May 23, 2013
96
Games Today




Blue Crabs Add Offense and Defense to Strengthen Playoff Push

September 7, 2012 - Atlantic League (AtL) Southern Maryland Blue Crabs

FWALDORF, MD - It was announced today that Third Baseman Cesar Nicolas has been acquired by the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs from the Sioux Falls Pheasants of the American Association for a player to be named later. The acquisition comes shortly after Nicolas was named to the American Association's Postseason All-Star Team. Nicolas, 30, led the Pheasants with a team best .334 batting average which was good for seventh best in the league. He led the American Association in doubles (34) and extra-base hits (47), and his 79 RBI ranked third in the league.

Nicolas had a brief stint with the Blue Crabs in 2009, batting .289 with four homers and 9 RBI in just ten games. Nicolas is an RBI record holder in the American Association with a single season record of 103 RBI with the Grand Prairie Airhogs. He was picked up by the Detroit Tigers and assigned to Class AA Erie in 2010. He advanced to Triple-A Toledo in 2011 for a short, seven-game stint before rejoining Grand Prairie where he batted .353 in 84 games with eight homers and 73 RBI. Nicolas kick started the 2012 season playing in the Class AAA Mexican League. He was selected in the fifth round of the 2004 draft out of Vanderbilt University. Nicolas is projected to be activated on Monday, September 10.

The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs have also announced they have acquired infielder Cory Morales from the Sioux Falls Pheasants in exchange for an additional player to be named later. Morales begins his first season with the Blue Crabs and in the Atlantic League, and will be on the active roster starting tonight when the Blue Crabs take on the York Revolution in the first matchup of the series.

"Cory is coming off of a very good year in the American Association. He was described to me as one of the better overall shortstops in the league. He gives us another option up the middle, and the more options we have, the better chances we have to still be playing come October," said Blue Crabs Manager Patrick Osborn.

Morales spent the 2011 season with the Fort Worth Cats of the American Association. He brings a solid bat to the lineup and strong defense to the Blue Crabs. Morales played in all 100 games last season with Fort Worth, batting .283 with two homers and 48 RBI. He amassed 104 hits, including 27 doubles, and stole 16 bases. In the field, Morales proved to be among the top shortstops in the American Association League, comitting just 19 errors in 440 chances. Morales played for the University of Northern Colorado and went undrafted before joining Fort Worth in 2010.

Tickets are still available for the weekend series vs. the York Revolution, but are going fast. Fans are encouraged to pre-order their tickets by logging onto www.somdbluecrabs.com. Fans can also receive free playoff tickets by putting a deposit down on 2013 season tickets.

The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs are a member of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, and play at Regency Furniture Stadium in Waldorf, Maryland. The franchise entered its 5th Anniversary season in the spring of 2012, coming off the team's third consecutive playoff appearance. Please call 301-638-9788 or visit www.somdbluecrabs.com for more information and to save your seat at the ballpark today!

• Discuss this story on the Atlantic League message board...
• Digg this story
• Add to Del.icio.us


Atlantic League Stories from September 7, 2012


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.