Mark Maloney on Kentucky sports

South Atlantic League Baseball

A changing of shortstops came to the Lexington Legends on Wednesday.

Ronnie Ramirez has been promoted to the High-A Lancaster JetHawks of the California League.

Taking his spot is Chris Jackson, who played for the Legends last year, and returns from Lancaster.

Jackson, 22, is a 5-foot-11, 185-pounder out of Virginia Commonwealth, selected by the Houston Astros in the 29th round of the 2008 draft. He split the 2008 season between Tri-City (22 games) and the Legends (23 games), hitting a combined .250 with two homers and 16 RBI over the 45 games.

This season, he struggled with Lancaster, hitting .183 with a homer and 15 RBI over 58 games. In June, he batted .113 (7-for-62).

Ramirez played second, third and short for the Legends. Over 52 games, he hit .248 (38-for-153) with three homers and 13 RBI.

Meanwhile, Lexington’s rotation for the four-game series against Savannah has been changed: Ross Seaton, rather than Kyle Greenwalt, going in the series finale.

Coming up

Lexington Legends vs. Savannah Sand Gnats

What: Four-game series

When: Wednesday through Saturday (7:05 each night)

Where: Applebee’s Park

Tickets: Call       (859) 422-7867      

Probable pitchers (Legends listed first): Wednesday, LH Brad Dydalewicz (4-3, 3.46) vs. RH Kyle Allen (5-4, 4.35); Thursday, LH David Duncan (0-0, 0.00) vs. RH Jeurys Familia (6-5, 2.75); Friday, RH Robert Bono (8-4, 2.45) vs. RH Chris Schwinden (5-4, 3.77); Saturday, RH Ross Seaton (6-7, 2.64) vs. LH Robert Carson (6-6, 2.22). 

Wilmer Flores

Sand Gnat to watch: SS Wilmer Flores (6-foot-3, 175 pounds, from Valencia, Venezuela) is rated by Baseball America as the No. 2 prospect in the New York Mets’ minor-league system. Through 72 games, he is hitting .284 with two homers, 22 RBI and 24 runs. He has come on strong since hitting .235 in May. He hit .309 (29-for-94) in June and is off to a .321 start (9-for-28) in July. The Mets signed him in 2007 for $750,000 and, last year, became short-season Brooklyn’s youngest player ever, 16. He played at three levels last season, hitting .310 over 59 games with Kingsport of the Appalachian League; ,400 in one game with the Sand Gnats and .267 over eight games with Brooklyn of the New York-Penn League. His combined totals for the season: .307, eight homers, 42 RBI, 40 runs and 68 games.

Legend to watch: LHP David Duncan (6-9, 230, from New Richmond, Ohio), up from Tri-City of the New York-Penn League, is scheduled to make his Legends debut Thursday. He takes the roster spot of RH Jose Trinidad, who is on the disabled list for the second time this season due to a sore labrum. Ricky Bennett, assistant general manager and director of player development for the Houston Astros, said Duncan will stay in the rotation, but the five starters who have been here all season will not be moved. Details were still being discussed after Tuesday’s game, but Bennett said you can expect a “modified six-man rotation.” Trinidad likely is finished for the year. Selected by the Astros in the fifth round of the 2008 draft, out of Georgia Tech, Duncan went 3-4 with a 4.88 ERA over 14 starts for Tri-City last season. He began this season with High-A Lancaster, getting starts in 10 of his 11 appearances. With an 0-9 record and 8.51 ERA, he was demoted to Tri-City, where he seems to have rediscovered his form. In three starts for the ValleyCats, Duncan went 0-1 with a 3.10 ERA. Working 20 1/3 innings, he struck out 17 and walked three.

Radio: WLXG AM-1300

South Atlantic League Baseball

Coming up

Lexington Legends vs. Savannah Sand Gnats

What: Four-game series

When: Wednesday through Saturday (7:05 each night)

Where: Applebee’s Park

Tickets: Call   (859) 422-7867  

Probable pitchers (Legends listed first): Wednesday, LH Brad Dydalewicz (4-3, 3.46) vs. RH Kyle Allen (5-4, 4.35); Thursday, LH David Duncan (0-0, 0.00) vs. RH Jeurys Familia (6-5, 2.75); Friday, RH Robert Bono (8-4, 2.45) vs. RH Chris Schwinden (5-4, 3.77); Saturday, RH Kyle Greenwalt (7-7, 3.30) vs. LH Robert Carson (6-6, 2.22).

