Kernels Alumni Report

Compiled by Seth Dohrn and Andy Pantini

Heading into the third week of the baseball season, 18 former Cedar Rapids players have played at least one game on a major league team. They are listed below:

Catchers: Jamie Burke (1994) – Mariners; Jeff Mathis (2002) – Angels; Bengie Molina (1994) Giants; Mike Napoli (2002) Angels

Infielders: Casey Kotchman (2002) – Angels; Howie Kendrick (2004) – Angels; Erick Aybar (2003) – Angels; Alberto Callaspo (2003) – Royals

Pitchers: Darren O’Day (2006) – Angels; Trevor Hoffman (1991) – Padres; Bobby Jenks (2001) – White Sox; Joel Peralta (2002) – Royals; Edwar Ramirez (2003) – Yankees; Ervin Santana (2002) – Angels; Joe Saunders (2002) – Angels; Scot Shields (1998) – Angels; Rich Thompson (2003) – Angels; Jarrod Washburn (1995) – Mariners

Special Alumni News: Former New York Mets Ron Hunt, Jack Fisher and Tim Harkness were on hand at Shea Stadium to change the sign in left-center field counting down the number of regular-season games remaining at Shea. The stadium was built in 1964 and is scheduled to be replaced in 2009 by Citi Field. Ron Hunt scored the first Mets run in Shea Stadium and was inducted into the Cedar Rapids Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006.

LA Angels (12-7 1^st AL West) – Probably the biggest surprise this season for the Angels has been the pitching of Ervin Santana. Santana is off to a 3-0 start and in his last 15 innings, he’s allowed four earned runs and 10 hits with one walk with 14 strikeouts. Jeff Mathis is swinging a hot bat, batting .467 (7-15) with 2 HR and 4 RBI in his last 10 games and Casey Kotchman is 13-34 (.382) with 3 HR and 11 RBI in his last 10 games.

Salt Lake Bees (15-1, 1^st PCL Pacific Northern) – Ten former Cedar Rapids players are on the Bee’s active roster. They are pitchers Nick Adenhart, Nick Green, Rafael Rodriguez, and Rich Thompson; catcher Bobby Wilson; infielders Matt Brown, Adam Pavkovich, Freddy Sandoval and Brandon Wood; and outfielder Brad Coon.

The Bees have been running roughshod over their PCL opponents. Matt Brown is batting .423 with 5 HR and 17 RBI and Freddy Sandoval is at .389 with 2 HR and 8 RBI. The Bees are batting .312 as a team through their first 16 games. Nick Adenhart and Nick Green are both 2-0 to start the season. Adenhart sports a 1.59 ERA in 17 IP while Green is at 2.74 in 23 IP. Rafael Rodriguez had made five appearances out of the bullpen and is 2-0 and Rich Thompson is 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA in 5 IP.

Arkansas Travelers (6-9, 2^nd – Texas League North) – Seventeen former Kernels are on the Arkansas Travelers roster. They are pitchers David Austen, Doug Brandt, Brok Butcher, Bill Edwards, Kevin Jepsen, Stephen Marek, Anthony Ortega, Fernando Rodriguez and Von Stertzbach; catchers Tim Duff and Ben Johnson; infielders Michael Collins, Ryan Leahy, Hainley Statia and Nate Sutton; and outfielder Cliff Remole. Two former Kernels are currently on the DL: outfielders Aaron Peel and Chris Pettit.

The Travelers got off to a slow start but have won their last four games in a row. Robert Mosebach pitched a complete game (9 inning) win over NW Arkansas on April 19 and Kevin Jepsen and Steven Marek both have a save out of the bullpen. Michael Collins leads the team with a .380 BA, 2 HR and 9 RBI in 14 games as Hainley Statia is batting .316 (6-19) with an RBI and 3 runs scored and Nate Sutton is batting .313 (5-16) with a HR and 2 RBI in their last five games. The biggest news so far is that Jordan Renz was released by the Angels, after being promoted to Arkansas from Rancho Cucamonga. Renz was batting .273 with 2 RBI in three games before his release.

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (6-11, 5^th California League South) – One step up from Cedar Rapids, the Quakes are loaded with former Kernels. They are: pitchers Marco Albano, Felipe Arredondo, Trevor Bell, Barret Browning, Bobby Cassevah, Aaron Cook, Amalo Diaz, David Herndon, Tommy Mendoza, Sean O’Sullivan and Kelly Shearer; catchers Brian Walker and Flint Wipke (DL); infielders Tadd Brewer, Larry Infante, Abel Nieves, Wil Ortiz, P.J. Phillips and Mark Trumbo; and outfielders Peter Bourjos, Anthony Norman, Anderson Rosario and Drew Toussaint.

The Quakes are in the midst of a 6-game losing streak with a team BA of .228 during this skid. Wil Ortiz leads the Quakes with a .344 BA and Mark Trumbo is close behind with a .313 average, 4 HR and 14 RBI. Anthony Norman, who played one game for the Kernels this year, is batting .314 with a HR and 2 RBI in 11 games. The Quakes pitching staff has been struggling to find their groove – a team ERA of 4.48 for the season along with 40 earned runs and 54 hits in their last five games hasn’t helped the team get back on the winning ways as they were soundly defeated by Stockton by the football score of 21-7 on Saturday. Look for the Quakes to get back in their winning ways soon.

Wondering where your favorite players are? Well, there are several former Kernels that are still in extended Spring Training. The roster available to us was dated April 1 and there have been several moves, both on and off the extended roster.

Pitchers: Ryan Aldridge, Gustavo Espinoza, A.J. Ford, Miguel Gonzalez, Jeremy Haynes, Pedro Herrera, Tim Schoeninger, Jesse Smith, Antony Sullivan, Vladimir Veras.

Catchers: Hank Conger

Infielders: Ryan Mount, Matt Sweeney

Outfielders: Angel Castillo, Julio Perez

The first update is a little long, as we were looking to set the table for the 2008 season. Our next update is scheduled for Monday, April 28 as we recap the happenings of former Cedar Rapids players.