Veteran Roster Includes Seven Osprey Returners
MISSOULA, MONT. - The Arizona Diamondbacks and Missoula Osprey announced the first group of players that will be coming to Missoula for the 2015 season. This year's Opening Day roster will feature familiar faces, with seven players returning to Missoula for a second stint with the O's. Including those seven returners, the Osprey roster will feature 17 players who have professional experience. This year's team, led by first-year manager Joe Mather, includes a pair of top prospects within the Diamondbacks organization (2B Isan Diaz and OF Marcus Wilson), and a deep pitching staff littered with professional experience looking to help Missoula to its fourth Pioneer League Championship.
"This will be one of Missoula's most veteran teams ever," said Mike Bell, Director of Player Development for the Arizona Diamondbacks. "There could be as many as five starters for the Osprey that have already been in the Diamondbacks organization for at least a year. We have a solid balance between newly-drafted players and players that are returning to the Diamondbacks system for their second or more season. That balance should benefit Missoula on the field this season."
Returning Starting Pitchers
Yefrey Ramirez, who began his professional career in 2012 and spent his first two seasons playing with the Dominican Summer League Diamondbacks, appeared in six games for the Osprey last year, going 2-1 with a 4.45 ERA over 30.1 innings of work. The 21-year-old right-hander registered 17 strikeouts with a 1.29 WHIP in his first stop in Missoula. Also appearing for the Arizona League D-backs in 2014, Ramirez earned an All-Star selection after going 4-2 with a 1.93 ERA and 48 strikeouts to only four walks over seven appearances (four starts) and 37.1 innings in the Arizona League.
A 32nd-round selection by Arizona out of Pitt Community College in 2013, Dallas Newton will also return to Missoula after a 2014 season split between the Arizona League and Missoula. While pitching for the Osprey, Newton posted a 4-5 record and a 5.13 ERA over 11 starts and 52.2 innings. The Greensboro, N.C. native posted a 1-1 record with a 3.78 ERA in the AZL, surrendering just nine hits and striking out 13 over 16.2 innings while limiting opponents to a .148 average against.
Returning Relief Pitchers
Gabriel Moya will don the Osprey uniform for the second straight year, as the left-hander is expected to be used out of the bullpen after starting in 12 of his 15 appearances for Missoula last season. Moya pitched to a 5-4 record in 2014, posting a 6.00 ERA over 63 total innings on the mound. The Cabimas, Venezuela native was dominant over two years (2012-13) in the Dominican Summer League, pitching to a 3-3 record and a 1.98 ERA over 34 relief appearances. He struck out 63 and walked only 15 while posting a 1.02 WHIP over 54.2 innings in his first two professional seasons.
Following an impressive first season at the professional level in 2014, Cody Clark will return to the Missoula bullpen this season. The 6'2", 215-pound right-hander was dominant while pitching in the Arizona and Pioneer Leagues, finishing the year with a combined 1-0 record and a 1.89 ERA with four saves over 19 appearances and as many innings pitched. The Las Vegas, Nev. native, who was signed as a non-drafted free agent in 2014, struck out 23 and limited opponents to a .182 batting average against.
Andrew Potter, who played last season with the Arizona League Diamondbacks, first appeared for the Osprey in 2013. The 21-year-old right-hander appeared in 11 games, starting eight, for the O's that year, registering a 2-2 record and a 6.43 ERA over 49 innings of work. The fourth-year professional has punched out 98 batters over his 117.2 total innings in the Minor Leagues, including striking out 14 in 14.2 innings last yea for the AZL D-backs.
Returning Position Players
One of two field players to return to Missoula, Tyler Humphreys appeared in 51 games for the Osprey as a third baseman in 2014. A seventh-round pick of Arizona last year, Humphreys batted .233 with nine doubles, a triple, 11 runs scored and 20 RBI in his first professional season.
Mike Abreu, a utility infielder who found time at second and third base a year ago, appeared in 13 games for the Osprey in 2014, finishing with four runs scored, a double and two RBI while stealing three bases. He also appeared in 10 games for the Arizona League Diamondbacks, collecting a pair of RBI.
New Osprey Pitchers with Professional Experience
Bo Takahashi, 18, will begin his second professional season in 2015 after spending all of last year in the Arizona League. Playing for the AZL Diamondbacks, Takahashi pitched to a 3-4 record and a 4.39 ERA in 10 games and four starts. The right-hander, whose given name is Rodrigo, struck out 34 hitters while managing a 1.12 WHIP. Takahashi, who was signed as an international free agent in 2013, is the first player Arizona has ever signed out of Brazil.
