Chisoxfn Posted April 11, 2004 Share Posted April 11, 2004 2004 Winston Salem Warthogs Preview By Mike Doyle April 11, 2004 FutureSox.com After winning the Carolina League championship last year, the Winston-Salem Warthogs are almost a completely different team. Gone are workhorse pitchers Kris Honel and Ryan Wing who were promoted to AA Birmingham, as well as manager Razor Shines who will join Honel and Wing at Birmingham taking over for Wally Backman. While last year’s Warthogs team was carried mainly by pitching, new manager Ken Dominguez will be given all the offensive tools he’ll need, especially in the outfield, which we’ll review first. Outfield (4): Brian Anderson, Normand Martel, Ricardo Nanita, Ryan Sweeney The everyday outfield of Anderson, Sweeney and Nanita is bursting with talent, containing three players that made Baseball America’s White Sox top 30-prospect list. Oddly enough, Anderson, Sweeney and Nanita were all selected in the 2003 draft (1st, 2nd, and 14th rounds respectively) and all show explosive offensive upside. Anderson, who will be the ‘Hogs centerfielder, was drafted out of the University of Arizona with the 15th overall selection of the 2003 draft, and has legitimate five-tool talent. Anderson is considered a complete hitter, showing patience, power and an ability to hit for a high average. While Anderson did have surgery last year to shave off a bone in his wrist, he showed up to Spring Training at one hundred percent and quelled any doubts about the injury. Along with Jeremy Reed and a plethora of others, Brian Anderson leads a very solid outfield core throughout the White Sox minor league system. The only thing Ryan Sweeney didn’t do at his first big league Spring Training was make the White Sox 25 man roster. Less than a year removed from High School, Sweeney impressed just about everyone who laid eyes on him this spring, including a scout who referred to him as “a God”. ESPN’s Rob Dibble also boldly stated during an interview that Sweeney could be in line for a September call up, but that looks to be a very remote possibility. Although Sweeney is merely 19 years old, he looks like a veteran at the plate with his smooth left-handed stroke. Sweeney has yet to develop serious power due to switching to wooden bats, but talk to any Sox scout and they practically drool over his offensive potential. It will be very interesting to see how Sweeney produces in his first full year in professional baseball with such lofty expectations, but the Sox organization is quite optimistic. Without a doubt, Ryan Sweeney is the player to watch this year within the Sox organization. Although teammates and fellow outfielders Brian Anderson and Ryan Sweeney gobble up a good amount of praise, Ricardo Nanita is one heck of a baseball player himself. At Florida International Nanita led the Golden Panthers in nearly every offensive category during the 2003 season and was rewarded by being drafted by the Sox in the 14th round. Nanita has solid tools across the board, but his batwork and baseball knowledge stand out. Nanita can literally do it all at the plate and impresses equally on the base paths and in the field. With the spotlight set squarely on Brian Anderson and Ryan Sweeney, do not be surprised if Nanita surprises a lot of people with a very solid season. Normand Martel is in for a repeat tour of the Carolina League and it is doubtful he will see the amount of playing time he saw last year with the ‘Hogs (117 games). Martel is stuck behind the best the Sox have to offer in the outfield and it will likely be a late inning replacement at most. Martel should expect to see more playing time around midseason if either Sweeney or Anderson are promoted to AA Birmingham. Infield (7): 1B – Casey Rogowski 2B – Pedro Lopez SS – Mike Myers 3B – Troy Cameron IF – Tommy Nicholson, Chris Amador, Brian Becker While the Warthogs’ outfield is bursting with up-and-coming prospects, their infield consists mainly of holdovers from the previous year. 1B Casey Rogowski will spend his 3rd year at Winston-Salem, which serves as a disappointment to both Rogowski and the White Sox organization. Rogowski was once considered a solid prospect but injuries as well poor power numbers have dropped him off the Sox radar. Rogowski shows good defense at first base but the Sox would prefer much more offense from Rogowski. 25-year-old free agent Troy Cameron will patrol third base for the Warthogs after spending 2003 in the Independent League. Cameron has shown good power throughout his career (he was drafted in 1997 by the Atlanta Braves in the 1st round), but has never hit for a high average. Cameron should see a good deal of playing time this year. While the Hogs will field veterans at the corners, up the middle is a completely different story. Pedro Lopez and Mike Myers will make up the ‘Hogs double-play combo, with Myers finally escaping the Rookie leagues after four years. Myers is a very solid hitter who will be pushed very hard in hopes that he can keep up his success from last year. Lopez is a very toolsy second baseman that projects to be a future leadoff hitter. Lopez has very little power but can hit for average and is a terror for opponents on the basepaths. Because of his speed and soft hands, Lopez is a fine defender. The backup infielders consist of holdovers from last year’s Warthogs squad, but all are very interesting cases. Tommy Nicholson is a very versatile player who can play a number of positions in the infield. 