Pitching changes
The Wild Things have made a flurry of roster moves in the past 24 hours, the majority involving pitchers. Here's a rundown:
* Prior to the 5-4 loss Monday to the Windy City ThunderBolts, Washington signed pitcher Pat Butler, a 6-1, 200-pound rookie reliever who played this spring for the University of Connecticut. Butler also played for Camden in the independent Atlantic League. He appeared in 3 games with the Riversharks, making one start. He had a 1-1 record and 27.00 ERA. Butler made his debut with the Wild Things Monday and gave up two runs (both unearned) and was charged with a blown save, only the fifth of the year for the Wild Things.
Butler had an 11-7 record in his career at UConn and pitched in 52 games (21 starts). He is one of the few Wild Things to have played in the Cape Cod Summer League.
* After the game, Washington signed pitcher Tyler Elrod, a rookie who played this spring for The Master's, an NAIA school in California (where have we seen this before?). Elrod had an 8-5 record and 4.09 ERA in his only season with The Master's, giving up 96 hits in 83 2/3 innings and striking out 60. The Master's is the same school that produced outfielder Vinnie Fayard, who signed with Washington late last season and went 1-for-12 in 10 games.
* Washington also traded lefty pitcher Anthony Collazo to Evansville in exchange for a player to be named later. Collazo had an 0-2 record and 3.68 ERA in 20 outings (4 starts).
* Third baseman Jovan Rosa was activated from the disabled list and second baseman Jordan Weymouth played in only one game and went 0-for-2.
* Prior to the 5-4 loss Monday to the Windy City ThunderBolts, Washington signed pitcher Pat Butler, a 6-1, 200-pound rookie reliever who played this spring for the University of Connecticut. Butler also played for Camden in the independent Atlantic League. He appeared in 3 games with the Riversharks, making one start. He had a 1-1 record and 27.00 ERA. Butler made his debut with the Wild Things Monday and gave up two runs (both unearned) and was charged with a blown save, only the fifth of the year for the Wild Things.
Butler had an 11-7 record in his career at UConn and pitched in 52 games (21 starts). He is one of the few Wild Things to have played in the Cape Cod Summer League.
* After the game, Washington signed pitcher Tyler Elrod, a rookie who played this spring for The Master's, an NAIA school in California (where have we seen this before?). Elrod had an 8-5 record and 4.09 ERA in his only season with The Master's, giving up 96 hits in 83 2/3 innings and striking out 60. The Master's is the same school that produced outfielder Vinnie Fayard, who signed with Washington late last season and went 1-for-12 in 10 games.
* Washington also traded lefty pitcher Anthony Collazo to Evansville in exchange for a player to be named later. Collazo had an 0-2 record and 3.68 ERA in 20 outings (4 starts).
* Third baseman Jovan Rosa was activated from the disabled list and second baseman Jordan Weymouth played in only one game and went 0-for-2.
posted by Chris Dugan at
9:13 AM
12 Comments:
This is like shutting the barn door after the horse is gone. This team stinks.
Chris, is the apathy (for lack of a better term) towards the WTs similar to what towns like Johnstown, Canton, Chillicothe, etc., went thru in this league before they lost their franchises? I would hate to see the WTs leave town as the franchise brings jobs and a certain level of entertainment. I understand that novelty can wear off, but what is the real deal with this franchise wins and losses aside? People like you and the broadcaster Randy put a lot of time and effort into covering this franchise, but does anyone care? The history of past teams mentioned above seem like the franchises come in, accumulate what they can financially for 8-10 years, and then move on to another city? Or am I missing something?
How safe do you think your money would be if you made a deposit for next years season tickets? There is NO guarantee that this team will even be here. It may be, but it is also possible that the current team will move to WV and a whole new group will move in to give the franchise a fresh start with new management, what then? Will Williams declare bankruptcy and be able to gain protection from the courts? He is an attorney and knows how the system works.
I sure hope that if the team does go to WV that Williams will send the Asst. General Manager along with the rest of the team. Steve Z has reached his level of incompetence, and them some.