Wilmer Flores

Sand Gnat to watch: SS Wilmer Flores (6-foot-3, 175 pounds, from Valencia, Venezuela) is rated by Baseball America as the No. 2 prospect in the New York Mets’ minor-league system. Through 72 games, he is hitting .284 with two homers, 22 RBI and 24 runs. He has come on strong since hitting .235 in May. He hit .309 (29-for-94) in June and is off to a .321 start (9-for-28) in July. The Mets signed him in 2007 for $750,000 and, last year, became short-season Brooklyn’s youngest player ever, 16. He played at three levels last season, hitting .310 over 59 games with Kingsport of the Appalachian League; ,400 in one game with the Sand Gnats and .267 over eight games with Brooklyn of the New York-Penn League. His combined totals for the season: .307, eight homers, 42 RBI, 40 runs and 68 games.

Legend to watch: LHP David Duncan (6-9, 230, from New Richmond, Ohio), up from Tri-City of the New York-Penn League, is scheduled to make his Legends debut Thursday. He takes the roster spot of RH Jose Trinidad, who is on the disabled list for the second time this season due to a sore labrum. Ricky Bennett, assistant general manager and director of player development for the Houston Astros, said Duncan will stay in the rotation, but the five starters who have been here all season will not be moved. Details were still being discussed after Tuesday’s game, but Bennett said you can expect a “modified six-man rotation.” Trinidad likely is finished for the year. Selected by the Astros in the fifth round of the 2008 draft, out of Georgia Tech, Duncan went 3-4 with a 4.88 ERA over 14 starts for Tri-City last season. He began this season with High-A Lancaster, getting starts in 10 of his 11 appearances. With an 0-9 record and 8.51 ERA, he was demoted to Tri-City, where he seems to have rediscovered his form. In three starts for the ValleyCats, Duncan went 0-1 with a 3.10 ERA. Working 20 1/3 innings, he struck out 17 and walked three.

Radio: WLXG AM-1300

The University of Kentucky softball team turned a local Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant into a Buffalo Wild, Wild Wings during Sunday’s televised NCAA Selection Show (ESPNU).

“We were just told to meet at ‘B.W.’s’ at 9 o’clock, so I thought it was just going to the team,” said second baseman Natalie Smith, a junior. “And then I walk in and girls got surprised with their families, and then everyone’s whispering ‘Coach Cal’s here!’ and Mr. Barnhart, all the athletic people, our media crew, academics, weight, strength and conditioning. It just shows what a family UK athletics is, and it’s just really awesome to have that support system around us.”

Yes, men’s basketball coach John Calipari and athletics director Mitch Barnhart joined in the celebration.

This was big stuff — Kentucky gets its first invitation to the NCAA softball big dance.

“It was really exciting, for the first time in my three years here,” said Molly Johnson, UK’s sweet-hitting junior shortstop. “I was really happy for the team.”

Rachel Lawson

“I wanted to see what the looks on all their faces were because I’m so proud of everything that they’ve done this year,” Coach Rachel Lawson said as she relived the moment that Kentucky’s name appeared on the screen. “They deserve it. They work hard. Just for them to feel this moment for the first time, I think, is very special.”

UK (32-21) landed in the Columbus (Ohio) Regional, one of 16 four-team regionals that will be played next weekend. The Wildcats will open the double-elimination regional against Brigham Young (39-16), the Mountain West champion, Thursday at 5 p.m. Ohio State (44-9), seeded 11th nationally, will face MAAC champion Canisius (27-22) Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

Play continues through Saturday. The champion will advance to a best-of-three Super Regional, May 22-23, to face either sixth-seeded Georgia, North Carolina, Campbell or Radford. Winners of the eight Super Regions advance to the College World Series, May 28-June 3, at Oklahoma City.

“Rachel and this group have done a remarkable job,” Barnhart said. “I’m really, really proud of them.”

Natalie Smith

“All the hard work has finally paid off,” Smith said. “We’re really excited to go to Ohio State. Because it’s near Kentucky, a lot of family can travel. We think we’re going to get a lot of fans, and it’s definitely a regional that we think we have a good shot of winning.

“These freshmen have no idea how big of a deal this is because they haven’t had to go through the past two years of losing seasons and just a lot of ups and downs, coaching changes. But it’s all worth it right now and any problems we’ve had in the past, everything’s just kind of melted away. It’s almost like a clean slate and we’re just ready to go.”

UK finished 20-31 in 2007 and, in Lawson’s first season as coach, 17-37 in 2008.

“It’s huge for the program,” Lawson said of what the NCAA berth means, “because I think now they finally understand they’re on the big stage. That was the coolest thing about being at the SEC Tournament, because I heard one of the players say ‘we’re a big deal.’ I don’t think they understood until they were sitting on the field in Knoxville this weekend that they understood they were a big deal. So now that they understand that they are a big deal, now it’s just a matter of winning softball games and don’t worry about anything else.”

