Crawdads Alumni Report February 23
Sunday, February 23
COLLEGE BASEBALL:
Jon Benick ('04, 1B/ Assistant Coach, Longwood (VA) Univ.) Marist 4 Longwood 16 (Game 1)/ Marist 2 Longwood (4-3) 3.
Adam Boeve ('04, OF/ Associate Head Coach, Northwestern (IA) College) (Topeka, KS) NWC 10 Presentation (SD) 0 (Game 1)/ NWC 1 Presentation (SD) 0 (Game 2).
Brian Drent ('95, OF/ Head Coach, Morningside (IA) College) Morningside 1 Kansas Wesleyan 6 (Game 1)/ Morningside (3-5) 1 Kansas Wesleyan 2 (Game 2).
Chris Heintz ('97, C-1B/ Assistant Coach, Univ. of South Florida) Penn St. 7 USF (6-0) 11.
Chris Hernandez ('04, P/ Pitching Coach, Cal State Los Angeles) CSLA 12 Cal State Monterrey Bay 11 (Game 1)/ CSLA (5-8 overall, 3-4 CCAA) 5 Cal State Monterrey Bay 7.
Trevor Hurley ('10, P/ Volunteer Assistant, Kansas St) (Gael Invitational, Moraga, CA) Kansas St 5 (1-6) UC Davis 10.
Vinny Lopez ('11, Assistant Coach/ Assistant Coach, Southern California) North Dakota St. 0 USC (6-0) 9.
John Musachio ('97, P/ Head Coach, Oakland (MI) University) Oakland 4(#18) Oklahoma St. 10 (Game 1)/ Oakland (1-2) 10 (#18) Oklahoma St. 7.
Greg Norton ('93, 3B/ Hitting Coach, Auburn (AL) University) (Tiger Classic) California 5 Auburn (3-3) 0.
Eddie Prasch ('06-'07, 3B/ Graduate Assistant, Georgia Tech) UNC Greensboro 0 Georgia Tech (3-3) 7.
Gregg Ritchie ('98, hitting coach/ Head Coach, George Washington University) GW (1-2) 9 SE Louisiana 14.
Brian Schmack ('96, P/ Head Coach, Valparaiso (IN) University) Valpo 10 (3-2) Jacksonville St. 3.
Sean Snedeker ('96-'96, Pitching Coach, Oral Roberts (OK) University) Oral Roberts (1-4) 2 Texas Tech 7.
Tracy Woodson ('99, Manager/ Head Coach, University of Richmond) Seton Hall 2 Richmond (0-4) 8.
Pete Pryor ('96 1B/ Assistant Coach, Sacramento City College) Butte College 1 SCC (5-2) 3.
HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL:
Russ Bayer ('03, P/ Head Coach, South Forsyth High, GA) SFHS (1-1) 14 Northside 5.
Jose Luis Lopez ('00, '02, P/ Assistant Coach, Calallen High, TX) (Laredo Tournament) Calallen 5 Ray 2 (Game 1)/ Calallen (6-0) 9 Carroll 2.
Saturday, February 22
BIRTHDAYS:
Henry Almonte ('01, P) turns 34. The native of Hato Mayor, D.R. signed as an international free agent with the Pirates in 2001. He made 20 appearances (one start) with Hickory and went 2-2 with a 6.58 ERA. In 26 innings, Almonte struck out 17, walked 17, and allowed 25 runs (19 earned) on 39 hits. He pitched in three games for the Gulf Coast Pirates in 2002 before the Pirates released him.
COLLEGE BASEBALL:
Jon Benick ('04, 1B/ Assistant Coach, Longwood (VA) Univ.) Marist 3 Longwood (2-3) 5.
Adam Boeve ('04, OF/ Associate Head Coach, Northwestern (IA) College) (at Topeka, KS) NWC 6 Avila (MO) 4 (Game 1)/ NWC (3-3) 11 Winnipeg 2.
Brian Drent ('95, OF/ Head Coach, Morningside (IA) College) Morningside 8 Kansas Wesleyan 7 (Game 1)/ Morningside (3-3) 10 Kansas Wesleyan 4 (Game 2).
Chris Heintz ('97, C-1B/ Assistant Coach, Univ. of South Florida) Penn St. 1 USF (5-0) 19.
Chris Hernandez ('04, P/ Pitching Coach, Cal State Los Angeles) CSLA (4-7 overall, 2-3 CCAA) 4 CS Monterey Bay 19.
Trevor Hurley ('10, P/ Volunteer Assistant, Kansas St) (at Gael Invitational, Moraga, CA) Kansas St (1-4) 9 St. Mary's 4.
