Category: Alumni Update

Lofty – and tight – goals

Word has it that the rims have been loosened, finally, at Reliant Stadium. For anyone who listened to the radio broadcast of the men’s college basketball title game on Monday, former Georgetown head coach John Thompson referred often to the “tight rims” as shots for both teams were going in and out of the cylinders. Let’s hope the Osprey pitchers don’t run into tight strike zones this season.

The funny thing uttered this morning – if any starting Major League pitcher could hold their opponents to the success rate at the plate of Butler’s made field goals from the title game (which, in baseball terms, would be .188), they’ll likely win the Cy Young.

Which begs the question – do you know which Osprey pitcher, with at least 65 innings pitched, holds the record for lowest opponents’ batting average for a single season? We will post the answer on Thursday.

– Carlos Gonzalez (2003 Osprey) did something in 2010 that no other former Missoula Osprey has been able to do since the organization took flight in 1999 … be in the Top 3 in a Major League MVP vote. And you would think that, now, with a lengthy contract and job security, a player could have a tendency to allow that success to carry him for a bit.

But CarGo is not one of those guys – especially when you set a goal like putting up a 40 HR/40 steal season. If he does pull off the 40/40 trick, he would be the first player ever from Venezuela to achieve the single-season milestone.

– More CarGo – partially because a miniature version could be coming soon to an Ogren Park Allegiance Field near you – how about this catch?

– Speaking of former Osprey playing at elevation … until a blister ended his night early, former Osprey pitcher Jorge De La Rosa (1999-2000) looked good in his first start of the 2011 season.

– Another former Osprey off to a good start is Miguel Montero. Miggy (2002-03 Osprey) has gone 6-for-12 with a home run and two RBIs in the first three games. Montero also had an extra-base hit taken away from him by … CarGo. It was Montero whom Gonzalez robbed in the 7th with that diving catch on Saturday.

– More Miggy – he apparently had what Arizona Republic reporter Nick Piecoro called an “interaction” with outfielder Chris Young following the Saturday loss at Coors Field. It also sounds like D-backs manager Kirk Gibson likes the fight his team is showing.

– Gerardo Parra (2006) also had his own incident on Saturday night, with of all people, Jorge De La Rosa. Piecoro has pieces of the story, but there’s a missing piece floating somewhere, and the origins may only be known to the two people involved.

Coming Thursday – Extended Spring Training stuff, those amazing Pirates, and the fulfillment of the trivia quotent for the week.

Roster announcements

Minor league teams in the Arizona Diamondbacks system have begun to announce their 2011 rosters for the season. Here’s what we have been able to find so far (number of former Osprey listed, as well as the former Osprey on the roster and their Missoula year(s). This list has been compiled as of Monday, April 4):

Triple-A Reno (7): John Hester (2006), Tom Layne (2007), Josh Ellis (2007), Esmerling Vasquez (2004), Daniel Stange (2006), Jordan Norberto (2006), Clay Zavada (2006 – will start season on DL).

Double-A Mobile (8): Jarrod Parker (2007), Bryan Henry (2007), Charles Brewer (2009), Bryan Shaw (2008), Jake Elmore (2008), Paul Goldschmidt (2009), Taylor Harbin (2007), Ollie Linton (2008). Former Osprey hitting coach Alan Zinter (2008) is serving in the same capacity for the BayBears.

Class A Advanced Visalia (16): Chase Anderson (2009), Christian Beltre (2008), Victor Cappellan (2008), Derek Eitel (2010), Trevor Harden (2008), Yonata Ortega (2007), Diogenes Rosario (2009), Taylor Sinclair (2008), Eric Smith (2009), Adam Worthington (2009), Rossmel Perez (2008), Bobby Borchering (2009), David Nick (2009), Chris Owings (2009), Adam Eaton (2010), Kyle Greene (2008). Former Osprey hitting coach Jason Hardtke (2009-10) is the manager for the Rawhide.

Class A South Bend (18): J.R. Bradley (2010), Blake Cooper (2010), Eury De La Rosa (2009), Jeremy Erben (2010), Bradin Hagens (2009), Kable Hogben (2009), David Holmberg (2010), Patrick Schuster (2010), Jeff Shields (2010), Dan Taylor (2010), RayWily Gomez (2009), Ramon Castillo (2009), Matt Helm (2009-10), Raul Navarro (2010), Keon Broxton (2009), Chris Jarrett (2010), Roberto Rodriguez (2010), Bobby Stone (2008-09-10).

Teams will open their seasons on Friday, April 7. South Bend will play an exhibition against the University of Notre Dame on Tuesday.

They have learned their destination …

As we find out player placements, we will add them to this post throughout the weekend. Some of it may be spotty, just to let you know, but we will do the best we can. Official roster announcements are due out this weekend from the full-season squads.