UK is among nine SEC teams to receive NCAA bids, along with top-seeded Florida, No. 4 Alabama, No. 6 Georgia, No. 13 Tennessee and unseeded Arkansas, Auburn, LSU and Mississippi State. The Wildcats are coming off an SEC Tournament that saw them stun Georgia 2-0, then take Alabama to extra innings before falling 2-1.

Molly Johnson

Megan Yocke

“After the SEC Tournament, I think our confidence was soaring,” Johnson said. “That win against Georgia really helped. Then taking Alabama to extra innings, a win would have been even better, but extra innings against a top-notch team like Alabama will only help a young team like ourselves.”

“We extremely confident right now,” said sophomore Megan Yocke, who can play infield or behind the plate. “We think that we can pretty much take on anyone. We’ve faced a lot of Top 25 competition in the early season and we played extremely well against them. And we’ve gotten better throughout the season, so I think if we were to face those same teams again we could give an even better run.” 

COLUMBUS REGIONAL SCHEDULE
Thursday (times subject to change):
Game 1: Kentucky (home) vs. BYU (away) - 5 p.m.
Game 2: Canisius at Ohio State - 7:30 p.m.

Friday (times subject to change):
Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner - 1 p.m.
Game 4: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser - 3:30 p.m.
Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser - 6 p.m.

Saturday (times subject to change):
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner - 1 p.m.
Game 7, if needed: Game 6 winner vs. Game 6 loser - 3:30 p.m.

Region seeds – 1. Florida; 2. UCLA; 3. Washington; 4. Alabama; 5. Michigan; 6. Georgia; 7. Oklahoma; 8. Stanford; 9. Arizona; 10. Arizona State; 11. Ohio State; 12. Northwestern; 13. Tennessee; 14. Georgia Tech; 15. DePaul; 16. Florida State.

* Louisville was selected as a regional host. The Cardinals will open against Purdue. Also in the field are ninth-seeded Arizona and Tennessee Martin.

To see the full NCAA bracket, visit:

 http://www.ncaa.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/ncaa/sports/w-softbl/auto_pdf/Soft-D1-2009Bracket-64

He has yet to experience a game as head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats, but Gary Henderson continues to make noise — music, actually — on the baseball recruiting trail.

Henderson, who moved from pitching coach to head coach when John Cohen bolted to Mississippi State last year, has a recruiting class this year that is ranked No. 4 in the nation by Baseball America. UK opens the season Feb. 20 with a four-team tournament at Coastal Carolina, along with Troy and James Madison. The Cats’ home opener is set for Feb. 27 against Western Michigan.

Henderson’s recruiting crop for the 2010 season has grown by two since we last told you of six pitchers and a catcher who committed during the fall signing period.

Since then, Henderson has added a pair of transfers: RHP Matt Little of Virginia Beach, Va., and LHP Bryce Robinson of Kokomo, Ind.

Brent Ingram, UK’s switch-hitting media relations contact for baseball, has the full scouting report. He notes that Little comes from Louisburg (N.C.) College and Robinson from Georgia Tech.

Little, a 5-foot-10, 180-pound junior with a mid-90s fastball, was named by PGcrosschecker.com as the sixth-best prospect in the 2008 Coastal Plains League. Playing for the Peninsula Pirates, he was 3-1 with a 2.60 ERA over 16 games, including four starts. He worked 45 innings, with 40 strikeouts, 37 walks and 24 hits — no homers — allowed, with a league-low .168 batting average by opponents.

At Louisburg, a junior college, he was 4-4 with a 2.88 ERA in 2007.

Bryce Robinson

Robinson, a 6-1, 180-pound freshman, was listed by Baseball America as the 99th best high school prospect last season, a four-star recruit. A three-time team MVP for Kokomo and two-time all-state selection, he hit a school-record 14 homers and posted a career mark of 19-2 with a 1.20 ERA. Kokomo won the state title in 2007, when Robinson struck out 93 with a 0.96 ERA, allowing just nine runs (seven earned) over 51 innings. He also played quarterback and was three-year captain of the Kokomo football team.

Henderson’s recruiting class for this season includes two “Top 100″ high school prospects – No. 5 Alex Meyer (RHP, Greensburg, Ind.) and No. 38 Andy Burns (IF, Fort Collins, Colo.).

The rest of the 2010 class is made up of: LHP Jon Carlson (Rolling Meadows, Ill.); RHP Jordan Cooper (Shelbyville, Tenn.); RHP Joe Devine (Mount Carmell, Ill.); RHP/OF Sam Kidd (Ohio County); C Luke Maile (Covington Catholic); LHP Taylor Rogers (Littleton, Colo.), and RHP Walter Wijas (Elk Grove Village, Ill.).