Our New Barons 2024 Manager, Sergio Santos
Sergio Santos, a former Birmingham Barons relief pitcher, has been named Manager of the Barons for the 2024 season. This will be Santos’ first season as a manager in the Chicago White Sox organization. “I am excited to be managing the Barons,” said Barons' first-year Manager, Santos. Expectations are high
Sergio Santos, a former Birmingham Barons relief pitcher, has been named Manager of the Barons for the 2024 season. This will be Santos’ first season as a manager in the Chicago White Sox organization.
“I am excited to be managing the Barons,” said Barons' first-year Manager, Santos. Expectations are high when you start the season, but you have the unknown with the players we will have. I want to bring my style of baseball, which will be a competitive culture. We will play good, hard, fundamental baseball. I am looking to have a great year.”
Santos made his professional coaching debut as Manager of the FCL Yankees in 2022, where he led the club to the FCL Championship and was named the league's Manager of the Year Award. “Managing just came up with the Yankees,” added Santos. “The more I thought about it and the way my career uniqueness seemed to fit so well. Few managers can relate to every player in a dugout, but I can. As a pitcher and a position player, it made sense for me to manage. I fell in love with it and looked to see what the future holds.”
Santos was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first round (27th pick) of the 2002 MLB June Amateur Draft as a shortstop, but after seven years, he switched to pitching full-time. “The doors seemed to close on being an everyday player, so I felt confident about it and was glad it all worked out.”
In 2009 Santos became a pitcher, playing with all four Chicago White Sox minor league teams that season. The hard-throwing pitcher played eight games in Kannapolis, eight in Winston-Salem, seven with the Barons, and three with the Charlotte in 2009. “The only leverage it had was that the Chicago White Sox only signed me for one year,” said Santos. “That sped up the process. They came up with a plan at each level. This is where I truly believe in a process. My ERA numbers were not good coming through the minors, but I realized on that journey that I was getting better after each outing. I refused to look at the box scores, but I knew I was improving in the process.”
“In the Spring of 2010, I confidently entered spring training. I made the team and am very grateful for the opportunity.”
In 2010, with the White Sox, Santos went 2-2 with a 2.96 ERA with 56 strikeouts in 51.2 innings. In 2011, with the White Sox, Santos went 4-5 with a 3.55 ERA and 30 saves. He had 92 strikeouts in 63.1 innings. Santos had a career-high 30 saves in 2011, and across 194 career MLB appearances, he posted a 3.98 ERA with 11.2 strikeouts per nine innings. During the 2011 season, Santos established a new Major League record by posting 25 straight scoreless appearances on the road to start the season, which Mariano Rivera of the Yankees had previously held.
“When I came to the majors, I realized when I was in the big leagues that I had only 38 innings in my lifetime,” said Santos. “Your mentality when you compete is so important. Everyone has abilities, but what will separate you from other players in the major league? There is a certain set quality of doing in discipline, the little things, the way you can forget about negative feelings and come back the next day and compete confidently. I want to help change these players' careers for the better.”
Santos pitched for six seasons in the majors with the White Sox (2010-11), Blue Jays (2012-14), Dodgers (2015) and Yankees (2015). In his last season with the Yankees, Santos pitched only 3.0 innings in two appearances before an elbow injury ended his season.
Shane Murphy Gets Six Shutout Innings in Barons 4-2 Win over Lookouts
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Wilfred Veras RBI Single gives Barons 4-3 Walk-Off Win
Wilfred Veras RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning gave the Birmingham Barons a 4-3 walk-off win over the Chattanooga Lookouts before 4,368 at Regions Field on Thursday night. An RBI triple by William Bergolla tied the game at 3-3 in the 10th before the Veras big hit.
