Results tagged ‘ Carlos Peguero ’
Mariners Spring Training Update – Day 5
Day 5 / Thursday, February 16, 2012 / 40 Days ‘til Opening Night in Tokyo / 56 Days ‘til Opening Night in Seattle
Weather: Not a cloud in the sky during workouts as the temperatures hovered in the lower to mid-60’s.
Quote of the Day: “Heads Up!” – Players and coaches yelled to General Manager Jack Zduriencik warning him after infielder Vinnie Catricala hit a scorching line drive that nearly hit the golf cart Jack was riding in. This following a shot down the line that almost took out a group of photographers.
Vinnie Catricala
The Day: Day 5 was very similar to day 4, with pitchers taking PFP (Pitcher’s Fielding Practice), while half the pitchers had a throwing session in the bullpen. Starters Felix Hernandez, Jason Vargas and Blake Beavan threw their third bullpen session, while a crowd of coaches and media stayed and watched pitchers Stephen Pryor, Erasmo Ramirez, Danny Hultzen, Taijuan Walker and James Paxton throw in the bullpen as well.
So far 60 of the 66 players invited to Major League camp have been spotted around the complex. The position players will officially report tomorrow for physicals, while the first full squad workout is on Saturday.
Infielder Vinnie Catricala impressed many of the coaches during his BP session this afternoon. Besides nearly taking of the GM and half the photographers watching, he was hitting the ball all over field. Looks like he is picking up exactly where he left off at the end of last year. Catricala was named the Mariners Minor League Player of the Year in 2011, after hitting .349 (182×521) with 101 runs scored, 77 extra-base (2B – 48, 3B – 4, HR – 25) and 106 RBI in 133 games combined between A High Desert and AA Jackson. Among full season minor leaguers he ranked 2nd in extra-base hits, 3rd in hits, T3rd in doubles, T4th in batting average and T9th in RBI.
Tweet of the Day:
Man it feels good to be back on the field. Its #baseball season. #mariners. It was a lil chilly today but.Otherwise perfect. Weather
— Vinnie Catricala (@VinnieCatricala) February 15, 2012
Carlos Peguero wins the award for longest drive of the day. He launched a mammoth shot that hit the 32-foot-high batter’s eye in center field 410-feet away to highlight BP. Not sure if the ball bounced back to the field or got stuck in the chain-link fence.
A group of 35 of the Mariners top Minor League players are in camp today for physicals to take part in the team’s annual mini camp for many of top lower-level prospects. The first workout for mini-camp players is tomorrow and workouts will run through March 1. Mini-camp is an opportunity for players to receive one-on-one instruction from the coaching staff and work on improvement plans for Spring Training and the rest of the 2012 season. Among players taking part in the mini camp are highly regarded prospects right-handed pitchers Victor Sanchez and Carter Capps, catcher Marcus Littlewood, infielders Brad Miller and Cavan Cohoes and outfielders Guillermo Pimentel, Phillips Castillo and Jabari Blash.
- KM
Mariners Spring Training Update – Day 4
Day 4 / Wednesday, February 15, 2012 / 41 Days ‘til Opening Night in Tokyo / 57 Days ‘til Opening Night in Seattle
Weather: The weather was a little chilly again today but warmed up by the end of the workout. A high of 65-degrees is expected later today and it is supposed to be 70-degrees tomorrow.
Quote of the Day: “Guante. Guante! That’s my word for the day. Guante! Guante!” – Brendan Ryan, on his way off the practice field cradling his new glove in his arms. Guante is the Spanish word for glove.
The Day: While it might feel like groundhog day here during the early part of Spring Training, you can always find, see or hear something new and today was no exception. There was a lot of energy on Field 3 as the pitchers and some infielders (not all first baseman) worked on covering first base on a ball hit to the first baseman.
Munenori Kawasaki PFP
Infielder Munenori Kawasaki was very vocal on the field, shouting out commands in both English and Japanese to pitchers covering first base. He could also be seen patting a pitcher on the back for a job well done and generally providing energy for the team, much like Brendan Ryan does.
Kawasaki played on Team Japan in the 2009 World Baseball Classic tournament, and while there were several stars on that team that included Ichiro, Hisashi Iwakuma and Yu Darvish, people say that Kawasaki was the “heart and soul” of the team.
Out on Field 6, some outfielders including Carlos Peguero, Michael Saunders and Trayvon Robinson worked on tracking down fly balls while other position players prepared to hit in the cage.
Inside the clubhouse, there were plenty of laughs around Felix Hernandez‘s locker. Turns out the Mariners TV commercial scripts arrived today and Brendan Ryan was sitting at Felix’s locker, reading the script aloud as various players including Felix, Dustin Ackley and Brandon League couldn’t stop laughing.
The Mariners marketing crew will arrive in Peoria tomorrow and will begin preparations for all their commercial and in-game entertainment shoots.
