Pitchers used: 22
- This includes one appearance by a position player in a mop-up role.
Leading Players
- Best Player on the Team: Pitcher Gabe Ribas
- Best Starting Pitcher: Gabe Ribas (13-3, 2.25, 116 strikeouts)
- Bullpen Stopper: Dale Thayer (2.06, 1-3, 25 saves, 72 strikeouts)
- Strikeout Pitchers: Gabe Ribas, David Pauley, Dale Thayer, Eudy Morel
- Control Pitchers: Brian Whitaker, Gabe Ribas, David Pauley, Jon Huber, Luke Steidlmayer, Dale Thayer, Eudy Morel
- Best Hitter: Paul McAnulty (.273, 7 HR, 73 RBI)
- Home Run Leader: L.J. Biernbaum (10)
- High Batting Average: Kennard Jones (.307)
- High On Base Percentage: Kennard Jones (.407)
- High Slugging Percentage: none
- Notable Baserunners: Kennard Jones, Brian Burgamy, Virgilio De Leon, Rashad Smith
- Notable Batting Eye: none
The Wizards at Mid-Season
The Wizards have scored 286 runs and have permitted 271 runs.Gary Jones uses 3.3 pitchers per game.
The Wizards have a very fine pitching staff, two strong hitters, and a generally solid lineup, albeit with little power. This team's baserunning is remarkably poor, and the Wizards ground into double plays more than any other MWL team. The defense has good range, but makes quite a few errors. On balance, despite the weaknesses, this just might be the MWL's best team.
Outfielder Kennard Jones has become a delight; this is a fine player, even if he's an embarrassing baserunner. First baseman Paul McAnulty is also making day-in, day-out contributions. Outfielders Steve Baker and L.J. Biernbaum are the main power sources on this team, though neither would be called truly strong.
If I could pick one MWL pitcher to anchor my rotation, that pitcher would be Gabe Ribas. Brian Whitaker has been nearly as strong. The rest of the rotation--David Pauley and Luke Steidlmayer--have also been very effective. The bullpen's been similarly excellent: Dale Thayer's leading the league in saves, and a half-dozen pitchers have done well in middle relief or mixed roles. These pitchers consistently throw strikes.
Promoted and missed: DH Josh Tranum, starting pitcher Jon Huber, spot starter Thomas Lipari, and (especially) middle reliever Kevin Beavers.
Worth watching: Middle reliever Darwin Soto.
May 11 Profile
Fort Wayne's team has a really obvious strength: The pitching staff doesn't make any serious mistakes. A less obvious strength is a defense which stops most balls before they can do harm. The hitting needs some work, but isn't quite as bad as it looks at first glance.
The core of the offense is the outfielders. Steve Baker's an all 'round talent, L.J. Biernbaum's a decent power source, and Kennard Jones is a patient hitter who works pitchers for walks. (Jones' value is reduced significantly by his baserunning.) Beyond these three, there's more promise than delivery.
Gabe Ribas is the best talent on the pitching staff, though Brian Whitaker and perhaps David Pauley have had better success in the rotation; Jon Huber's also pitched well. Dale Thayer continues the Fort Wayne/Padres tradition of always having a clearly-defined specialist closer, with Kevin Beavers (still unscored-upon), Bryan Edwads, and Darwin Soto pitching well in middle relief. In general, these guys throw strikes and depend on the excellent defense. It's been a very good formula thus far.
April 21 Profile
The Wizards got off to a quick start, but have slowed down against more capable competition and have slipped from the division's lead. They've proven pretty good at scoring runs, and their pitchers are leading the league in strikeouts, but on the whole this is a fairly average team.
Outfielder Kennard Jones has been the team's star, so far; he gets on base well, but has shown no power and is reckless on the basepaths. OF/DH L.J. Biernbaum and infielder Brian Burgamy are the best power sources, though neither would yet be taken for a slugger. The third outfielder, Steve Baker, leads the team in RBIs but has not actually played well. The best pitchers have been relievers; middle reliever Kevin Beavers has been flawless, and closer Marc Dulkowski's usually cashed in on his opportunities.
Pre-Season Profile
Manager
There's nothing particularly remarkable about Gary Jones' management habits, except perhaps a tendency to call for sacrifice bunts. His teams used to be pretty aggressive on the basepaths--as was Jones, when he played--but that is no longer the case. Generally speaking, this man's teams win.
First Round Draft Selections
Team Age Information
- Average Team Age: 21.8
- Pitchers: 21.8
- Hitters: 21.8
- Oldest Player on the Team: Josh Tranum (May 26, 1978)
- Youngest Player on the Team: Luis Cruz (February 10, 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.
The 2003 Wizards mix returning players, players promoted from Eugene, and a handful of players from other places. With Gary Jones in charge, this looks like it could be a strong team.
Team League W/L Place Hitters Pitchers
(Teams)
Lake Elsinore California (A+) 75/65 3(10) 2 0
Fort Wayne Midwest (A) 69/68 8(14) 4 4
Eugene Northwest (A-) 41/35 T3(8) 6 8
Idaho Falls Pioneer (R+) 32/44 8(8) 3 2
A few of these players appeared for two Padres farm clubs and are counted here twice. One player had two appearances at the Double-A level, one played in another organization last season, one played in an independent league, and two did not play professional ball in 2002.
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