Vinny Lopez ('11, Assistant Coach/ Assistant Coach, Southern California) North Dakota St. 3 USC (5-0) 4.
John Musachio ('97, P/ Head Coach, Oakland (MI) University) Oakland (0-1) 2 Oklahoma St. 3.
Greg Norton ('93, 3B/ Hitting Coach, Auburn (AL) University) (Tiger Classic) Arkansas- Pine Bluff 1 Auburn (3-2) 2.
Eddie Prasch ('06-'07, 3B/ Graduate Assistant, Georgia Tech) UNC Greensboro 3 Georgia Tech (2-3) 7.
Gregg Ritchie ('98, hitting coach/ Head Coach, George Washington University) GWU (1-1) 1 SE Louisiana 6.
Brian Schmack ('96, P/ Head Coach, Valparaiso (IN) University) Valpo (2-2) 0 Jacksonville St. 10.
Sean Snedeker ('96-'96, Pitching Coach, Oral Roberts (OK) University) Oral Roberts (1-3) 2 Texas Tech 3.
Chad Bradford ('96, P/ Pitching Coach, Hinds (MS) Community College) Hinds 18 Northeast 8 (Game 1)/ Hinds (3-5) 18 Northeast 4.
Pete Pryor ('96 1B/ Assistant Coach, Sacramento City College) Sacramento (4-2) 5 Butte College 4.
HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL:
Chuck Antczak ('95-'97, C/ Head Coach, Riverview High, FL) St. Petersburg 1 Riverview (3-0-1) 1.
Jose Luis Lopez ('00, '02, P/ Assistant Coach, Calallen High, TX) (Laredo Tournament) Calallen 7 Edinburg 2 (Game 1)/ Calallen (4-0) 8 United South 2 (Game 2).
Friday, February 21
BIRTHDAYS:
Kyle Bloom ('05, P) turns 31. The native of Bettendorf, IA was the fifth round pick of the Pirates in 2004 out of Illinois St. He made 12 starts and went 4-1 with a 1.87 ERA. In 62.2 innings, Bloom struck out 58, walked 33, and allowed 15 runs (13 earned) on 38 hits. Among pitchers with 50 or more innings, Bloom is third in ERA both in a season and overall in Crawdads history. He was promoted to high-A Lynchburg to finish 2005 and remained there through the 2007 season. Bloom pitched at AA Altoona in 2008-2009 before he was released.
COLLEGE BASEBALL:
Trevor Hurley ('10, P/ Volunteer Assistant, Kansas St) (Gael Invitational, Moraga, CA) Kansas St (0-5) 2 Portland 5.
Pete Pryor ('96 1B/ Assistant Coach, Sacramento City College) Butte College 5 Sacramento (3-2) 6.
Thursday, February 20
BIRTHDAYS:
Tom Fordham ('93-'94, P) turns 40. The native of El Cajon, CA was the White Sox 11th round pick in 1993 out of Grossmont Community College (CA). He made eight starts late in 1993 and returned for the first part of the 1994 season. Overall, Fordham went 14-8 with a 3.37 ERA in 25 starts. He also had two complete games, one of those a shutout in 1994. His 14 wins are tied for the sixth most overall in club history. In 157.2 innings, Fordham struck out 148, walked 51, and allowed 68 runs (59 earned) on 137 hits. He finished 1994 at low-A South Bend and then split 1995 at high-A Prince William and AA Birmingham. Fordham returned to the Barons in 1996 and made it to AAA Nashville late that season and came back to the Sounds in 1997. He made his big league debut with Chicago on August 19, 1997 and spent much of the 1998 there. After pitching for AAA Charlotte in 1999, Fordham went to the Brewers and pitched for their AAA team at Indianapolis in 2000-2001. He skipped the 2002 season before finishing his career in 2003 in the Pirates chain at AA Altoona and AAA Nashville.
Josh Hudnall ('02-'03, UT) turns 34. The native of Monroe, LA was the Pirates 13th round pick in 1999 out of Ouachita Christian School in Monroe. In 41 games over two seasons, Hudnall batted .195 with three doubles, a triple and eight RBI. The Pirates released him in 2003 and he went on to play college football at the University of Louisiana-Monroe.
Jurickson Profar ('11, SS) turns 21. The native of Willemstad, Curacao was signed by the Rangers as an international free agent in 2009. With Hickory, Profar batted .286 with 37 doubles, eight triples, 12 homers and 65 RBI. He also stole 23 bases and scored 86 runs. Profar was named the SAL most valuable player and the low-A player of the year by Baseball America. He was also selected to play in the Future's Game while with Hickory, one of only four Crawdads to have that distinction. Profar set the club record in doubles and in fielding pct. (.955) by a shortstop. He is also fourth in a season in triples, fifth in walks (65), and ninth in runs scored. Profar played much of 2012 at AA Frisco and received a late-season promotion to Texas. He made his debut on September 2, 2012 and did so in a big way by becoming the youngest player to homer in his first major league at bat. Profar split the 2013 season at AAA Round Rock and at Texas. He is expected to be the starting second baseman for the Rangers.