As for me, I'll make no deposit this year. There will be plenty of good seats available next season - if there is a next season.
watching sandford tear up the base paths and play well for another team just demonstrates how terrible the wildthings have become why would you trade a player that exciting as a fan i'm done supporting teams that don't want to win
"Is the apathy (for lack of a better term) towards the WTs similar to what towns like Johnstown, Canton, Chillicothe, etc., went thru in this league before they lost their franchises?"
Each case of a city losing its baseball franchise is different, and the three you mentioned are a good example of this.
Johnstown lost the Johnnies because the owner either wouldn't or couldn't pay his bills. Because of this, the Frontier League's reputation in Johnstown is less than stellar. Chillicothe, on the other hand, had many loyal fans and a rich baseball tradition. The Paints played in the Frontier League for 16 years. The problem was that a city Chillicothe's size that isn't within a stone's throw from a metro area is not going to draw the number of fans and corporate sponsors needed in the modern version of the Frontier League. In other words, the league had outgrown Chillicothe. A shift to a college summer league was Chillicothe's best option. A few weeks ago, I finished reading a book called "Crocodiles Rock" about Canton's first season in the Frontier League. That team won the league championship. One of the problems in Canton was that the city had the Indians' Class AA affiliate, and the owner moved it to rival city Akron, which was an insult to many. That would be like the Rooney family moving the Steelers to Cleveland. That franchise move did much to kill professional baseball in Canton, though the Frontier League moved in the very next year. I'd bet that if Bill Lee had to do it over again, he would have let Canton go without baseball for a few years before trying to put a team there.
In terms of corporate sponsorships and attendance, Washington is better off than those three cities but, yes, I have asked myself if anybody really cares anymore about this team. Its not winning or drawing fans like it used to. If it did start winning, would anybody notice or care?
"There is NO guarantee that this team will even be here. It may be, but it is also possible that the current team will move to WV"
If you think it is possible that the Wild Things will move to West Virginia for next season, then answer this for me:
Where will they play in West Virginia?
WVU has Hawley Field, which the school says is so substandard that it chooses to play its home games in Charleston and Beckley. And Marshall University doesn't even have a home field in Huntington. It also plays its home games in Beckley and Charleston.
Could the Wild Things play in Beckley? Well, there is a college summer league team that plays in the ballpark in Beckley. The team is owned by the Epling family. The ballpark, by the way, just happens to be called Linda K. Epling Stadium. I think that means Beckley is out.
I guess there's always that youth league field along I-70 in Elm Grove.
Chris,
You never addressed the issue about your money being safe!
If one would trust Stu Williams with your money and, given the WT recent history of not delivering on their promises, then I would conclude that, at the very best, one would have to be called a risk taker. At the worst, one could be called a darn fool with more money than brains.
The recent trading of Sanford is a perfect example that Steve Z, and Williams don't much care about presenting a creditable product on the field. Or, is it they don't know how?
I urge fans not to give this franchise any of their money. If Williams wants seed money, let him open HIS wallet, not yours!
Giving this bunch money for next season is like buying a bottle of spoiled milk only to find it expired some time ago and you can't get a refund. You just wasted your money because you trusted somebody not worthy of your trust. Don't be that guy! Keep your money in your wallet.
What about moving to Bridgeport? Wherever that is.
"How safe do you think your money would be if you made a deposit for next years season tickets?"
Very safe.
Let me apologize in advance for any typos. I'm typing this on my phone while sitting in an orthodontist's office.
Re: Trading Sandford.
First, the owner and general manager are not brokering trades. In independent baseball, the managers make the trades. This is not the major leagues. The GM doesn't walk into the manager's office and say "We're trading Player A today for Player B."
By all accounts, including mine, Sandford is a good guy. But the fact remains he was batting .244. This after hitting .238 w/ Washington last year. And he ended his stay here on a 1-for-30 streak. That's not the kind of production you want from a player classified as Experienced. If Sandford was so valuable, answer this: Would you want him or Chris Sidick in CF? Would you take Sandford over Josh Loggins? Or Jack Headley? Or even Doug Garcia?
Very safe?
Of course, your just joking, right?
i am a baseball and i like players that have tools to play at the major leagues and sandford has major league tools and yes he struggled in washington but living in the area and talking to some players not many like playing here in washington so expalin to me why is he doing so much better on another team. Explain why do players leave washington and play somewhere else and play better!
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