he had a shot at another elusive BLB championship. Barely a year later, he has to be asking himself if he made the right decision. Cabezas has a player option for the 1989 season, and whether or not he accepts that option will surely depend on not only his performance but that of the team.
1988 Syracuse Slammer Starting Lineup
C - Teagan Cannell - Cannell is best described as a young guy trying to find his place in a league full of all-star caliber catchers. A great rookie season was followed up with a 1987 sophomore slump, but the Syracuse front office and scouting dept. believe 1988 will be a turnaround year for Cannell, who has shown the ability to hit for average at every level. New scouting director Raul Gutierrez is confident that Cannell is developing some much needed power as well.
1B - Maureo Gonez - Gonez is the first of many young guys who are in a seemingly endless freefall. Impressive early in his BLB career, 1987 was a low point as the power hitting Gonez saw his OPS drop over 100 points from his previous career low to .648. I don't see Gonez getting any mojo back but I desperately need his power in the lineup.
2B - Raul Zamora - Once Baseball America's #3 prospect, Zamora has yet to establish a true identity in 3 1/2 BLB seasons. An absolute wizard with the glove - Zamora is rated at a Gold Glove level at 4 infield positions - Zamora's bat has yet to show consistency from season to season and his GM's tendacy to give him the green light on the basepaths has yet to pay off. Zamora's 96 career SBs are offset by the 61 times he's been caught.
SS - Noah George - The most veteran of the Syracuse IF, George might also be the most underrated. In his career, George has finished in the top 10 of various BLB offensive categories 49 times but has only made the 1983 Domestic all-stars, a season where he led the BLB with 76 extra base hits.
3B - Hector Carbajal - Carbajal has come a long way since he was the consensus BA #1 prospect. Or has he? It's been a quiet road for Carbajal since reaching the BLB but he's shown the ability to be the dominant hitter scouts across professional baseball expected him to be. Carbajal was also drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 1983 MLB Draft, and after choosing the BLB briefly flirted with signing with the Royals in 1984 after being traded to the Slammers. Slammers GM Jake Wolf convinced Carbajal he was the main piece of the puzzle they needed to win, and he stayed. After leading the league in extra base hits and a gold glove in 1987, the Syracuse fanbase - and that same front office - certainly expect him to be in 1988.
OF - Brad Carter - Carter was an afterthought in the Syracuse organization before a few offers came in for the Washington native, who was with the AAA NY Comets at the time. Since then, Carter has shown flashes of the ability that convinced Wolf to hang on to him. In 161 BLB ABs over two September callups, Carter has hit .304 with a .841 OPS.
OF - Joe Esquivel - All Joe Esquivel did in the minor leagues was hit. Now in the BLB, the notorious perfectionist has struggled with the notion that he can't hit everybody he faces. If Esquivel finds a way to meet his minor league numbers halfway in 1988, everyone will consider it a good year - except for Esquivel.
OF - Joe Cuevas - Cuevas returned to Syracuse as part of the Slammers big 86-87 spending spree, which resulted in another underwhelming finish, although not due to Cuevas. The star OF, whose exorbitant contract was criticized in league circles, did his part to live up to the high dollar figures with a .887 OPS and a 56.4 VORP.
The Other Guy (soon to be) in the Mix: 2B Frank Rancourt - After going down late last August with a torn ACL, Rancourt is due to return to the Slammer lineup in late April. When he does, he'll step back into his spot in the right side of the infield; Zamora will move over to SS and the shaky handed George will take over DH duties. When healthy, Rancourt is the Slammers most popular player and one of the best offensive second basemen in the BLB.
FUN FACT: Every starting regular for the Slammers is a product of the Syracuse minor league system. In fact, eight of the nine were drafted by the Slammers, Hector Carbajal being the lone exception. Carbajal (who spent just over a year in the low levels of the Davenport system) and Cuevas (who was traded from Syracuse to Maine in 1983 after winning ROY with the Slammers in 1979) are the only two who have spent any time outside of the Syracuse system. Ironically enough, they are the two best players we have.
Bench
SS Roger Willis
C Mark Jerome
1B Jeremy Walker
RF Pepe Rodriguez
The Slammers go into 88 with a light bench, anxiously awaiting the return of Rancourt. Willis has shown ability to be a difference maker as the utility guy; Jerome is a bum; Walker tore up spring training; and Rodriguez was a rule V pick who has shown some power. Bunch of scrubs outside of Willis.