2B Chris Amador is probably the fastest player in the Sox system behind Ruddy Yan, but has loads of trouble at the plate. Brian Becker is almost a mirror image of Troy Cameron except he plays at first instead of third. Amador could see extended playing time if Lopez is moved to SS for Myers. Catcher (3): Carlos Lee, Wally Rosa, Ryan Wade (DL) Carlos Lee, the brother of current Sox leftfielder Carlos Lee, will be the starting catching for the Warthogs this year. Wally Rosa returns for his 3rd year in a Warthogs uniform, albeit this time as a backup. Ryan Wade is a definite feel good story for the ‘Hogs. Wade was a coach at Hillside Baptist College in Oklahoma for the past three seasons but will make his first jump into professional baseball. Starting rotation (5): B.J. LaMura, Rob Purvis, Beyong An, Sean Tracey, Nik Lubisich The Warthogs pitching staff has questions, to say the least. Staff “ace” is 26-year-old Rob Purvis who was drafted by the Sox in 1999 in the 1st round, 45th overall. Purvis’ career has been derailed by injuries and inconsistency but he hopes to put those troubles behind him. Following Purvis is Beyong Hak An and then B.J. LaMura. Beyong An was obtained along with since traded Franklin Francisco from Boston in exchange for RHP Bobby Howry. An, who hails from South Korea, is a classic finesse lefty who will be returning to Winston-Salem for the 2nd time. LaMura is a flamethrower out of Clemson University who must develop his secondary pitches to become successful. LaMura was plagued by control problems last year and he must correct them as he moves up the minor league ladder. LaMura easily has the upside of any Hogs starting pitcher. After being placed on the voluntary retired list, Nik Lubisich changed his mind about baseball and pitched very effectively for Kannapolis last year. Lubisich has had a good amount of success in the Sox organization and there is no reason to think he won’t continue that trend. Rounding out the rotation is Sean Tracey who struggled mightily in Kannapolis last year, but turned his season around at Great Falls. Tracey has good stuff but his lack of success at Kannapolis is a bit worrisome. Bullpen (7): Brad Murray, Jose Espinal, Dwayne Pollok, Jason Stumm, Paulino Reynoso, Rick Hummel, Julio Castro Look for the Warthogs’ pen to be very effective this year, especially from the right side. RHPs Dwayne Pollok, Jason Stumm and Rick Hummel (closer) should be the workhorses of the bullpen, but some other players could be thrown into the mix. One such player is Jose Espinal who spent last year as a starter in the Chicago Cubs organization. Also keep an eye on Paulino Reynoso who could be pushed into the starting rotation if an injury or demotion occurs. As the 2004 season begins, newcomers Brian Anderson, Ryan Sweeney and Ricardo Nanita should provide loads of excitement at Ernie Shore Field. But while the excitement should be in the air at Ernie Shore Field, the pitching staff must step up and surprise people. If their pitching is non-existent, 2004 could be a very interesting seasons for the Winston-Salem Warthogs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LDF Posted April 11, 2004 Share Posted April 11, 2004 in last yr draft, the sox drafted a pitcher with lousy knees, but good potential......... who was he and where is he playing??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chisoxfn Posted April 11, 2004 Author Share Posted April 11, 2004 Nachreiner and he's going to be in Great Falls this year. He'll be in Arizona until then (or I'm assuming thats where he'll be) working on his mechanics and such. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LDF Posted April 11, 2004 Share Posted April 11, 2004 thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chisoxfn Posted April 11, 2004 Author Share Posted April 11, 2004 To add to that, he was shelled last season. Still has high upside and I don't consider it much of a concern. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LDF Posted April 11, 2004 Share Posted April 11, 2004 To add to that, he was shelled last season. Still has high upside and I don't consider it much of a concern. he got shelled, damn, i was hoping that he can make it. i was going to ask how he was doing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DBAHO Posted April 12, 2004 Share Posted April 12, 2004 To add to that, he was shelled last season. Still has high upside and I don't consider it much of a concern. He's DBAH0's Sleeper Prospect of 2004. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chisoxfn Posted April 12, 2004 Author Share Posted April 12, 2004 thanks Oh ya, I got your email and I'll send it your way tomorrow. Was lazy tonight Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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