WINNIPEG - Winnipeg Goldeyes manager Rick Forney announced today that he has signed shortstop Wes Long for the 2011 season.Long, 28, has spent parts of the last two seasons with the Goldeyes. He hit .323 - good for sixth in the Northern League - with seven home runs and 41 RBI in 69 games last season before having his contract purchased by the Florida Marlins in August. Long finished the season by hitting .203 with six RBI at Single-A Greensboro of the South Atlantic League.
"Wes is one of the better players in our league and he's certainly a good leader as well," Forney said. "He has that infectious attitude that you like to have in your clubhouse every day. Everything is really positive with him. He puts a hard day's work in every time he comes to the field."
Long, who has been a Northern League All-Star the past two seasons, first played for the Goldeyes in 2009. He hit .343 with three home runs and 22 RBI before suffering a broken ankle partway through the year that ended his season.
"Hopefully he can stay healthy for an entire season and show the fans of Winnipeg what he is capable of when he plays a full season," Forney said.
Aside from finishing 2010 in the Marlins system, Long played three seasons in the Oakland Athletics system from 2004-2006. He then spent two years in the Frontier League with the Windy City Thunderbolts. He won a Frontier League championship with new teammate Amos Ramon and Goldeyes pitching coach Brendan Sagara in 2007.
The Goldeyes now have nine players signed for the 2010 season, including six position players and three pitchers.
Fish Food: In a separate move, Forney announced that rookie pitcher Brandon Forshee has been traded to the Florence Freedom of the Frontier League for a player to be named later. Forshee was 0-1 with a 4.15 ERA in six appearances with the Goldeyes last season.
Season tickets and nine-game mini packs for the 2011 season are available by calling the Goldeyes office at 982-BASE (2273) or visiting www.goldeyes.com.
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