Mark Maloney on Kentucky sports

South Atlantic League baseball

Coming up

Lexington Legends vs. Asheville Tourists

What: Three-game series

When: Tuesday through Thurday (7:05 each night)

Where: McCormick Field (Asheville, N.C.)

Robert Bono

Legends RHP Ross Seaton is set to start Wednesday. (Staff photo/Mark Cornelison)

David Duncan

Probable pitchers (Legends listed first): Tuesday, RH Robert Bono (8-8, 3.41) vs. RH Alan DeRatt (2-3, 4.91); Wednesday, RH Ross Seaton (8-10, 3.31) vs. RH Carlos Luna (0-0, 7.56); Thursday, LH David Duncan (4-3, 4.24) vs. RH Juan Nicasio (8-3, 2.41).

Tourist to watch: Switch-hitting CF Delta Cleary Jr. (6-foot-3, 180 pounds, from Jonesboro, Ark.) entered the season as the 11th-best prospect in the Rockies system, according to Baseball America. Through Sunday, he is hitting .258 with seven homers and 43 RBI over 100 games. He has stolen 31 bases in 42 attempts and scored 50 runs. He had three hits in each game, Saturday and Sunday, at Bowling Green. Rated by Baseball America as “best athlete” in the Rockies system, Cleary is a cousin of NBA pro Shawn Marion. Cleary, a guard, averaged 13 points a game to help his high school to the Arkansas Class 6A state title. He also quarterbacked the football team. Cleary then led his junior-college baseball team to the Division II national championship. Selected by Colorado in the 37th round of the 2008 draft, out of Louisiana State-Eunice JC, Cleary broke in to pro ball last year with Casper of the Pioneer League. There, he hit .276 with three homers, nine RBI and four stolen bases in 27 games.

Michael Hacker

Legend to watch: LHP Michael Hacker (5-9, 175, from Folsom, Calif.) struck out two Saturday in a scoreless inning of relief against the Hickory Crawdads. That was his first appearance since July 16 and bodes well after a horrendous season up to that point. His numbers: 0-1, 2.69 ERA, 20 strikeouts, 15 walks. Selected by the Houston Astros in the 25th round of the 2008 draft, out of Cosumnes River (Calif.) Junior College, Hacker played for the Tri-City ValleyCats of the New York-Penn League last year. Over 23 appearances, all in relief, Hacker went 1-3 with five saves and a 2.73 ERA. He worked 26 1/3 innings, striking out 27 and walking 17. He held opposing batters to a .187 average and did not allow an earned run in his first 17 games. He was especially tough on the road, with an ERA of 1.08.

Radio: WLXG AM-1300

MVP Jordan Pacheco

Derek Norris, top prospect

Also of note: Former Lafayette High School and University of Kentucky standout Michael Bertram is the Eastern League Player of the Week. Bertram, a third baseman for the Double-A Erie (Pa.) SeaWolves, went 9-for-26 (.346) with two doubles, two triples and two homers. He drove in 11 runs, scored eight times, walked three times and finished with an .808 slugging percentage for six games. … No Legends were on the annual list of SAL all-stars revealed Monday. The Charleston RiverDogs led the way with three selections: RHP David Phelps, 3B Corban Joseph and Melky Mesa (utility OF). West Virginia’s Rudy Owens was named Most Outstanding Pitcher, going 10-1 with a 1.70 ERA over 19 games before being promoted to Lynchburg of the Carolina League. Hagerstown Suns catcher Derek Norris, batting .288 with 122 hits and 23 homers in 121 games, was tabbed Most Outstanding Major League Prospect. Asheville catcher Jordan Pacheco, batting .325 with 139 hits and 13 homers through 111 games, was named MVP. Selections came from a vote of SAL field managers, general managers, sportswriters and broadcasters. Lakewood’s Dusty Wathan was selected as manager, Greenville’s Bob Kipper as coach. Other players picked: Asheville’s Scott Robinson (OF); Hagerstown’s Stephen Lombardozzi (2B); Augusta’s Josh Mazzola (1B); Bowling Green’s Tim Beckham (SS); Delmarva’s Ronnie Welty (OF); Hickory’s Erik Morrison (utility IF), and Lakewood’s Anthony Gose (OF).

South Atlantic League baseball

Coming up

Lexington Legends vs. Hagerstown Suns

What: Four-game series

When: Sunday through Wednesday (2:05 Sunday afternoon, then 7:05 each night)

Where: Applebee’s Park

Tickets: Call (859) 422-7867

Probable pitchers (Legends listed first): Sunday, LH Brad Dydalewicz (5-4, 3.36) vs. RH Paul Demny (2-8, 5.61); Monday, RH Ross Seaton (7-8, 2.51) vs. RH Juan Jaime (first appearance; 2-1, 1.88 with Vermont Lake Monsters, New York-Penn League); Tuesday, LH David Duncan (1-1, 4.00) vs. TBA; Wednesday, RH Robert Bono (8-7, 2.92) vs. TBA.