- FA
Winter League Roundup
Many baseball fans are curious about winter league ball, what it is, and why players would leave the comforts of an off-season at home to go play. It is a chance for players to continue their development into Major League players. Teams usually send young players, someone who need more work because he didn’t get a full season in the minors, needs a little more experience, or a player coming off an injury who needs more playing time. MLB.com has a comprehensive list with statistics from most of the Mariners farmhands that participated in Winter Leagues this off-season.
Mariners minor league OF prospect Denny Almonte is hitting .299 with 10 home runs in the Australian Winter League (SMP Images / Ben Southall).
The Arizona Fall League provides all Major League organizations the opportunity to continue the development of their top prospects. Each club contributes players to make up the league, which consists of six teams, each stocked by five Big League clubs. The Mariners top prospects play for the Peoria Javelinas, along with players from the Brewers, Mets, Padres and Cardinals.
LHP Danny Hultzen, the Mariners first-round selection in the 2011 June draft, made his professional debut in the AFL. Hultzen was joined on the Peoria roster by right-handed pitchers Steven Hensley and Forrest Snow, left-handed pitcher Brian Moran, catcher Adam Moore, infielder Nick Franklin and outfielder Chi-Hsien Chiang.
Snow led the AFL in ERA (1.10), while finishing second in opponent average (.167) and WHIP (0.80). Snow, Moran (1.32) and Hultzen (1.40) finished 1-2-3 on the Peoria Javelinas in ERA. Hultzen and Franklin helped lead the West Division All-Stars to an 11-2 win over the East Division in the 6th-annual AFL Rising Stars Game. Hultzen earned the win after tossing 2.0 shutout innings. Franklin went 4-for-5 with 3 runs scored, 2 doubles, 1 home run and 4 RBI to earn MVP honors. He became the first player in AFL Rising Stars game history to record 4 hits, 4 RBI, 3 extra base hits or 2 doubles in the game. Hultzen was also named to the Arizona Fall League 2011 Top Prospects Team, going 1-0 with a 1.40 ERA (3 ER, 19.1 IP) in 6 starts.
Danny Hultzen went 1-0 with a 1.40 ERA in the Arizona Fall League (Jordan Megenhardt/MLB.com).
Winter ball is also played in Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Mexico. At the end of the season, the champions of each league play each other in the Caribbean Series. The Mariners have a working agreement with teams in each league and send minor league players and coaches to help teams. It is also an opportunity for the Mariners organization scout talent from those countries as well as American players playing in Latin America. Some of the Mariners top prospects participated the winter leagues, including pitchers Erasmo Ramirez and Stephen Pryor, infielders Alex Liddi, Carlos Triunfel and Francisco Martinez and outfielders Johermyn Chavez and Carlos Peguero.
Peguero led the Dominican Winter League in home runs (11), extra-base hits (20), total bases (85), runs scored (29), intentional walks (9) and HR/AB ratio (1/15.09), while ranking 2nd in slugging percentage (.512) and 3rd in RBI (26). Overall he hit .259 (43×166) with 29 runs scored 9 doubles, 11 home runs and 29 RBI in 45 games with Gigantes del Cibao.
Ramirez went 2-1 with a 1.48 ERA (5 ER, 30.1 IP) in 6 starts with Lara in the Venezuelan Winter League before being shut down due to number of starts.
Down under, Mate! If it is snowing in Seattle it is likely warm and sunny in Australia. The Australian Baseball League is another popular destination with Mariners farmhands. Right-handed pitcher Jandy Sena, outfielders Denny Almonte, James Jones and James McOwen and catcher Carlton Tanabe are currently wrapping up the ABL.
James Jones is batting .302 for the Adelaide Bite in the Australian Winter League (SMP Images / Ryan Schembri).
Almonte (1×4, 2 R, HR, RBI, BB) and McOwen (3×4, R, 2B, BB) represented Team World in the inaugural Australian Baseball League All-Star Game, where the country’s best homegrown talent, Team Australia, took on the best international players in the ABL in Perth on December 21. Almonte was also named Australian Baseball League Round 5 Player of the Week (Dec. 1-3 – .563/9×16, 3 R, 2 2B, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 4 G), while McOwen was named Round 6 Player of the Week (Dec. 8-10, .533/8×15, 3 R, 3 2B, 3B, 3 RBI).
Almonte ranks amongst the league leaders in home runs (T5th, 10), total bases (6th, 90), runs scored (4th, 33), RBI (T3rd, 35), extra base hits (5th, 21) and at-bats (3rd, 171). McOwen currently leads the league in stolen bases (14) and tied for the lead in triples (2).
Looks like everyone will arrive in Arizona for Spring Training ready to compete for a roster spot. We look forward to seeing these young prospects in a Mariners uniform very soon.
- KM
