Waiting for Goudeau: Two trades made

The Wild Things have made their first two trades of 2012, one a five-player deal.

Gone are two players signed during the offseason and one of the top offensive players from last year's team.

Washington traded second baseman Scott Lawson, pictured, and outfielder Trevor Bloom to the San Angelo Colts of the North American League in exchange for three players. The Wild Things also dealt right-handed pitcher Mickey Jannis to the Abilene Prairie Dogs of the North American League.

Lawson had the third-best batting average (.280) among Washington's starting position players last year. Hitting out of the leadoff spot, Lawson had nine home runs and 37 RBI and also stole 16 bases. Lawson is a native of Texas. Bloom was a player Washington signed in the offseason out of San Diego Christian College, where new Wild Things manager Chris Bando is the head coach.

In exchange for Lawson and Bloom, Washington gets infielder Clint Stroud and pitchers Andy Wells and Corey Goudeau.

Stroud has one year of experience in independent leagues, bouncing between the Pecos and North American leagues last year. He did hit 14 home runs in 62 games for three teams. Stroud played college ball at Arkansas Tech in NCAA Division II and signed with Joliet of the Frontier League last February, but he never played for the Slammers.

Arkansas Tech, by the way, has one of the most unique nicknames in college sports: the Wonder Boys.

Wells is entering his third season as a pro and has already played for five teams. He was with four teams in three independent leagues last season and compiled a 2-4 record and 7.14 ERA in 14 games (12 starts). He did make two postseason starts for Roswell, which won the Pecos League championship. Wells was 2-0 (2.77 ERA) in those games.

In 2010, Wells pitched three games in the Frontier League with Evansville and was 0-1 with a 12.00 ERA and gave up 10 hits and seven walks in six innings. He played his college ball at two schools, Wagner and Siena.

Goudeau is entering his second season as a pro, splitting last year between two teams in the North American League. He went 2-6 with an 8.38 ERA in 25 games (8 starts). Goudeau was drafted by the Marlins in the 18th round in 2010 out of Frank Phillips College, a junior college in Texas. He reportedly signed with the Marlins, but I find no information about Goudeau playing with an affiliated team.

Jannis was the most experienced player the Wild Things signed during the offseason, having advanced to high-Class A for two games in the Tampa Bay system last year. Jannis pitched in 34 games over two seasons with the Rays.

Who are these guys?

In case you haven't noticed, new Wild Things manager Chris Bando has been busy signing players at a rapid pace. According to the Frontier League's website, Washington has signed 12 players since Nov. 8. I even found a 13th player mentioned on a different website.

If they continue at the current pace, the Wild Things will have more than 50 players in spring training.

So who are these new guys?

Not all the signings have been released by the Wild Things, so finding information about several players was difficult, but here's what we know about the 12 or 13:

The majority of the players are rookies with no pro experience. Only three are classified as Experienced by the FL's guidelines. Many of the 12/13 played small- college baseball, mainly at the NAIA level. Seven of the players are from California.

Here's a quick background for each player:

* INF Nick Spears: From Santee, Calif. Played at Southern Nazarene, an NAIA school in Oklahoma. Senior year was 2010. Put up big numbers in college. Drafted out of high school but did not sign. Played 11 games for St. George of the independent Golden League in 2010 but the team folded. Did not play in a pro league last summer.

* OF Trevor Bloom: From Palmdale, Calif. Played at four different colleges, including San Diego Christian College, where Bando is the athletic director and baseball coach. Did not play pro ball in 2011.

* OF Rashad Taylor: From San Francisco, Calif. Played at Point Loma Nazarene, an NAIA school in California. Was drafted twice but did not sign. Senior season was 2011 and was not drafted. Was a standout high school football player who reportedly had several Division I offers but decided to go the baseball route. In a press release, Bando was quoted as saying "I look for Rashad to catch everything in the outfield, steal bases and drive in runs. It is not often you see a 6-4 frame that athletic on a baseball field." In another story, Bando said "Rashad Taylor will be one of the most exciting players players in the league ... He might be one of the league leaders in stolen bases. ... He'll be one of the more exciting players in the league, if he lives up to his potential."

* RHP Mickey Jannis: From Sparks, Nev. Has the best background of any player on this list. Spent two years in the Tampa Bay Rays' system, reaching high-Class A. Had a 7-4 record, 5 saves and 3.00 in the minors.

* C Rob Herrmann: From Trumansburg, N.Y. Played at Fredonia State in New York. Signed last summer with Las Cruces of the independent Pecos League.

* RHP Ryan McCarney: From Acton, Calif. Coached last season at San Diego Christian College. Did not play professionally in 2011. Played his junior season of college at Cal State-Northridge in 2009 before transferring to San Diego Christian. Drafted twice but did not sign.

* LHP Matt Kretchmer: From Carmel, Calif. Played last spring for Cal State San Marcos, an NAIA school. Played one year at New Mexico State.

* INF Matt McConnell: From Mesa, Ariz. Spent two years in the Philadelphia Phillies' system. Apparently, he did not play in 2011. Played at Metro State, an NCAA Division II school in Denver. His younger brother, Mickey McConnell, was a starting guard for the St. Mary's (Calif.) basketball team that made a run to the Sweet 16 of the 2010 NCAA basketball tournament, upsetting Villanova along the way.

* LHP Shawn Smith: From Saugus, Ariz. Was a 9th-round draft pick out of high school by Tampa Bay. Never advanced out of rookie ball. Did not pitch in 2010 (injured?). Though he has three seasons of pro experience, Smith will be classified as a Rookie because of his age (21).

* RHP Mickey Cassidy: We believe this is a player from Toledo, Ohio, who has three years of independent experience. Played last summer for Rio Grande Valley of the North American Baseball League.

* 3B Wes Kartch: From Irvine, Calif. Played at Point Loma Nazarene. Senior year was 2011. Was not drafted last June.

* RHP Ryan Turner: From North Richland Hills, Texas. Has been drafted four times, including three times by Tampa Bay. Played last spring at Tarleton State in Texas. Was then drafted by Rays and posted 1-1 record and 6.35 ERA in rookie ball. Was released this fall. Though given a quick release by Tampa Bay, his solid college numbers and the fact he was drafted four times makes me think he has a chance to stick on the roster.

* INF Mike Bando: Played at San Diego Christian College. Wild Things have not announced his signing and he's not listed on the FL website as having signed a contract. On the SDCC baseball website, there is a story that says Bando, Bloom and McCarney signed with Washington.

Wild Things sign first 2

The Wild Things and new manager Chris Bando have signed their first two players for 2012. They are shortstop Nick Spears and outfielder Trevor Bloom. Neither player has professional experience.

Spears played at Southern Nazarene University, located in Bethany, Okla., and was a first team NAIA All-American in 2010 and named the Sooner Athletic Conference’s top shortstop after batting .442 batting.

"He has great make up, a powerful bat and arm and is a sure fire ML prospect,” Bando said. “His athleticism will enable us to play Nick at multiple positions.”

Bloom spent a year each at New Mexico State, College of the Canyons, Sacramento State and San Diego Christian College. The latter is where Bando is the head coach. At College of the Canyons, Bloom was named to the Southern California All-American team as an outfielder, and also was the Player of the Year for the Western State-South Conference in 2009.

“He is the ultimate 'gamer.' He plays the game hard, is a consummate team player and was one of the best hitters in college baseball last season,” Bando said. “He can play infield, outfield and pitch. He is a winner and will play everywhere for us this year. He hits everything hard.”