Derek Norris

Sun to watch: C Derek Norris (6-foot, 210 pounds, from Goddard, Kan.), through Friday, leads the SAL in homers (22), RBI (71), total bases (195) and on-base percentage (.411). He also ranks second in runs (64) and walks (54), and third in hits (105), slugging percentage (.580) and OPS (.991). His .313 batting average (93 games) is sixth in the league, and he is tied for sixth in doubles (24). Selected by the Washington Nationals in the fourth round of the 2007 draft, out of Goddard High School, he hit .203 with four homers and 15 RBI as an 18-year-old in the Gulf Coast League. Last year with Vermont, he led the New York-Penn League with 63 walks. He also led the league by throwing out 47 percent of runners trying to steal. He finished the season with a .278 average, 10 homers and 38 RBI. He came into this season ranked by Baseball America as the sixth-best prospect in the Nationals system.

Jeff Hulett

Legend to watch: 3B Jeff Hulett (6-0, 185, from Shreveport, La.) joined the Legends on Thursday, having opened the season with the Tri-City ValleyCats of the New York-Penn League. A son of former big-leaguer Tim Hulett, was a 2008 12th round draft pick out of Northwest Florida State College. He went 10-for-53 (.189) over 19 games with the ValleyCats, with a double, RBI, three walks and 23 strikeouts. Last season, also with Tri-City, Hulett hit .194 with a homer and 10 RBI over 33 games. His first hit as a Legend was an RBI double, Thursday against Lake County.

Radio: WLXG AM-1300

Lexington Legends pitchers Robert Bono and Ross Seaton, along with third baseman Ebert Rosario, were named Monday to the South Atlantic League’s Southern Division all-star team.

Charley Taylor

Pitching coach Charley Taylor, who has been unable to join the team this season due to bladder cancer and subsequent surgery to remove his bladder and prostate, was honored by being named to the coaching staff.

Ebert Rosario

The 50th SAL All-Star game is schedule for 7:35 p.m., June 23 at Appalachian Power Park, home of the West Virginia Power in Charleston.

Rosario will start at third base. Through Sunday, he is batting .304 with four homers and 20 RBI.

Robert Bono

Ross Seaton

Bono is 5-2 and third in the league with a 1.93 ERA. Fellow right-hander Seaton is 6-5, 10th in the league with a 2.49 ERA and the only pitcher in the league to have thrown a nine-inning complete game shutout. (Two other pitchers threw seven-inning complete game shutouts.)

Former Eastern Kentucky University pitcher Christian Friedrich was selected for his work with the Asheville Tourists. However, Friedrich was promoted from Asheville to the High-A Modesto Nuts on May 20.

In eight starts for the Tourists, the left-hander was 3-3, ninth in the league with a 2.18 ERA and second in the league with 66 strikeouts. The Colorado Rockies selected Friedrich in the first round of the 2008 draft. In two starts for Modesto, he has no decisions and a 2.77 ERA.

Christian Friedrich

Greenville leads the Southern Division with five all-stars, including starting pitcher Casey Kelly and first baseman Anthony Rizzo. Greenville’s Kevin Boles will manage the squad, assisted by Charleston (S.C.) manager Torre Tyson and pitching coach Jeff Ware, Greenville hitting coach Billy McMillon and pitching coach Bob Kipper, and Taylor.

Asheville, Charleston and Savannah each have four players on the Southern roster, with two starters each: catcher Jordan Pacheco and center fielder Scott Robinson for the Tourists; right fielder Melky Mesa and designated hitter Daniel Brewer for the RiverDogs; and second baseman Joshua Satin and left fielder Sean Ratliff from the Sand Gnats.

Bowling Green and Augusta have two all-stars each. Bowling Green’s Tim Beckham will start at shortstop.

The Hickory Crawdads and Lakewood BlueClaws lead the Northern stars with six players each. Greensboro has four players and host West Virginia has three.

Lakewood’s Dusty Wathan will manager the Northern team, assisted by BlueClaws coach Tim Gradoville. Also assisting will be managers Gary Green of West Virginia and Ernie Young of Kannapolis, plus West Virginia pitching coach Jeff Johnson.

The 27-player rosters were selected by a vote of league managers and coaching staffs, media and front-office executives. 

The Lexington Legends aren’t alone among South Atlantic League teams in changing managers (Tom Lawless in, Gregg Langbehn out).

Other new bosses in 2009 include Matt LeCroy (Hagerstown), Dusty Wathan (Lakewood), Ernie Young (Kannapolis) and Aaron Holbert (Lake County). West Virginia, switching affiliations from Milwaukee to Pittsburgh, also will have a new manager.

Young, part of the 2000 Olympic gold-medal team, will work on occasion with a man familiar to Reds fans. Ron Oester is the roving infield instructor in the White Sox organization.

