Former River Cats set to play in World Series
Five former River Cats are eligible for the San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers' World Series rosters, with Game 1 on Wednesday night in San Francisco.
The Texas Rangers feature three former River Cats - right-hander Colby Lewis, outfielder Nelson Cruz and infielder Esteban German.
Lewis, who compiled an 8-3 record and 1.88 ERA in 2007 with the River Cats, is 2-0 with a 1.45 ERA this postseason with Texas. He recorded the win in the Rangers' American League Championship Series victory over the New York Yankees. Cruz, who played four games and hit one home run with Sacramento in 2004, has five home runs and eight RBIs this postseason. German, who played for the River Cats from 2001-04 and holds the franchise record for hits (401), at-bats (1,306), runs (231) and stolen bases (93), has yet to appear in the postseason.
The San Francisco Giants feature two former River Cats - right-handed reliever Santiago Casilla and left-handed starter Barry Zito. Casilla, who pitched parts of six seasons with Sacramento (2004-2009), has allowed one run over 3.1 innings in the postseason. Zito, who posted an 8-5 record with the River Cats in 2000, has yet to appear in the postseason.
Since 1999, the River Cats have had at least one representative in each World Series. Below is a list of River Cats who have been on World Series rosters:
1999 - D'Angelo Jimenez (NYY), Ed Yarnall (NYY), Micah Bowie (Atl)
2000 (NYY) - Ed Yarnall (NYY), Randy Keisler (NYY), Mike Piazza (NYM)*, Eric Cammack (NYM)
2001 (Ari) - Jack Cust (Ari), Mike Mohler (Ari), Bret Prinz (Ari), Rob Ryan (Ari), Randy Velarde (NYY)*, Randy Keisler (NYY), Jay Witasick (NYY)*
2002 (Ana) - Lou Pote (Ana), Jay Witasick (SF)*
2003 (Fla) - Allen Levrault (Fla), Bret Prinz (NYY), Chris Hammond (NYY)*
2004 (Bos) - Mark Bellhorn (Bos)*, Keith Foulke (Bos)*, Nomar Garciaparra (Bos), Dave McCarty (Bos) Lenny DiNardo (Bos), Kiko Calero (Stl)*, Cody McKay (Stl)
2005 (ChiW) - Jermaine Dye (ChiW)*, Luis Vizcaino (ChiW)*, Jonathan Adkins (ChiW), Chad Harville (Hou)
2006 (Stl) - Mike Rose (Stl)*, Mark Mulder (Stl), Jack Hannahan (Det), Colby Lewis (Det)
2007 (Bos) - Coco Crisp (Bos)*, Eric Hinske (Bos)*, Bobby Kielty (Bos)*, Bryan Corey (Bos), Tim Harikkala (Col)
2008 (Phi) - Joe Blanton (Phi)*, Chad Bradford (TB)*, Carlos Pena (TB)*, Eric Hinske (TB), Dan Johnson (TB)
2009 (NYY) - Eric Hinske (NYY)*, Nick Swisher (NYY)*, Brett Tomko (NYY), Edwar Ramirez (NYY), Chad Gaudin (NYY), Joe Blanton (Phi)*
* - notes on World Series Roster