– Chris Jarrett (2010 Osprey) has just informed his Facebook following that he will start the season in South Bend. A place which is expecting 30 degrees and snow and ice just in time for the SilverHawks arrival. He’s joined in the outfield by former Osprey outfielders Roberto Rodriguez (2010) and Keon Broxton (2009).

– Scott Allen (2009) has learned that he will be pitching at Class A Advanced Tampa in the New York Yankees organization. Allen – who was in line to be the Opening Day starter for the Osprey in 2010 before he was promoted to South Bend in early June – was involved in the trade that brought Juan Miranda to the D-backs.

– Former Osprey reliever Jeff Shields (2010) will start the season in South Bend, along with a growing number of his Osprey teammates from last summer’s squad.

Auggie up with the Cards

Bryan Augenstein (2007) took a tough loss out of the St. Louis Cardinals bullpen in an extra-inning loss to San Diego on Thursday. Auggie was one of 12 pitchers to make the Cardinals’ Opening Day roster.

Augenstein was near dominant in the Cardinals’ bullpen during Spring Training, posting a 1-0 mark in seven appearances, spanning 11 2/3 innings pitched, with a 0.77 ERA and 15 strikeouts during Grapefruit League play. Augenstein allowed just five hits, three walks and one earned run.

Roster move update …

The staff here at Bird Droppings has just found out that RHP Derek Eitel (2010 Osprey) will not be in the South Bend bullpen … he is instead heading into the starting rotation for Class A Advanced Visalia. According to a post on his Facebook page, Eitel indicates that they will break camp on Saturday.

As we have indicated earlier, rosters are expected to be announced on Saturday or Sunday. The Osprey will be releasing the former players who have been placed at full-season clubs on Monday.

The time is now …

Here’s hoping that people are nice to you on Friday. While it will be Opening Day for everyone else who did not play on Thursday in the Major Leagues, it will also be … April Fool’s Day. So keep your  head on a swivel.

– A piece of Osprey information first – the annual Osprey Job Fair will be held on April 19, from 3-8 p.m. at the DoubleTree Hotel in Missoula. More information will be coming soon to the club’s website, www.missoulaosprey.com.

– As has been the case in Bird Droppings this month, anytime we mention a player would be in contention for a roster spot (Pedro Ciriaco and Jordan Norberto, anyone?), the opposite ends up happening. Now, we could call it a curse, but we’re citing other sources with this information, so we deny any and all bad ju-ju associated with such moves.

That being said, hours after we mentioned he was in the mix for a relief position in the bullpen, right-hander Esmerling Vasquez  was sent to Triple-A Reno, despite having a solid spring.

– In Nick Piecoro’s blog, a scout asseses the D-backs player-by-player. The assessments include some good stuff on the beforementioned Norberto.

– Charles Brewer (2009) danced with perfection in his last spring outing, pitching 4 2/3 perfect innings in the Arizona Diamondbacks’ exhibition game with Monterry of the Mexican League. Brewer’s final line – 5 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 0BB, 5K. Brewer allowed a single and back-to-back home runs before getting that final out of the fifth, plus also managed to lay down a sacrifice bunt. He also picked up the win in an 11-4 D-backs’ rout.

– Also playing in that game – Monterry third baseman Agustin Murillo, who played with the Osprey in 2003.

– The Cactus League finale – a 15-8 D-backs win over the Chicago Cubs – also featured former Osprey making appearances as the teams were in split-squad for the last time during Spring Training. Kyle Greene (2008), Bobby Stone (2008-09-10) and Roidany Aguila (2009-10), who drove in a run with a sacrifice fly, played in the win, while Vasquez pitched an inning of one-hit, two-strikeout relief.

– Former Osprey catcher Richie Rowland (2010) did not stay “retired” long. After ending his term with the D-backs, the son of former Major League backstop Rich Rowland has signed a contract to play with Traverse City of the Frontier League. Richie’s younger brother, Robby, will be in Extended Spring Training, for now, with the D-backs.

– One other former Osprey let out where they were headed within their social media circles on Wednesday. Third baseman Matt Helm is headed to South Bend, and will spend a lot of his time in the lineup at third base. Helm was forced to learn first base and the outfield in South Bend last season to make way for prospects Bobby Borchering and Matt Davidson, and moved back to third when he rejoined the Osprey. Helm, just in case you forgot, played with the Osprey in the 2009 postseason, and then joined the club for the second half of the 2010 campaign.

– One other note – official rosters for the minor-league affiliates will not be released until Saturday or Sunday. Once we have an idea, we will post the information here, and have a complete look at all of the former Osprey placed on full-season rosters in a story on Monday, which will be send to the local media and appear on the team’s website.

Roster decision time

There are a few days that we here at the Missoula Osprey office look forward to which take place before our season begins. One of those – or, actually, more like three of those days – would be around the First-Year Player Draft.

Another one of those days is shortly after, when the D-backs announce who will be coming to Missoula, and the following days when we relay those announcements.