A native of Aguadulce, Panama, Anfernee Benitez will carry a 3.04 career ERA into Missoula this summer. The left-hander has appeared in 43 Minor League games over his first three professional seasons, starting 31 and recording a 9-11 mark to go along with 149 strikeouts over 183.1 innings. Benitez, then 16 years old, was signed as an international free agent in 2012.
Arizona's 10th-round selection from 2014, Scott Schultz is expected to take the mound as a starter for Missoula this year. Playing for the Hillsboro Hops last season, the right-hander out of Oregon State registered a 5-5 overall record with a 4.57 ERA in 14 appearances and 12 starts. The 23-year-old hurler finished the year with 69 innings pitched and struck out 37 and helped Hillsboro to the 2014 Northwest League Championship.
A teammate of Schultz last year, Dan Savas will also make his O's debut in 2015. A right-handed pitcher out of Illinois State, Savas was drafted by Arizona in the 19th round last year before making 21 appearances (one start) for the Hops and posting a 3.98 ERA and a 3-0 record with 37 strikeouts in 43 innings of work. As a college pitcher, Savas went 10-0 with a 1.79 ERA and five complete games as a sophomore in 2013 en route to being named a CollegeBaseballInsider.com All-American, American Baseball Coaches Association All-Midwest Region First-Team honoree, and first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference.
Signed to a Minor League contract as a free agent in 2015, Aaron Sookee will begin his fourth professional season, including his first in the D-backs organization. No stranger to the Pioneer League, Sookee began his career in the Angels organization in 2010, eventually playing for the Orem Owlz in 2011 and 2012 before competing in the Australian Baseball League the last two seasons. Pitching for the Sydney Blue Sox, Sookee collected a pair of saves over 18 appearances and 27 innings in 2014. The 24-year-old pitcher originally signed with the Angels as an international free agent in 2009.
New Osprey Position Players with Professional Experience
Having already appeared in two games at AA Mobile this year, Matt Jones, 23, will be one of three catchers on the Osprey Opening Day roster. The Arvada, Colo. native played In 28 games last season for the Southern Illinois Miners of the Independent Frontier League, hitting .301 with two homers and 15 RBI. Jones played college baseball at three different schools, ultimately settling at Southern Illinois University where he hit .310 with 15 doubles, a triple, four homers and 42 RBI as a junior in 2013. He began his college career at the University of Northern Colorado, batting .450 in 23 games before playing one season at Central Arizona and hitting .375 with two home runs and 37 RBI as a sophomore in 2012.
Isan Diaz, ranked as the #27 prospect according to Baseball America following the 2014 season, led the Arizona League Diamondbacks in homers last year, belting three to go along with seven doubles and five triples. The left-handed hitting middle infielder batted just .187 for the year, but walked 25 times and drove in 21 while scoring 22 in 49 total games for the AZL D-backs. The Diamondbacks signed the 19-year-old Diaz, who was born in Puerto Rico but grew up in Massachusetts, as a 2014 supplemental second-rounder.
Didimo Bracho will join Diaz in the Osprey middle infield after batting .272 with 10 doubles and two homers to the tune of 30 RBI and 44 runs scored for the Dominican Summer League Diamondbacks in 2014. The 18-year-old out of Maracaibo, Venezuela stole 37 bases in 51 attempts last year while also drawing 31 walks and reaching at a .383 clip.
A pair of outfielders taken in the top-five rounds the last two years will round out the veteran roster for Missoula this season. Marcus Wilson and Matt McPhearson, who both played for the AZL Diamondbacks a year ago, will each begin their first year in an Osprey uniform.
Wilson, ranked as the #24 prospect in Arizona's system according to Baseball America following the 2014 season, batted .206 with two doubles, two triples, a homer and 22 RBI over 39 games for the AZL D-backs in his first professional season after being selected in the Competitive Balance Round B of the 2014 Draft. The Diamondbacks see the 6'3, 175-pound 18-year-old as a natural center fielder with an above-average arm and good instincts that help him get good jumps and reads, and MLB.com currently has the Serra High School product ranked as the 15th-best prospect in the organization.
Selected in the fourth round of the 2013 MLB Draft, McPhearson will play his first season outside of the Arizona League in 2015. A .245 career hitter, the 5'8", 164-pounder batted .281 with 32 runs scored, two doubles and 16 RBI over 43 games in 2014 en route to being named an AZL All-Star. The speedy outfielder, who was arguably the fastest player in the 2013 draft, also managed 23 stolen bases in 26 attempts to finish second in the Arizona League last year, running his two-year total to 38 stolen bases in 44 attempts.
The Osprey open the 2015 season on the road against the Helena Brewers June 18. The Osprey home opener is set for June 24 against Helena. Osprey ticket plans are still available and can be purchased at the MSO Hub Box Office, by phone at (406) 543-3300, and online at MissoulaOsprey.com