Other News: The Slammers will finally debut the new uniforms they introduced before the 1987 season. The modern design was supposed to debut last year but the proper paperwork was not filed with Commissioner Stevens and the Syracuse squad played one more year in their traditional orange and black. The old jerseys have long been a conversation piece around the league; most BLB fans, players, and other people associated with the league outside of Syracuse believe the color scheme to be red and black rather than the Slammer stance of orange.
GM Jake Wolf hired an intern from local Syracuse University to design the prototype uniforms with a new Macintosh computer program called "Photoshop." The uniforms are rumored to be the first in BLB history to use computer rendering technology to aid in their design.
Starting Pitchers:
Tommy Lang
Charlie O'Rogan
Shunshen Miyamoto
Julian Orozco
Stanton Colin
The glaring weakness of the Slammers, GM Jake Wolf brought 8 starting pitchers in to spring training. The group - comprised of the five arms above, Don Stevens, Tajo Hernandez, and Clarence Nicholson - were oddly made aware of their invitation to camp last October, immediately following the 1987 season. The eight men spent the entire offseason training together in Lang's hometown of Houston. Lang, the surprise leader of the Syracuse staff considering he was just picked up mid season, put each pitcher up in his suburban Houston home for the winter months.
The much maligned Lang is poised for a turnaround in Syracuse now that he is out from underneath the pressure of former Pittsburgh owner JJ Linn, who often found himself calling out his players in the clubhouse and the media due to an unimaginable desire to win. Lang has often been heard during Spring Training commenting on the relaxing atmosphere around the Syracuse organization. "I enjoyed my time in Pittsburgh and my time playing for Mr. Linn," he commented after his third straight scoreless appearance this spring. "But the pressure was intense. When I signed my contract, some big expectations came along with it. When I didn't deliver immediately, I started pressing. Eventually, for whatever reason, our team became two guys in his eyes, me and Ev (Miller 1B Everado Gremades), instead of 25 guys working together. It hasn't been until this offseason, working with these young guys, that I've felt good about my command again."
Nicholson and Hernandez now find themselves back in AAA, and after four months as teammates and roommates, it will be interesting to see how the remaining six (SP Don Stevens earned a spot in the Slammer bullpen) handle losing two members of their close knit group. How they respond - and how the Slammers get out of the gate - will fall on the shoulders of their new #1 Lang. Whether he looked for it or not, once again, the pressure is back on Tommy.
Middle Relief
Don Stevens
Edgar Ventriss
Toraidio Gardea
Joe Barrantes
The story here is Stevens, the former #1 pick, #1 prospect, and #1 target of the Syracuse administration. A 1986 rotator cuff injury sent the phenom to rehab yet he has seemingly not yet recovered from the injury. Scouts still grade Stevens with top control, but the nasty movement that was his staple through high school has disappeared. Will a move to the bullpen help? After getting shelled in his first two spring starts (22.50 ERA), Stevens only relinquished one run in 7.1 innings in relief.
Spot Starter/Mop up
Bill Gillespie
Gillespie is a total scrub.
Setup
Pat Reardon
Reardon, the former Slammer closer, has been the consumat teammate and a natural fan favorite over the past few seasons. Despite saving 81 games over his first two BLB seasons, Reardon lost his closing job to Max Oliver, who is currently playing independent ball with the Long Beach Armada of the Golden Baseball League. After Oliver fell from favor in Syracuse, Wolf signed arguably the best closer in BLB history, Casimiro Cabezas. Although Reardon hasn't neccessarily lived up to his early hype and numbers, his team first attitude and acceptance of his new role has been just as valuable.
Closer
Casimiro Cabezas
Cabezas chose to follow the money and live out his glory days in Syracuse believing he had a shot at another elusive BLB championship. Barely a year later, he has to be asking himself if he made the right decision. Cabezas has a player option for the 1989 season, and whether or not he accepts that option will surely depend on not only his performance but that of the team.
1988 Syracuse Slammer Starting Lineup
C - Teagan Cannell - Cannell is best described as a young guy trying to find his place in a league full of all-star caliber catchers. A great rookie season was followed up with a 1987 sophomore slump, but the Syracuse front office and scouting dept. believe 1988 will be a turnaround year for Cannell, who has shown the ability to hit for average at every level. New scouting director Raul Gutierrez is confident that Cannell is developing some much needed power as well.