DJ Gladney Gives the Barons the 1-0 Win with Home Run
DJ Gladney hit a home run with tremendous pitching to give the Birmingham Barons the 1-0 win over the Chattanooga Lookouts before 8,235 at Regions Field on Wednesday. Gladney hit his home run in the bottom of the fifth inning for the game's only run, and the Barons won three
Barons Win 4-1 over the Lookouts in Game 1
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Barons Snap 4-Game Losing Streak with 4-1 Win over Clingstones
The Birmingham Barons secured a solid 4-1 victory over the Clingstones on Saturday night. Strong pitching and timely hitting snapped the Barons' four-game losing streak. The game was delayed for over two hours due to rain in the area. Due to the delayed start, starting pitcher Hagen Smith only pitched
Barons Hang on Late for 4-3 Win over Blue Wahoos
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Barons lose 6-5 to the Blue Wahoos in 11 Innings
The Birmingham Barons lost a 6-5 game to the Pensacola Blue Wahoos before 3,032 on Thursday night. The Barons led 3-1 early in the game but gave up three runs in the sixth inning and trailed before they tied the game up and sent it into extra innings. Starting pitcher
Barons Win 4-2 in Morning Matinee Game
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Barons Give Up Run in the 9th and lose 3-2 to Blue Wahoos
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Barons Win 3-2 over Trash Pandas, Win Series 4-2
A Wilfred Veras home run and a Mario Camilletti 2-RBI single led the Birmingham Barons to a 3-2 win before 4,429 at Toyota Field on Sunday afternoon. With the win, the Barons win the six-game series four games to two and remain in first place in the North Division of
Adam Hackenberg 2 RBI Double Sparks Barons Comeback Win
Adam Hackenberg's two-RBI double sparks the Birmingham Barons 6-4 comeback against the Rocket City Trash Pandas before 5,388 at Toyota Field on Friday night. The Barons trailed 4-3 going into the ninth inning and scored three runs in the top of the inning to get the road win. Starting pitcher
Barons Win 7-1 to Open Series with Trash Pandas
The Birmingham Barons scored five runs in the seventh inning to break open a scoreless tie as the Barons went on for the 7-1 win over the Rocket City Trash Pandas before 2,712 at Toyota Field on Tuesday night. Barons pitching only gave up four hits and the one earned
Barons Fall 5-3 to the Shuckers in Extra Innings
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Wilfred Veras 3-Run Home Run Leads Barons to a 6-5 Win over the Shuckers
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Shuckers Take Down Barons 4-1 on Friday Night
The Barons drop their third game in the series to the Shuckers as Biloxi defeats Birmingham 4-1 before 2,915 at Regions Field on Friday night. The Barons could only get six hits in the game and only one extra base hit in the loss. Starting pitcher Noah Schultz (0-1, 4.97)
Barons Win 4-1 over the Shuckers
Jason Matthews hit a two-run home run to give the Birmingham Barons a 4-1 win over the Biloxi Shuckers before 3,947 at Regions Field on Thursday night. The Barons came into the game not scoring a run in 17 straight innings, but Matthews home run in the third inning broke
Barons Get Shutout 4-0 to the Shuckers
The Birmingham Barons lost 4-0 to the Biloxi Shuckers before 2,401 at Regions Field on Wednesday night. Down 2-0 going into the bottom of the eighth inning, the Barons had two runners on base but couldn't push across any runs. Starting pitcher Grant Taylor (0-1, 1.69) pitched only 2.1 innings,
Barons Pound Out 18 Hits in 14-2 Win Against the Lookouts
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Barons Win Game 2 of Doubleheader on Saturday
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Barons Win in Extra Innings Against Lookouts
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Barons Lose 6-2 to Lookouts on Wednesday Night
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Barons Take a 6-3 Win against the Lookouts on Tuesday Night
Oscar Colas had two hits and two RBIs to lead the Birmingham Barons to a 6-3 win over the Chattanooga Lookouts before 3,073 at AT&T Field on Tuesday night. The Barons trailed early in the game but scored six runs to take a 6-1 lead late in the game. Starting
Smokies Score Three Runs Late for Win
The Birmingham Barons took a 4-3 lead into the ninth inning, but the Knoxville Smokies scored three runs for a 6-4 win over the Barons before 2,895 at Regions Field on Saturday night. The Barons gave up five runs in the last three innings to even up the series at
Barons Get 1st Win of the 2025 Season
Jacob Gonzales hit a bases loaded triple to give the Barons a one-run lead as Birmingham goes on to a 6-4 win over the Knoxville Smokies before 5,346 on Friday night. The Barons trailed 4-1 going into the bottom of the seventh inning and scored five runs in the big