Savannah, GA – The Savannah Sand Gnats, in conjunction with the New York Mets, released the team’s tentative Opening Day Roster today. The Mets will make roster moves prior to Opening Night to finalize the roster.
The Gnats begin the 2012 season with a seven game home stand against the Augusta GreenJackets. The Gnats roster will feature many new faces in 2012; Currently, five of the players on the tentative Opening Day roster saw action with the 2011 SAL Southern Division Champion Sand Gnats.
Sand Gnats veterans Aderlin Rodriguez, Luis Nieves, Sam Honeck, and Albert Cordero return to Savannah for the start of the 2012 season. Cordero, a right-handed catcher, spent the entire 2011 season in Savannah and is likely to be the anchor of a strong line-up of catchers in Savannah once again. Cordero hit .286/.324/.382 (AVG/OBP/SLG) with 44 RBI in 104 games in 2011. Aderlin Rodriguez spent much of the 2011 season at third base for the Gnats. Rodriguez hit .221/.265/.372 (AVG/OBP/SLG) with 17 home runs and 78 RBI last season. Second baseman Luis Nieves has spent the past two seasons in Savannah, playing in 87 games last year. Nieves hit .238/.312/.297 (AVG/OBP/SLG) in with 20 RB I in 2011. First baseman Sam Honeck rounds out the veterans on the Opening Day roster. Honeck played 75 games in 2011 before he was injured after taking a line drive to the face. Joining the infielders is the 2010 Mets 13th Round pick -- Hilton Head native Brian Harrison. Harrison spent 2011 in short-season Brooklyn of the New York-Penn League, hitting .237/.332/.311 with 30 RBI in 62 games. Harrison was originally selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2007 draft (29th round), but did not sign, choosing to attend Furman University in Greenville, SC. Mets 2010 22nd round draft pick, Brandon Brown, spent last year with the Brooklyn Cyclones, and TJ Rivera, who split last season between Kingsport and Brooklyn hitting a combined .301 (AVG), round out the infielders.
On the mound, the Sand Gnats will welcome five top-ten 2011 draft selections. Michael Fulmer was the 44th overall pick in 2011 out of Oklahoma City, OK. Fulmer spent 2011 with the Rookie level Gulf Coast League Mets. Fulmer is currently ranked eighth on Baseball America’s Mets Top Ten Prospects. Former Florida Gator, Alexander Panteliodis, pitched in the 2011 College World Series. Panteliodis is ranked seventh all-time on the University of Florida’s win list with twenty-three victories. The Mets 2011 5th round draft pick, John Lethersich, appeared in nine games for Brooklyn in 2011 posting a 0.71 ERA. Right-handed Logan Verrett was a 3rd round draft pick in 2011. Verrett did not see professional action in 2011 while he was playing for Baylor University. Verrett went 7-6 for Baylor with a 2.93 ERA, leading the Bears staff in innings pitched (101.1). Right-handed Tyler Pill spent time last season playing in short-season Brooklyn and posted a 3.86 ERA with the Cyclones. Pill also appeared in two games with the Gulf Coast Mets. Tyler Pill is a Cal-State Fullerton grad and was a semi-finalist for the Dick Howser Award for the Nation’s top player. Right-handed pitcher Jeffery Walters attended the University of Georgia and was drafted in the seventh round of the 2010 draft. Walters spent 2011 with the Brooklyn Cyclones, going 4-6 with a 3.32 ERA.
The Sand Gnats outfield looks promising as well. The Mets 2011 18th round pick, Travis Taijeron, and 19th round pick Dustin Lawley headline the outfield. Taijeron spent the 2011 season with the Brooklyn Cyclones, hitting .299 (AVG) with nine home runs. Taijeron was an MiLB.com organizational All-Star and a mid-season All-Star for the New York-Penn League. Dustin Lawley spent time most of 2011 with the Kingsport Mets and played three games in Savannah. Lawley hit .276 (AVG) in 2011, and hit 10 home runs combined (Kingsport and Savannah). Lawley and Taijeron are joined by Tillman Pugh, a 2010 15th round draft pick. Pugh spent last season between Kingsport and Brooklyn, and is a career .271 (AVG) hitter. Joining them in the outfield are 2011 draft picks Charley Thurber (39th round) and Gregory Pron (42nd round).
In addition to Albert Cordero behind the plate, the Gnats welcome Camden Maron. The Mets acquired Maron in 2007. Last year Maron hit .318 (AVG) for the Kingsport Mets of the Appalachian League. Maron was named an MiLB.com organizational All-Star as well as the Appalachian League post-season All-Star.
2 comments:
An EXTREMELY GOOD Sand Gnats team this year.
If Aderlin Rodriguez can get the avg up to around .260 with 20+ HR's in that cavern of a stadium this team is going to score a ton of runs and prevent them too.
1st place finish and playoffs IMO
and... a very OLD one
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