COLLEGE BASEBALL:
Jon Benick ('04, 1B/ Assistant Coach, Longwood (VA) Univ.) Longwood (1-3) 7 James Madison 14.
Greg Norton ('93, 3B/ Hitting Coach, Auburn (AL) University) Alabama St. 9 Auburn (2-2) 3.
Eddie Prasch ('06-'07, 3B/ Graduate Assistant, Georgia Tech) Georgia Tech (1-3) 3 Georgia Southern 4.
Gregg Ritchie ('98, hitting coach/ Head Coach, George Washington University) Maryland-Eastern Shore 2 GWU (1-0) 3.
Wednesday, February 19
BIRTHDAYS:
Fabio Castillo ('09, P) turns 25. The native of Samana, D.R. was signed by the Rangers as an international free agent in 2005. Castillo went 3-6 with two saves and a 4.05 ERA in 40 appearances (two starts). In 80 games, he struck out 67, walked 25, and allowed 45 runs (36 earned) on 87 hits. He pitched for AA Frisco from 2010-2012 with a brief stint at Round Rock in 2012. Castillo signed with the Giants organization in 2013 and pitched for AA Richmond and AAA Fresno. He is currently in the Orioles system.
Marc Harris ('93, OF) turns 41. The native of Camden, DE was the 17th round pick of the White Sox in 1991 out of Caesar Rodney in Camden. He appeared in 79 games and batted .188 with ten doubles, one homer and 14 RBI. The White Sox released Harris after the season.
Justin Martin ('99, 2B) turns 38. The native of Woodland Hills, CA was the 16th round pick of the Pirates in 1999 out of the University of Nevada. After playing at short-season Williamsport, Martin came to Hickory and appeared in 23 games to close the season. He batted .294 with a double and five RBI with 12 steals. Martin played for high-A Lynchburg in 2000 and part of 2001 before ending his career with a stint at AA Altoona.
Arlett Mavare ('12, P) turns 24. The native of Barquisimeto, Venezuela was signed by the Rangers as an international free agent in 2009. He made 40 relief appearances and went 5-5 with five saves and a 3.57 ERA. In 80.2innings, Mavare struck out 102, walked 27, and allowed 34 runs (32 earned) on 66 hits. His ratio of 11.22 strikeouts per nine innings is the ninth best in club history among pitchers with 50 or more innings. Mavare pitched across three levels in 2013 at high-A Myrtle Beach, AA Frisco and AAA Round Rock.
COLLEGE BASEBALL:
Chris Heintz ('97, C-1B/ Assistant Coach, Univ. of South Florida) USF (4-0) 5 Florida-Gulf Coast 1.
Trevor Hurley ('10, P/ Volunteer Assistant, Kansas St) Kansas St (0-4) 6 San Fransisco 7.
Vinny Lopez ('11, Assistant Coach/ Assistant Coach, Southern California) #1 Cal State Fullerton 1 Southern California (4-0) 6.
Chad Bradford ('96, P/ Pitching Coach, Hinds (MS) Community College) Hinds 5 East Mississippi CC 7 (Game 1)/ Hinds (1-5) 4 East Mississippi CC 6 (Game 2).
Tuesday, February 18
BIRTHDAYS:
Steve Cardona ('97-'98, P) turns 40. The native of Stockton, CA signed with the White Sox in 1996 as a non-drafted free agent out of Cal State-Fullerton. He went 7-10 in 76 games with seven saves and a 4.46 ERA. In 125 innings, Cardona struck out 105, walked 44, and allowed 76 runs (62 earned) on 119 hits. He is second overall in games pitched. Cardona split the 1999 season at low-A South Bend and high-A Winston-Salem before his release from the White Sox. His final season came in 2000 at Sonoma County in the independent Western League.
Frank Lopez ('13, P) turns 20. The native of El Tigre, Venezuela signed with the Rangers in 2010 as an international free agent. He made 16 starts and went 3-7 with a 4.79 ERA. In 73.1 innings, Lopez struck out 79, walked 35, and allowed 46 runs (39 earned) on 74 hits.
Fred Starks ('93, P) turns 43. The native of Rockledge, FL was the 14th round pick of the White Sox in 1990 out of Brevard (FL) Community College. He went 1-7 in 14 games (five starts) with a 7.43 ERA. In 40 innings, he struck out 34, walked 37, and allowed 40 runs (33 earned) on 44 hits. Starks was released by the White Sox while at Hickory and he did not pitch again.
