Boise/AZ Cubs Roster Speculation

[Outshined_One]

Time for groundless projections on who'll be in Boise and Mesa!

 

Names I'm expecting to see in Boise:

 

RHP Larry Suarez

RHP Jon Nagle

LHP Jeff Antigua

RHP Tarlandas Mitchell

2B/SS Logan Watkins

OF Jae Hoon Ha

OF Sean Williams

1B/OF Chris Weimer

1B Sean Hoorelbeke

2B/SS Dwayne Kemp

 

I'm thinking that we'll see a lot of draftees initially start out in Mesa before moving up to Boise. We might see Matt Cerda and Hak Ju Lee in Boise, although I think Cerda is going to stay in Mesa to work on catching and that Lee is going to stay down in Mesa for the time being to catch up on his development after recovering from Tommy John.

[falcon]

Dylan Johnston will be in Boise. I think he is going to be converted into a pitcher. I think the players fly out to Boise tomorrow so we ought to know the roster tomorrow.

[Guest]

My guesses:

 

DH Richard Jones (9)/John Contreras

C Matt Cerda/Matt Williams (18)

1B Justin Bour (25)/Sean Hoorelbeke/Andrew Clark (31)

2B David LeMahieu (2)/Dwayne Kemp

SS Logan Watkins/Dwayne Kemp

3B Jordan Petraitis (28)/George Matheus

LF Jae-Hoon Ha/Charles Davis (12)

CF Brett Jackson (1)/Bryan Shields (15)

RF Chris Weimer

 

SP:

 

RHP Larry Suarez

RHP Jon Nagel

LHP Chris Rusin (4) - might only be in Boise for a short time before heading to Peoria

RHP Robert Whitenack (8)

LHP Jeffry Antigua

 

RP:

 

RHP Tarlandus Mitchell - closer

LHP John Mincone (11) - long reliever

RHP Danny Keefe (14) - long reliever

RHP Julio Pena

RHP Yohan Gonzalez

LHP Ryan Sontag

RHP Dylan Johnston

 

Obviously it depends on which draft picks sign and how soon they sign. I'm going to assume Brooks Raley won't sign till August 15th or else he'd be the ace of the Boise staff.

 

Cedric Redmond and Robert Hernandez are still rehabbing in Mesa. They could end up in Boise but Redmond probably should be in Peoria and Hernandez in Daytona.

 

Dae-Eun Rhee will probably end up in Boise later this year.

 

Don't know about Su-Min Jung or Hak-Ju Lee. Jung is a pretty advanced for an 18-year old pitcher in his first year in the U.S. so he might easily make Boise's rotation. With Lee still getting limited playing time in the field, it might make sense to keep him in Mesa.

[craig]

I think Andres Quezada is on the staff in some capacity.

 

falcon, are you sure Dylan Johnston is going straight to Boise? I'd have thought he'd go to Mesa, which is more instructional. Would seem a new pitcher would benefit more from that.

 

I think Lansford might also be there in relief.

 

Am I wrong, or is this the shortest interval between the draft and short-season opener? I think it's going to take a while for draft picks to start to trickle in.

[Guest]

I think Andres Quezada is on the staff in some capacity.

 

falcon, are you sure Dylan Johnston is going straight to Boise? I'd have thought he'd go to Mesa, which is more instructional. Would seem a new pitcher would benefit more from that.

 

I think Lansford might also be there in relief.

 

Am I wrong, or is this the shortest interval between the draft and short-season opener? I think it's going to take a while for draft picks to start to trickle in.

 

Good call on Quezada and Lansford (although Quezada would be skipping the AZL).

 

Since the draft was a bit later in June than normal, this is the shortest interval.

[RynoRules]

Time for groundless projections on who'll be in Boise and Mesa!

