2003 Scouting Report

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers

• Fox Cities Stadium, Appleton, Wisconsin.
• Affiliated with the Seattle Mariners.
• Manager: Daren Brown.
• Coaches: Dana Williams, Brad Holman (pitching), Jeremy Clipperton (trainer).
• History: MWLguide.com

This page profiles the 2003 Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, a Single-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners and a member of the Midwest League.

Profile

Post-Season Profile

Absolutely nothing stands out about this team. The Timber Rattlers played about .500 ball for the season, and in most statistical columns the team stats fall right in the middle--except team defense, which was very weak. The story's a little different when you look at individual players.

Manager Daren Brown sent basically the same lineup out there all summer. It was a solid lineup, with power from third baseman Matt Hagen, first baseman Jon Nelson, and outfielder T.J. Bohn; speed was available from Bohn, Nelson, outfielder Gary Harris, second baseman Corey Harrington, and shortstop Michael Garciaparra. While Dustin Delucchi was with the team, he made a valuable contribution. The team had a reasonably strong offense; it also had a largely unproven bench.

The Timber Rattler pitching rotation was anchored by T.A. Fulmer & Bobby Livingston; both are control pitchers and both had strong seasons. Cesar Jimenez and Juan Sandoval, the third and fourth starters, are less talented but had good seasons. The bullpen had no closer, with everyone used in a variety of roles; Renee Cortez and Miguel Martinez flourished under this regime. The T'Rat bullpen, like their bench, was not particularly deep.

Except where otherwise specified, all statistics are through the end of the season.

Season Summary

• Second Half: 31-38, .449 (7th place, 12.0 behind)
• First Half: 38-28, .576 (2nd place, 1.0 behind--Playoff Qualifier)
• Pitching: 69-66, 3.34, 31 saves, 7 complete games, 889 strikeouts
• Hitting: .256, 618 runs, 77 HR, 158 steals (71% success)
• Defense: 179 errors (1.32 per game); .681 defensive efficiency
• April: 12-11 (.522)
• May: 16-13 (.552)
• June: 12-13 (.480)
• July: 15-14 (.517)
• August/September: 14-15 (.483)
• Playoff Round 1: 0-2 (.000)

• Position Players used: 20
• Pitchers used: 20

Leading Players

• Best Player on the Team: Starting Pitcher Bobby Livingston

• Best Starting Pitcher: Bobby Livingston (2.73, 15-7, 105 strikeouts)
• Bullpen Stopper: Bryan Heaston (2.87, 2-2, 8 saves, 21 strikeouts)
• Strikeout Pitchers: Renee Cortez, Miguel Martinez, Rich Dorman, Ryan Rowland-Smith
• Control Pitchers: T.A. Fulmer, Bobby Livingston, Renee Cortez, Miguel Martinez

• Best Hitter: T.J. Bohn (.272, 13 HR, 70 RBI)
• Home Run Leader: Matt Hagan (21)
• High Batting Average: none
• High On Base Percentage: none
• High Slugging Percentage: none
• Notable Baserunners: Gary Harris, Jon Nelson, Corey Harrington, Michael Garciaparra, Tim Merritt
• Notable Batting Eye: Dustin Delucchi

The Timber Rattlers at Mid-Season

The Rattlers have scored 325 runs and have permitted 271 runs. Daren Brown uses 2.9 pitchers per game.

So far, the T'Rats have improved each month; a truly spectacular first half of June netted this team a playoff slot. This team features an explosive offense and runs the bases well. The pitching is about league-average, and the defense is a bit weak.

These guys put up a lot of runs, but only outfielder Matt Hagen's been playing an elevated game. Second baseman Corey Harrington, outfielders T.J. Bohn & Gary Harris, first baseman Jon Nelson, catcher Rene Rivera, and second baseman Tim Merritt all contribute to the merry-go-round. Several have some power; most have good speed.

Although the starting rotation's a mixed bag, Bobby Livingston and T.A. Fulmer are among the MWL's best starters. The bullpen is likely the MWL's strongest. Renee Cortez is the strongest pitcher in the closer committee, though Bryan Heaston has more saves. Cesar Jimenez has been extremely successful as a spot starter, and Ryan Rowland-Smith has been nearly flawless in middle relief.

Promoted and missed: Outfielder Dustin Delucchi.

Worth watching: Starter Beau Hintz.

May 8 Profile

The Timber Rattlers are a thoroughly average team, with average hitting, average pitching, and no particular stars. They've played about .500 ball, and are firmly in the center of their division. This team's defense is terrible, by almost any standard.

Outfielder T.J. Bohn's shown some power and a bit of speed, though he's a little careless on the basepaths. Gary Harris, also an outfielder, has hit a bit and probably has decent speed, though he's also a careless baserunner; second baseman Corey Harrington has also hit fairly well. Except for Bohn, no hitter's shown any power potential.

The pitching story's similar. Bobby Livingston has pitched well in the rotation, and Bryan Heaston, Cesar Jimenez, and Ryan Rowland-Smith have all done well from the bullpen. These few are balanced--if that's the proper word--by some potentially costly throwers in all pitching roles.

Pre-Season Profile

Manager

On very limited evidence, Daren Brown's teams appear to be extremely aggressive.

First Round Draft Selection

• Michael Garciaparra (2001; 23rd player selected)

Team Age Information

• Average Team Age: 22.1
• Pitchers: 21.5
• Hitters: 22.7

• Oldest Player on the Team: Dustin Delucchi (December 2, 1977)
• Youngest Player on the Team: Cesar Jimenez (November 12, 1984)

The average player in the Midwest League this season is about 21.7 years old.

Where they played last season

This summary was based on the team's opening day roster and will not be revised to reflect roster changes.

This is basically last summer's Everett squad, with some spaces filled by returning Rattlers and free agent signees. Those Everett players are coming off an excellent season. It's really quite rare to see so many players on an MWL roster who've no prior professional experience.

Team           League          W/L   Place    Hitters Pitchers
                                    (Teams)
San Bernardino California (A+) 77/63  3(10)       2     0
Wisconsin      Midwest (A)     53/86 13(14)       2     4
Everett        Northwest (A-)  44/32  2(8)        8     7
Mariners       Arizona (R)     19/36  7(7)        1     2

A handful of the Rattlers appeared for two of these teams last season and are counted twice here. Five members of the team did not play professionally last summer (one was on the DL), and one appeared in three Triple-A games.