Rosenbaums! Get your Rosenbaums

The Wild Things will start the season leading the Frontier League in one category: most players named Rosenbaum.

Washington signed three players Wednesday, including catcher Chris Rosenbaum, who played in the Los Angeles Angels' organization. Also signed were former James Madison University pitcher Kurt Houck and ex-Lock Haven University infielder Matt Palko.

Rosenbaum, from Albany, N.Y., is the only one of the three with pro experience. All three are rookies by Frontier League standards.

Rosenbaum spent three seasons in the Angels' system, advancing to high-Class A Rancho Cucamongo, where he batted .319 last year but played in only 31 games. Rosenbaum played at the University of Tampa and was signed as a non-drafted free agent.

“Chris is coming off the best offensive year of his career," Washington manager Darin Everson said. "Throughout Chris' three-year career with the Angels, he has been known as a solid defensive catcher.”

Earlier this month, the Wild Things signed pitcher Zach Rosenbaum – apparently, no relation to the catcher.

Houck (6-6, 210) was a 2004 draft pick of the Atlanta Braves but did not sign, opting instead to attend James Madison. He had a solid career at JMU before missing the 2009 season because of an injury. He won 13 games for James Madison and posted a 7-2 record in 2008.

“Kurt is coming to us following a good stint in spring training in the Atlantic League,” Everson said. “We look forward to him reaching his potential as a reliable, hard-throwing reliever. We hope he can be an impact rookie."

Palko earned All-PSAC honors in 2009 after leading Lock Haven in home runs (11), triples (4), on-base percentage (.381) and walks (24). He batted .291 for the Bald eagles and played in the California Winter League.

“Matt comes highly recommended from many people who ran the California Winter League where he showed a solid bat and was very good defensively,” Everson said. “We look forward to having Matt be a solid option for us at third base and hope he can become an impact rookie for us this season.”

The Wild Things also dropped one player from the roster, former California University pitcher Rob Hedrick.

Two pitchers signed

The Wild Things have added two more pitchers for spring training, signing a pair of right-handers who were recently released by the New York Mets after spending two years in the organization. Joining the Wild Things are Zach Rosenbaum and Tim Smith. Both are considered rookies by Frontier League standards.

Rosenbaum and Smith spent the bulk of their affiliated careers in rookie ball. Smith did pitch in nine games (0-0, 5.87) last year for Savannah in the Class A South Atlantic League.

Smith (5-11, 195) had an outstanding career at NCAA Division II Catawba, posting a 31-13 record with 239 strikeouts and was the South Atlantic Conference Pitcher of the Year. He even had a win over Florida Southern, which was ranked No. 1 in Division II at the time.

"We are planning to put Tim back into the starting rotation, where he had so much success in college,” Wild Things manager Darin Everson said. "He can build on his two years of professional experience with the Mets organization and solidify one our starting positions.”

Rosenbaum (6-4, 190) had a 3-7 record in 28 games in rookie ball. He was a teammate of former Wild Things catcher Kris Rochelle at UNC-Charlotte, where he went 9-1 in 2007. Rosenbaum was a 19th-round pick of the Mets in 2008.

“We look for Zach to be an important part of our pitching staff’s success this year,” Everson said. “He brings two solid years of experience with the Mets to Washington.”