 

Names I'm expecting to see in Boise:

 

RHP Larry Suarez

RHP Jon Nagle

LHP Jeff Antigua

RHP Tarlandas Mitchell

2B/SS Logan Watkins

OF Jae Hoon Ha

OF Sean Williams

1B/OF Chris Weimer

1B Sean Hoorelbeke

2B/SS Dwayne Kemp

 

I'm thinking that we'll see a lot of draftees initially start out in Mesa before moving up to Boise. We might see Matt Cerda and Hak Ju Lee in Boise, although I think Cerda is going to stay in Mesa to work on catching and that Lee is going to stay down in Mesa for the time being to catch up on his development after recovering from Tommy John.

 

I have nothing of substance to add, other than to say that is an outstanding name. I really hope he makes the bigs.

[craig]

Quezada would indeed be skipping, but he seemed to get good reports from Phil. He's already 23, so may be more likely to skip than the average Dominican.

 

I'm guessing that Boise will be very fluid, as is always the case but especially this year with the draft so late. If they break camp from Mesa on Friday, that will be only 8 days after the draft was done. Not a whole lot of time to do any back-and-forth on any bonus offers, or to think about them much. Or, once agreed upon, to pack and travel and go through whatever days or weeks of orientation-to-professional-baseball training that the cubs do.

 

I like your list very much, cal. Probably more like an August 15th roster than the June roster, though. Your list includes 13 draftees; I'll be surprised if even five of them are ready for the opener next week.

 

Jackson will take a while, 1st always do. Lemahieu will take a while, he's still in the world series, and then as a soph it will take some time to negotiate.

 

Usually the ones who sign fast are the 36th rounder types who have no leverage, are glad to get a chance, and who want to make an impression fast.

[craig]

Quezada would indeed be skipping, but he seemed to get good reports from Phil. He's already 23, so may be more likely to skip than the average Dominican.

 

I'm guessing that Boise will be very fluid, as is always the case but especially this year with the draft so late. If they break camp from Mesa on Friday, that will be only 8 days after the draft was done. Not a whole lot of time to do any back-and-forth on any bonus offers, or to think about them much. Or, once agreed upon, to pack and travel and go through whatever days or weeks of orientation-to-professional-baseball training that the cubs do.

 

I like your list very much, cal. Probably more like an August 15th roster than the June roster, though. Your list includes 13 draftees; I'll be surprised if even five of them are ready for the opener next week.

 

Jackson will take a while, 1st always do. Lemahieu will take a while, he's still in the world series, and then as a soph it will take some time to negotiate.

 

Usually the ones who sign fast are the 36th rounder types who have no leverage, are glad to get a chance, and who want to make an impression fast.

 

One of the variables I wonder about is how they feel about breaking up the Koreans. Perhaps they'll either want to send at least two, or perhaps none at all. Certainly possible that if they all are friends at Mesa, and they already have a teacher lined up to help with English lessons etc., that they may just prefer to keep the whole gang at mesa.

[Guest]

Yeah, I was going for a more mid-season projection of the Boise roster...the guys who will be around for the majority of the season. I don't care as much for the roster filler UDFAs anyways plus it's an exercise in futility trying to guess who will sign rapidly.

 

The Koreans will be interesting. Rhee certainly isn't ready to hit the road yet. Lee is coming along slowly but judging from the box scores, his bat is ready. The box scores and AZ Phil have both said Ha and Jung are ready.

[falcon]

I think Andres Quezada is on the staff in some capacity.

 

falcon, are you sure Dylan Johnston is going straight to Boise? I'd have thought he'd go to Mesa, which is more instructional. Would seem a new pitcher would benefit more from that.

 

I think Lansford might also be there in relief.

 

Am I wrong, or is this the shortest interval between the draft and short-season opener? I think it's going to take a while for draft picks to start to trickle in.

It makes more sense for Dylan Johnston to stay in Mesa and see how he progresses,but when have the powers that be ever made a decision that makes sense? Dylan is already listed as an outfielder on the roster on the Boise site ( but then again, so is Ryan Sontag....and he is a pitcher now)

[Outshined_One]

I think Andres Quezada is on the staff in some capacity.