Walter Young ('02, 1B) turns 34. The native of Purvis, MS was the 31st round pick of the Pirates in 1999 out of Purvis High School. Young was the offensive leader of the 2002 squad that went onto its first SAL championship. In 132 games, Young batted .333 with 34 doubles, two triples, 25 homers and 103 RBI. He holds several spots in the Crawdads top-ten season record books. Young is second in doubles, and total bases (277), third in hits (164) and RBI, sixth in batting average and slugging (.563) and tied for sixth in games played. He was named the SAL Most Valuable Player. Young played one season at high-A Lynchburg in 2003 before the Pirates put him on waivers. The Orioles picked him up and Young played for AA Bowie in 2004 and at AAA Ottawa in 2005. Young had his only major league stint in the final month of 2005 when he suited up for Baltimore. He spent a month at AAA Portland (San Diego) in 2006 before his release there and his final term with an affiliated team came with AA Corpus Christi (Houston) the remainder of 2006. The rest of his playing career was spent with a variety of independent league teams, last playing for Edmonton in the Golden League in 2009.
COLLEGE BASEBALL:
Jon Benick ('04, 1B/ Assistant Coach, Longwood (VA) Univ.) Longwood 3 East Tennessee St. 7 (Game 1)/ Longwood (1-2) 4 East Tennessee St. 5 (Game 2).
Monday, February 17
BIRTHDAYS:
Jose Luis De Los Santos ('07-'08, SS) turns 29. The native of Santo Domingo, D.R. was signed by the Pirates as an international free agent in 2004. He came to Hickory midway through the 2007 season and provided a steady presence at shortstop to help lead the Crawdads to the playoffs. He returned in 2008 and was selected as the starting shortstop in the SAL all-star game. Overall in 94 games, De Los Santos batted .255 with seven doubles, a triple and 27 RBI. In the field, De Los Santos is fifth overall in fielding pct. (.944) and ninth in double plays turned at short (61). He moved up to high-A Lynchburg to finish out 2008 and returned there in 2009. His final year was in 2010 at high-A Bradenton and AA Altoona.
Rafael Ruiz ('95-'96, P) turns 39. The native of Caracas, Venezuela was signed by the White Sox as an international free agent in 1992. He made five relief appearances in 1995 and returned to Hickory for all of 1996. Overall in 39 games, Ruiz went 2-2 with a 4.25 ERA. He struck out 57 and walked 18 in 55 innings with 40 runs allowed (26 earned) on 65 hits. Ruiz split the 1997 season at short-season Bristol and high-A Winston Salem before he finished his career at Rio Grande Valley (Texas-Louisiana League-independent) in 1998-1999.
COLLEGE BASEBALL:
Jon Benick ('04, 1B/ Assistant Coach, Longwood (VA) Univ.) Longwood (1-0) 6 East Tennessee St. 4.
Chris Heintz ('97, C-1B/ Assistant Coach, Univ. of South Florida) (UNF Best Bet Classic) USF (3-0) 12 North Florida 1.
Chris Hernandez ('04, P/ Pitching Coach, Cal State Los Angeles) Sonoma St. 14 Cal State Los Angeles (4-6 overall, 2-2 CCAA) 5.
Trevor Hurley ('10, P/ Volunteer Assistant, Kansas St) Kansas St (0-3) 1 Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 10.
Vinny Lopez ('11, Assistant Coach/ Assistant Coach, Southern California) Northwestern 6 Southern California (3-0) 14.
Greg Norton ('93, 3B/ Hitting Coach, Auburn (AL) University) (Snowbird Classic, Pt. Charlotte, FL) Auburn (2-1) 7 Connecticut 3
Eddie Prasch ('06-'07, 3B/ Graduate Assistant, Georgia Tech) Virginia Commonwealth 5 Georgia Tech (1-2) 3.
Brian Schmack ('96, P/ Head Coach, Valparaiso (IN) University) Valparaiso (2-1) 7 Samford 10.
Sean Snedeker ('96-'96, Pitching Coach, Oral Roberts (OK) University) SE Missouri St. 2 Oral Roberts (1-2) 6.
Juan Thomas ('93, 1B/ Volunteer Assistant, Augustana (SD) College) (at Russellville, AR) Augustana 11 Lindenwood (MO) 5 (Game 1)/ Augustana (4-3) 15 Lindenwood 11 (Game 2).
Tracy Woodson ('99, Manager/ Head Coach, University of Richmond) (UNF Best Bet Classic) Richmond (0-3) 6 Liberty 11.