 |
Season Summary
- First Half: 25-44 (.362), 5th place, 20.0 behind
- Second Half: 34-36 (.486), 3rd place, 6.0 behind
- Pitching: 59-80, 4.85, 30 saves, 1002 strikeouts
- Hitting: .263, 680 runs, 94 HR, 94 steals (71% success)
- Errors: 184 (1.32 per game)
- April: 7-14 (.333)
- May: 12-18 (.400)
- June: 8-16 (.333)
- July: 15-14 (.517)
- August: 15-14 (.517)
- September: 2-4 (.333)
- Best Player on the Team: Third Baseman Scott Kirby
- Best Starting Pitcher: Kevin Grater (5-3, 2.39, 65 strikeouts)
- Bullpen Stopper: no bullpen stopper
- Strikeout Pitchers: Nick Neugebauer, Ryan Poe, Kevin Grater
- Control Pitchers: Ryan Poe, Kevin Grater
- Best Hitter: Scott Kirby (.304, 17 HR, 54 RBI)
- Home Run Leaders: Derry Hammond and Scott Kirby (17)
- High Batting Average: Bobby Darula (.304), Frank Jaramillo (.307), Scott Kirby (.304)
- High On Base Percentage: Scott Kirby (.417)
- High Slugging Percentage: Scott Kirby (.575), Frank Jaramillo (.520)
- Notable Baserunners: Scott Kirby, Frank Jaramillo, Bobby Darula, Jose Guillen, Wellington Sanchez, Obispo Brito
- Notable Batting Eye: Bobby Darula
July Profile
The Snappers have permitted 610 runs to score this summer; they've only scored 519 runs themselves. While they played decent baseball in July, Beloit remains a team with an average offense and a weak pitching staff. Their defense remains an asset, and their baserunning helps.
I'm sorry, folks; you can't win with a team built like this. DH Bobby Darula's a fine hitter, but if Bobby's your star you aren't going to win often enough to satisfy the customers. First baseman Eduardo Figureroa and catcher Ryan Bordenick are weaker versions of Darula, while outfielder Derry Hammond is a power source with no other apparent value. New third baseman Frank Jaramillo is developing nicely.
Beloit's best pitcher remains Ryan Poe, but they don't seem to understand that. Don't believe the hype for Nick Neugebauer or J.M. Gold until they actually deliver something....
June Profile
They're suffering in Beloit. It's hard to win when your pitchers can't control the game. And the team's only star's been promoted to Stockton. The Snappers do play fine defense, and they run well.
Bobby Darula--usually the designated hitter--is a good ballplayer, as are outfielder Ramy Beatriz and catcher Ryan Bordenick. But they're the whole offense, and you can't build an offense around three decent players.
Beloit's best pitcher is Ryan Poe, who mostly works long relief. Poe's strength is his control; he's been extremely effective, so far. Starter Nick Neugebauer shows real promise but needs to learn where the strike zone lives, while J.M. Gold's occasionally brilliant but often awful. Most of the relievers throw strikes, but not effective strikes.
Notable mid-season loss: Third baseman Scott Kirby. It's too much to expect this to pan out, but you heard it first from me: Kirby could grow up to be George Brett.
Also worth watching: First baseman Eduardo Figueroa.
May Profile
This is a bad team, but it's got some interesting players; they can hurt if you write them off. The Snappers are a mediocre offensive team, and the pitching is really pretty bad. On the other hand, they run well on the basepaths and play excellent defense. And they've got Scott Kirby....
Third baseman Scott Kirby might be the best player in the league; he's got good power and generally fine hitting skills. Outfielder/DH Bobby Darula has a terrific batting eye and gets on base well, and center fielder Ramy Beatriz offers better speed but is a less capable hitter. Infielder Jose Guillen is hitting remarkably in a part-time role.
The pitchers seem to have some talents, but only long reliever Ryan Poe, a control pitcher, is doing well. Starter Nickolas Neugebauer walks far too many hitters but otherwise has been very fine in a handful of appearances. J.M. Gold's a promising talent, but I'm not convinced he'll deliver. No one else seems worth mentioning.
April Profile
The Snappers were April's worst team. The hitting is the league's worst, and the pitching's not much better. The only bright spot is the team's defense, which is excellent.
Pre-Season Profile
Manager
Don Money's only previous professional managing experience was with last summer's Snappers team. That team hardly attempted to steal bases, but often laid down bunts.
Where they played last season
These comments and table are based on opening day rosters.
The Brewers assembled this year's Snappers team with about equal parts of last year's Helena and Ogden teams, plus a handful of returning Snappers.
Team League W/L Place Hitters Pitchers
(Teams)
Stockton California (A+) 66-74 7T(10) 1 1
Beloit Midwest (A) 64-75 12(14) 3 4
Helena Pioneer (R+) 21-55 8(8) 3 6
Ogden Pioneer (R+) 33-33 6(9) 6 4
Milwaukee doesn't move players much, so only a couple players are counted twice in this table. None of these players appeared above Class A last season.
First Round Draft Selection
- J.M. Gold (1998, 13th pick)
Returning to the Midwest League
Members of last summer's Beloit team.
- Ramy Beatriz (87 games)
- Matt Childers (P, 14 games)
- Todd Incantalupo (P, 13 games)
- Scott Kirby (107 games)
- Jack Krawczyk (P, 3 games)
- Juan Rosado (P, 14 games)
- Wellington Sanchez (39 games)
Oldest & Youngest Snappers
On opening day, the average age of the Snappers was 21.9 years. Follow this link for more information about MWL team ages.
- Oldest player on the team: Juan Rosado (born August 6, 1974)
- Youngest player on the team: J.M. Gold (born April 10, 1980)
|
![[Search]](/graphics/bsearch.jpg){kind=small}