 

falcon, are you sure Dylan Johnston is going straight to Boise? I'd have thought he'd go to Mesa, which is more instructional. Would seem a new pitcher would benefit more from that.

 

I think Lansford might also be there in relief.

 

Am I wrong, or is this the shortest interval between the draft and short-season opener? I think it's going to take a while for draft picks to start to trickle in.

It makes more sense for Dylan Johnston to stay in Mesa and see how he progresses,but when have the powers that be ever made a decision that makes sense? Dylan is already listed as an outfielder on the roster on the Boise site ( but then again, so is Ryan Sontag....and he is a pitcher now)

 

It also lists some players who have been released, such as Harol Tolentino. That roster is not accurate.

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

Hawks release roster.

 

http://boise.hawks.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090616&content_id=5356010&vkey=pr_t480&fext=.jsp&sid=t480

 

With four days before the kick-off of the 2009 season, the Boise Hawks release their 2009 roster. While the roster is complete, there are likely to be some changes before Hawks' Opening Day, Saturday June 20 and even more likely the first two weeks of the season.

 

Five former Hawks are returning to Boise this summer: infielders Sean Hoorelbeke and Jose Made and pitchers Josh Lansford, Ryan Sontag and Joshua Whitlock. Lansford and Sontag are both coming back to the Hawks as converted pitchers.

 

Other standouts on the roster include pitcher Larry Suarez and catcher Matt Cerda. Suarez is a "Carlos Zambrano-like" right hander at 6-4 and 225 lbs, and Cerda is the highest draft pick of the roster as last year's 4th round pick by the Cubs straight out of high school. Additionally, the Hawks have three Korean players (infielder Hak-Ju Lee, outfielder Jae-Hoon Ha and pitcher Su-Min Jung) who are making their professional debut this season.

[Outshined_One]

So we've got confirmed...

 

C Matt Cerda

1B Sean Hoorelbeke

IF Jose Made

SS Hak-Ju Lee

OF Jae Hoon Ha

P Josh Whitlock

P Ryan Sontag

P Josh Lansford

P Larry Suarez

P Su-Min Jung

 

The roster page itself hasn't been updated yet. Gah.

[Guest]

Oh, totally forgot that Whitlock had been demoted.

 

Looks like the rotation will include Suarez, Jung and Whitlock to start off.

[Guest]

Five former Hawks are returning to Boise this summer: infielders Sean Hoorelbeke and Jose Made and pitchers Josh Lansford, Ryan Sontag and Joshua Whitlock. Lansford and Sontag are both coming back to the Hawks as converted pitchers.

 

I'm stunned that Dwayne Kemp isn't going back to Boise. He can't possibly be staying in Mesa after doing really well in extended. I wonder if there's a promotion to Peoria coming for him (along with Harrison bumping up to Daytona)?

[craig]

Good point on Kemp, Cal. I thought he'd be a given. I recall him being injured late in XST. Maybe he's not ready?

 

Interesting that all three Koreans, Lee included, will go. I wonder whether Lee will play regularly, or at all, or just DH? They will make the opening roster more interesting to track.

 

Cerda, I hadn't been confident he'd go. So that's nice to see.

 

Watkins not mentioned; because he's a 24th round draft pick that the boise writer didn't know got a big bonus and was meaningful? Or just not up there? (Perhaps don't want to have Watkins and Lee both on same team, splitting SS?)

 

Other guys like Antigua, who we are interested in, may not merit mention by the Boise author.

[Guest]

http://www.idahostatesman.com/sports/story/805047.html

 

The roster includes 26 players, including 13 pitchers, seven infielders, four outfielders and two catchers. The team arrives at the Boise Airport from Mesa, Ariz., at 1:13 p.m. Wednesday.

[wvcbxl]

Good point on Kemp, Cal. I thought he'd be a given. I recall him being injured late in XST. Maybe he's not ready?