Ex files

Off-season moves by the Astros include the release of right-handers Raymar Diaz, Jake Leonhardt and Luis Pardo, catcher Kevin Carceek, second baseman Greg Buchanan, shortstops Bryan Brown and Tim Torres and outfielder Cesar Quintero. All are ex-Legends.

Pitchers Doug Arguello, Chance Douglass, Paul Estrada, Mark McLemore became free agents, as did shorstops Osvaldo Fernando and Roberto Mena, and outfielder-turned-hitting-coach Todd Self. Arguello has since re-signed with the Astros.

* More on ex-Legends: catcher Danny Fatheree signed with the Cubs, and left-hander Phil Barzilla with the Padres. Catcher Hector Gimenez was granted free-agency by Tampa Bay, right-hander Cory Doyne by Baltimore.

* Two former Kentucky Wildcats have come or gone with New York teams. Second baseman Andy Green, out of Lexington Christian Academy, signed with the Mets. Shortstop Ryan Wilkes was released by the Yankees.

Young Wildcats rank high

We recently went over Kentucky’s fall signing class, which projects for the 2010 season. Of course, there’s always the danger (likelihood?) of losing committments to the Major League draft.

So what of the 2007 fall class — the first-year players who actually made it on to campus and are eligible to play for the Wildcats this season?

The class of 11 players, which includes five high school all-Americans, is ranked No. 4 in the nation by Baseball America. That’s the best ranking ever for a UK class – and not a bad way for former pitching coach Gary Henderson to start out his first season as head coach. Four of the top five teams and six of the top 11 are from the Southeastern Conference. Louisville is No. 20.

“We are very excited about our new group,” Henderson said in a UK press release. “These young men are very gifted physically, but even more impressive as people and competitors. Despite losing some signees to the 2008 MLB Draft in June, we are ecstatic about this group and we expect several of them to contribute in SEC play immediately.”

The high school all-Americans in the class are right-handers Alex Meyer and Braden Kapteyn, catcher Michael Williams, middle infielder Andy Burns and outfielder Cory Farris. According to Baseball America’s Aaron Fitt, the 6-foot-7 Meyer is “the (Southeastern) conference’s best recruit.”

Five recruits are from Kentucky – Farris (Boone County), outfielder Chad Wright (Heath) and three right-handers: Chase Greene (West Jessamine), Sean Bouthilette (Elizabethtown) submarining junior-college transfer Nick Kennedy (Paducah). Wright is the brother of Cats outfielder Brock Wright.

Two more Cats are JUCO transfers: Gunner Glad and Will Campbell.

Only three recruits from the fall 2007 signing period didn’t make it to Lexington — pitchers Robbie Ross and Seth Lintz signed as second-round draft picks and Daniel Webb landed in junior college.

The rankings and the players are listed below. 

Baseball America’s Top-25 Recruiting Classes (SEC team in bold)

1. Arizona State; 2. Vanderbilt; 3. Georgia ; 4. KENTUCKY; 5. Florida; 6. Texas A&M ; 7. UCLA; 8. Arkansas; 9. Texas Christian; 10. Oregon; 11. Mississippi; 12. Texas; 13. Clemson; 14. Virginia; 15. Cal State Fullerton; 16. Wichita State; 17. Fresno State; 18. Stanford; 19. Oklahoma State; 20. LOUISVILLE; 21. Pepperdine; 22. Southern California; 23. North Carolina State; 24. Florida State; 25. Duke. 

2009 UK Baseball Newcomers

Name, POS.        B/T          Ht./Wt.          Cl.           Hometown/School

Michael Williams , C             R/R          6-2 /210          FR           Knoxville, Tenn./Farragut HS

Andy Burns, IF             R/R          6-2/185          FR           Ft. Collins, Colo./Rocky Mountain HS

Nick Kennedy, RHP        R/R          6-1/170          R-SO       Los Angeles/East Los Angeles

Alex Meyer, RHP        R/R          6-8/205          FR           Greensburg, Ind./Greensburg HS

Sean Bouthilette, RHP        R/R          6-2/195          FR           Elizabethtown, Ky./E-town HS

Gunner Glad , IF/RHP    R/R          6-0/190          R-JR        Tulsa, Okla./Tulsa Union/E. Okla.

Chad Wright , OF           L/R          5-10/180          FR           Paducah, Ky./Heath HS

Chase Greene, RHP/IF    R/R          6-1/180          FR           Nicholasville, Ky./W.Jessamine HS

Braden Kapteyn, IF/RHP    R/R          6-4 /205          FR           Lansing, Ill./Illiana Christian

Will Campbell, 1B/OF      R/R          6-5/265          JR            Seattle/Bellevue CC

Cory Farris, C/OF       L/R          6-1/195          FR           Florence, Ky./Boone County HS