Sounds Announce Tentative Opening Day Roster

The Nashville Sounds Baseball Club, in conjunction with the Oakland Athletics, has announced its tentative Opening Day roster. The Sounds begin Pacific Coast League on the road when they begin a five-game series against the New Orleans Baby Cakes on Thursday, April 5.
Seven Baseball America top-30 Oakland A's prospects, 14 players with Major League experience and 13 players who have played for the Sounds highlight the roster.
22-year-old Franklin Barreto leads the group of top prospects. The infielder played in 111 games with Nashville in 2017 and hit .290 with 63 runs scored, 54 RBI, 41 extra-base hits and 15 stolen bases. Barreto made his Major League debut on June 24 of last year and homered in his first game. He is Oakland's number two ranked prospect according to Baseball America.
Barreto is joined by other top prospects INF Jorge Mateo (No. 3), OF Dustin Fowler (No. 4), INF Sheldon Neuse (No. 14), RHP Frankie Montas (No. 21), OF BJ Boyd (No. 24) and RHP James Naile (No. 26).
Mateo, 22, and Fowler, 23, were traded to Oakland from the New York Yankees as part of the Sonny Gray trade on July 31, 2017. Mateo played for three minor league teams last season and hit .267 with 60 extra-base hits and 52 stolen bases. Fowler hit .293 in 70 games with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre before suffering a season-ending injury in the first inning of his Major League debut with the Yankees on June 29.
Neuse, 23, also joined the Athletics organization via trade in 2017. The former Oklahoma Sooner hit .321 across three levels and was a South Atlantic League All-Star.
Montas, 25, is a hard-throwing right-hander that split time between Oakland and Nashville in 2017. Boyd, 24, was a Texas League Mid-Season and Post-Season All-Star after hitting .323 with 82 runs and 56 RBI for Double-A Midland last year. Naile, 25, posted a 3.30 ERA in 18 games across three levels in 2017.
2010 American League All-Star Trevor Cahill highlights 13 players with Major League time on the Sounds' roster. Cahill won 40 games with the Athletics from 2009-2011 and was re-signed by Oakland on March 19. Also recently signed by Oakland, Brett Anderson joins Cahill in Nashville's starting rotation. The left-hander has won 42 MLB games over the last nine years.
Additional players with Major League experience include pitchers Raúl Alcántara, Chris Bassitt, Eric Jokisch, Josh Lucas and Bobby Wahl, catcher Dustin Garneau, and infielders Mark Canha, Slade Heathcott and Stephen Lombardozzi.
Pitchers Kyle Finnegan, Tucker Healy, Jake Sanchez and Lou Trivino, along with catcher Beau Taylor are former Sounds on the tentative 2018 Opening Day roster.
Pitcher Jeremy Bleich and outfielders Anthony García and Nick Martini round out the tentative Opening Day 25-man roster. With 26 players on the tentative roster, the Sounds will make at least one roster move prior to the opener in New Orleans on Thursday.
The Sounds will be led by Manager Fran Riordan who is managing at the Triple-A level for the first time in his career. Riordan led the Double-A Midland RockHounds to a Texas League Championship in 2017.
His coaching staff consists of all returners to Nashville in pitching coach Rick Rodriguez, hitting coach Eric Martins, athletic trainer Brad LaRosa and strength and conditioning coach Henry Torres.
All members of local print and broadcast media are invited to First Tennessee Park on Monday, April 2 to meet the 2018 Nashville Sounds players and coaching staff. Media members will have on-field access to all Sounds personnel from 3:30-4:30 prior to the team's first workout.
The 2018 season will be the Sounds' 41st in franchise history and fourth as the Oakland Athletics' top affiliate. Opening Day is set for Thursday, April 5 when the Sounds begin the season in New Orleans. Opening Night at First Tennessee Park is scheduled for Tuesday, April 10 when the Sounds host the Iowa Cubs at 6:35 p.m. Season ticket memberships are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.