 

I doubt it - he was out for a week (quad trouble iirc), but did play in the last couple of XST games. His omission is very puzzling.

[Guest]

Idaho Press-Tribune[/url]"]The Hawks also announced Tuesday that Chicago Cubs minor league field coordinator Dave Bialas and roving infield instructor Franklin Font will temporarily join the staff to start the season. Manager Casey Kopitzke is attending to family business in Wisconsin and won't be in Boise for at least a few days. Font, who was the Hawks' hitting coach in 2007, will serve as the team's interim manager, while Bialas will be the spokesperson for the field staff.

 

Rounding out the staff are hitting coach Ricardo Medina, pitching coach David Rosario, athletic trainer Dan Golden and strength coach Xi Cheng Chen.

[Guest]

Boise's official roster: http://media.idahostatesman.com/smedia/2009/06/16/17/HawksRoster6-16-09.source.prod_affiliate.36.pdf

 

Pitchers (13)

 

ANTIGUA, Jeff LHP

HERNANDEZ, Robert

JUNG, Su-Min RHP

KEEFE, Danny RHP

LANSFORD, Josh RHP

NAGEL, Jon RHP

NUNEZ, Dionis RHP

QUEZADA, Andres RHP

SIERRA, Miguel RHP

SONTAG, Ryan LHP

SUAREZ, Larry RHP

VASQUEZ, Melvin

WHITLOCK, Josh RHP

 

Catchers (2)

 

CERDA, Matt C/2B

SOSA, Alvaro C

 

Infielders (7)

 

CONTRERAS, John 1B

HOORELBEKE, Sean 1B

LEE, Hak-Ju SS

MADE, Jose 3B

MATHEUS, George 3B

ROHAN, Greg 1B

WATKINS, Logan SS/2B

 

Outfielders (4)

 

HA, Jae-Hoon OF

SHIELDS, Cody OF

SOTO, Kevin

VALDEZ, Jose OF

[Guest]

Surprises who didn't make it:

 

RHP Tarlandus Mitchell, IF Dwayne Kemp, 1B/OF Chris Weimer and RHP Yohan Gonzalez. Also RHP Cedric Redmond is still in Mesa; maybe his rehab isn't over.

 

Surprises who made it: Jose Valdez who is a slap leadoff hitter type. Jesus Morelli was struggling down in extended but I was hoping he'd make it over a guy like Valdez.

 

My guess for the starting lineup and rotation:

 

C Matt Cerda

1B Sean Hoorelbeke

2B Logan Watkins

SS Hak-Ju Lee

3B George Matheus

LF Jae-Hoon Ha

CF Jose Valdez

RF Kevin Soto

DH Greg Rohan/John Contreras

 

RHP Larry Suarez

RHP Jon Nagel

RHP Danny Keefe

RHP Su-Min Jung

LHP Jeffry Antigua

[Guest]

I think it's safer to use this roster on the Boise Hawks web site since the guys who were cut are finally gone and guys we know on the team are on there: http://boise.hawks.milb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?t=t_ros&cid=480&stn=true&sid=t480

 

That said, 4 guys we thought might make it but didn't are on this roster: RHP Cedric Redmond and 2B Dwayne Kemp are on there on the "Reserved" list. But RHP Tarlandas Mitchell and RHP Yohan Gonzalez are also on the roster and are active.

 

(Obviously they are wrong in listing Dylan Johnston and Ryan Sontag as outfielders and not pitchers.)

[Wrigley Rat]

Boise Hawks placed CF Kurt Calvert on reserve list.

Boise Hawks placed 2B Dwayne Kemp on reserve list.

Boise Hawks placed RF Dylan Johnston on reserve list.

[Guest]

Boise Hawks placed CF Kurt Calvert on reserve list.

Boise Hawks placed 2B Dwayne Kemp on reserve list.

Boise Hawks placed RF Dylan Johnston on reserve list.

 

And Cedric Redmond.

[sandbergcubs]

it says on the hawks website that mitchell is going to boise?