1B - Maureo Gonez - Gonez is the first of many young guys who are in a seemingly endless freefall. Impressive early in his BLB career, 1987 was a low point as the power hitting Gonez saw his OPS drop over 100 points from his previous career low to .648. I don't see Gonez getting any mojo back but I desperately need his power in the lineup.
2B - Raul Zamora - Once Baseball America's #3 prospect, Zamora has yet to establish a true identity in 3 1/2 BLB seasons. An absolute wizard with the glove - Zamora is rated at a Gold Glove level at 4 infield positions - Zamora's bat has yet to show consistency from season to season and his GM's tendacy to give him the green light on the basepaths has yet to pay off. Zamora's 96 career SBs are offset by the 61 times he's been caught.
SS - Noah George - The most veteran of the Syracuse IF, George might also be the most underrated. In his career, George has finished in the top 10 of various BLB offensive categories 49 times but has only made the 1983 Domestic all-stars, a season where he led the BLB with 76 extra base hits.
3B - Hector Carbajal - Carbajal has come a long way since he was the consensus BA #1 prospect. Or has he? It's been a quiet road for Carbajal since reaching the BLB but he's shown the ability to be the dominant hitter scouts across professional baseball expected him to be. Carbajal was also drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 1983 MLB Draft, and after choosing the BLB briefly flirted with signing with the Royals in 1984 after being traded to the Slammers. Slammers GM Jake Wolf convinced Carbajal he was the main piece of the puzzle they needed to win, and he stayed. After leading the league in extra base hits and a gold glove in 1987, the Syracuse fanbase - and that same front office - certainly expect him to be in 1988.
OF - Brad Carter - Carter was an afterthought in the Syracuse organization before a few offers came in for the Washington native, who was with the AAA NY Comets at the time. Since then, Carter has shown flashes of the ability that convinced Wolf to hang on to him. In 161 BLB ABs over two September callups, Carter has hit .304 with a .841 OPS.
OF - Joe Esquivel - All Joe Esquivel did in the minor leagues was hit. Now in the BLB, the notorious perfectionist has struggled with the notion that he can't hit everybody he faces. If Esquivel finds a way to meet his minor league numbers halfway in 1988, everyone will consider it a good year - except for Esquivel.
OF - Joe Cuevas - Cuevas returned to Syracuse as part of the Slammers big 86-87 spending spree, which resulted in another underwhelming finish, although not due to Cuevas. The star OF, whose exorbitant contract was criticized in league circles, did his part to live up to the high dollar figures with a .887 OPS and a 56.4 VORP.
The Other Guy (soon to be) in the Mix: 2B Frank Rancourt - After going down late last August with a torn ACL, Rancourt is due to return to the Slammer lineup in late April. When he does, he'll step back into his spot in the right side of the infield; Zamora will move over to SS and the shaky handed George will take over DH duties. When healthy, Rancourt is the Slammers most popular player and one of the best offensive second basemen in the BLB.
FUN FACT: Every starting regular for the Slammers is a product of the Syracuse minor league system. In fact, eight of the nine were drafted by the Slammers, Hector Carbajal being the lone exception. Carbajal (who spent just over a year in the low levels of the Davenport system) and Cuevas (who was traded from Syracuse to Maine in 1983 after winning ROY with the Slammers in 1979) are the only two who have spent any time outside of the Syracuse system. Ironically enough, they are the two best players we have.
Bench
SS Roger Willis
C Mark Jerome
1B Jeremy Walker
RF Pepe Rodriguez
The Slammers go into 88 with a light bench, anxiously awaiting the return of Rancourt. Willis has shown ability to be a difference maker as the utility guy; Jerome is a bum; Walker tore up spring training; and Rodriguez was a rule V pick who has shown some power. Bunch of scrubs outside of Willis.
Other News: The Slammers will finally debut the new uniforms they introduced before the 1987 season. The modern design was supposed to debut last year but the proper paperwork was not filed with Commissioner Stevens and the Syracuse squad played one more year in their traditional orange and black. The old jerseys have long been a conversation piece around the league; most BLB fans, players, and other people associated with the league outside of Syracuse believe the color scheme to be red and black rather than the Slammer stance of orange.
GM Jake Wolf hired an intern from local Syracuse University to design the prototype uniforms with a new Macintosh computer program called "Photoshop." The uniforms are rumored to be the first in BLB history to use computer rendering technology to aid in their design.
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