The third time begins … now.

This is the time that Major League teams announce their 25-man Opening Day rosters, and the minor-league teams also inform all of us who is headed where this season.

Unless you know one of the minor-leaguers, or keep tabs of them through social media means, the announcement of the rosters are the first indication of the progress they are making through the spring, unless they end up playing in a game or 10 with the parent club during the spring.

But, on occasion, we do get some inside information that we can pass along … with that in mind, as promised in the comments section of a prior post, we at Bird Droppings have found these nuggets:

– Derek Eitel has long suspected that he would start the season in South Bend, but the 2010 former Osprey will begin the season in the SilverHawks bullpen. Patrick Schuster (2009-10) will also open the season in South Bend.

– Robby Rowland, also a member of the 2010 Osprey, will not be on a full-season roster to start the minor-league season. Instead, Rowland will stay in extended spring training.

There’s other items of suspicion, like that 2009 Osprey alum Bobby Borchering will start at Class A Advanced Visalia. The Arizona Republic penned a very interesting story on Borchering’s youth. We have to admit, we’re all a little jealous of his backyard field …

And the battle that former Osprey Emilio Bonifacio (2003) find himself in while trying to earn a roster spot with the Florida Marlins.

– Adam Eaton (2010) informed his friends on Facebook on Tuesday night that he will start the 2010 season in the Visalia outfield. Not a surprise, with Eaton making the most of his looks in games he appeared in with the D-backs in Cactus League action.

– Former Osprey catcher Wilkin Castillo (2004) will start the season in Georgia, just not the destination we were hoping for.

– It looks like former Osprey reliever Daniel Schlereth (2008) will be standing on the line at Yankee Stadium with his Detroit Tiger teammates on Thursday. The official announcement is expected to happen today, but it’s pretty apparent he’ll be in the bullpen for the Tigers this season, barring injury. Which, if you have followed the Tigers at all, seems to go with their bullpen.

– Back to the D-backs, as it is now apparent that the final spot on the 25-man roster is in the Mibullpen, with former Osprey pitcher Esmerling Vazquez (2004), who has put together a solid spring, in contention for the spot. Especially with former Osprey left-hander Jordan Norberto now at Triple-A.

This means the following former Osprey (pending official announcements) will likely be on Major League Opening Day Rosters:
– Miguel Montero, Arizona
– Gerardo Parra, Arizona
– Lyle Overbay, Pittsburgh
– Carlos Gonzalez, Colorado
– Jorge De La Rosa, Colorado
– Jose Valverde, Detroit
– Daniel Schlereth, Detroit
– Sergio Santos, Chicago White Sox
– Tony Pena, Chicago White Sox
– Emilio Bonifacio, Florida
– Scott Hairston, NY Mets

Tomorrow, more roster news, and some updates on former Osprey who managed to get in some looks with the parent club in the last few days of Spring Training, as well as one former Osprey who will be back behind the plate soon enough – albeit in Michigan.

Was it you … were you among the two?

Countdowns – t-minus 86 days until the home opener, 84 days until the season opener, and about 80 days before the standard sweating begins in the Osprey Radio booth. Or is that 75? We forget …

By the way, we here at Bird Droppings salute the two people (or the one person who, on a whim, filled out two brackets, and did not change their Final Four) who picked all four of the Final Four teams in the ESPN Tournament Bracket Challenge. That was two out of 6,000,000-plus brackets.

…. as that sinks in, on with the nuggets ….

– While the official announcement is still a few days away, it’s looking like most of the 2010 starting rotation for the Osprey will be headed to South Bend to at least start the season.  South Bend SilverHawks radio broadcaster Owen Serey blogged about who could be headed that way recently. The official announcement isn’t expected to be until this weekend – South Bend has an exhibition game next Tuesday at Notre Dame.

– Opening Day is Thursday, and that means that Major League clubs will also be making decisions as to who will be on their 25-man rosters. Two of those decisions, which involved former Osprey, came down on Monday:

The Arizona Diamondbacks have optioned Jordan Norberto (2006 Osprey) to Triple-A Reno to begin the 2011 season. In nine appearances, Norberto collected one save in one opportunity and posted a 6.23 ERA, walking six batters in 8 2/3 innings pitched. Norberto slumped a bit toward the end of spring while trying to compete for a spot in the D-backs’ bullpen.

Also, the Pittsburgh Pirates have opted to option infielder Pedro Ciriaco (2005)  to Triple-A Indianapolis. Here’s one Pittsburgh writer’s take on the situation.

– Good news about Clay Zavada, according to Arizona Republic writer Nick Piecoro. Which, of course, got us thinking about that ‘stache …

We could not resist adding a Clay Zavada tribute video we found on YouTube.

We’ll keep up with the latest both here and on the Official Home Page of the Missoula Osprey, www.missoulaosprey.com.