Sea Dogs Announce 2012 Roster
Published on April 3, 2012 under Eastern League (EL1)
Portland Sea Dogs News Release
Portland, Maine- The Boston Red Sox have announced a tentative 2012 Opening Day roster for the Double-A affiliate Portland Sea Dogs. Highlighting the roster is 2011 Red Sox Minor League Offensive Co-Player of the Year Bryce Brentz.
The 2012 roster includes five out of the top 30 prospects in the organization according to Baseball America; Brentz (# 5), Kolbrin Vitek (# 19), OscarTejeda (# 24), Derrik Gibson (# 25), and Heiker Menses (# 30). Tejeda is also the lone member of the Red Sox 40-man roster on the 2012 Sea Dogs roster. 18 players assigned to the Portland roster have previously seen time with the Sea Dogs.
Eastern League rosters expanded to 25 players in 2012. The Portland roster currently holds 26 players; a roster move will be made prior to Thursday's season opener.
The pitching staff will include Brock Huntzinger, who led the Sea Dogs with a 123 strikeouts last year. Left-handed pitchers Chris Hernandez and Will Latimer were both Carolina League All-Stars in 2011. Hernandez tied for second among Red Sox farmhands with 10 wins and ranked fifth in the organization with a 3.18 ERA last year. Jeremy Kehrt, the Sea Dogs 2011 Citizen of the Year returns. Billy Buckner is the only player on the roster with Major League experience having appeared in 36 big league games with the Royals and Diamondbacks, notching a 6-11 record with a 6.25 ERA. Other pitchers include Chris Balcom-Miller, Caleb Clay, Josh Fields, Aaron Kurcz, Michael Lee, Chris Martin, and Eammon Portice.
The infield will include Ryan Dent, Gibson, Jon Hee, Meneses, Reynaldo Rodriguez, and Vitek. Gibson was rated as the "Best Athlete" in the Red Sox farm system in Baseball America's "Best Tools" survey. Hee was the Sea Dogs' 10th Player Award winner last season. Meneses, the 30th ranked prospect in the organization, ranked fourth amongst Red Sox minor leaguers in hitting (.295) in 2011. Rodriguez was a Carolina League All-Star before earning a promotion to Double-A Portland. He hit .286 and recorded career highs in doubles (39), home runs (18), RBI (77), and runs (73). Vitek was a Red Sox first round draft pick (20th overall) in 2010, and ranked eighth in the Carolina League in hitting (.281) last season.
The outfield will consist of Brentz, Ronald Bermudez, Jeremy Hazelbaker, Peter Hissey, and Tejeda. Brentz was named the Red Sox Offensive Co-Player of the Year after hitting .306 with 25 doubles, 30 home runs, and 91 RBI between Single-A Greenville and Single-A Salem. Hazelbaker clubbed 17 home runs and ranked second amongst Red Sox farmhands with 47 stolen bases in 2011. Hissey had a career high 25 doubles and 27 stolen bases last season with Single-A Salem. Tejeda, who served as the Sea Dogs second baseman last year will move to the outfield for the 2012 season.
Behind the plate will be Daniel Butler, Matt Spring, and Jayson Hernandez. Butler was a Carolina League All-Star last season. He hit .241 with 12 home runs and 71 RBI with stops in Salem, Portland, and Pawtucket. He threw out 35.5% of attempted base stealers and paced qualifying Carolina League catchers with a .995 fielding percentage.
The 2012 roster is again a team filled with homegrown talent, Only three players on the roster were originally signed from another organization; Buckner, Fields, and Kurcz. Buckner was signed as a minor league free agent in March 2012, and was drafted by the Royals in the second round of the 2004 draft. Fields was acquired at the trading deadline last season from the Seattle Mariners organization in the deal that sent Erik Bedard to the Red Sox. Kurcz was part of the compensation from the Chicago Cubs for General Manager Theo Epstein.
Kevin Boles returns for his second season as Sea Dogs manager. Hitting coach Dave Joppie and pitching coach Bob Kipper also return to Portland.
The Sea Dogs open the season on the road in Reading, Pennsylvania on Thursday, April 5th with a 4:05 PM doubleheader against the Reading Phillies. The home opener at Hadlock Field is set for Thursday, April 12th at 6:00 PM against the Binghamton Mets.
Book your nine inning vacation. Tickets for Opening Day and all Sea Dogs home games are currently on sale and can be purchased over the phone at 207-879-9500 or online at www.seadogs.com. The 2012 season will be the Sea Dogs' 19th season in Portland and the tenth as an affiliate of the Boston Red Sox.
Eastern League Stories from April 3, 2012
- Sea Dogs Announce 2012 Roster - Portland Sea Dogs
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
