Blue Jays announce Lugnuts opening day roster
April 4, 2005 - Midwest League (MWL1)
Lansing Lugnuts News Release
LANSING, Michigan â The Toronto Blue Jays today announced the 25 players that will make up the Opening Day roster for the Lansing Lugnuts. The roster will be full of players that have never seen Oldsmobile Park, much less any Midwest League stadium, as the Lugnuts and Blue Jays celebrate their first year of being a partner. Twelve of the Lugnuts' 25-man roster were 2004 draft picks, including second-round pick Curtis Thigpen.
Lefthander Chi-Hung Cheng, one of two Taiwanese pitchers on the club, will be one of five pitchers thrust into the Lugnuts starting rotation. Cheng, who made his pro debut last season in Pulaski and Auburn, went 4-1 in 14 starts. Righthander Casey Janssen, a 4th-round selection in 2004 out of UCLA, went 3-1 with a 3.48 ERA in 10 starts for Auburn. The rest of the rotation includes righthanders Juan Perez and Kyle Yates and lefthander A.J. Wideman. Perez went 6-1 in 11 starts for Auburn while compiling a 2.76 ERA, while Yates was an 11th round selection out of Texas. Wideman spent 2004 in the Montreal Expos' system, pitching at Vermont.
The bullpen starts with seven pitchers, including Danny Hill, a 2004 3rd round selection out of Missouri and Erik Rico, a lefthander that went 8-2 in his first season as a pitcher after spending a pair of seasons as a position player in the Blue Jays system. Hill and Rico will be joined in the bullpen corps by Daryl Harang, Joey McLaughlin, Mark Sopko, Jordy Templet and Po-Hsuan Keng, the other Taiwanese hurler. Keng and Cheng will become the first Taiwanese players to wear a Lugnuts uniform when they make their season debut.
Offensively, the club is full of several players that will be getting their first taste of a full season of baseball. Catcher Curtis Thigpen, a second-round pick in 2004 out of the University of Texas, headlines the position players. Thigpen batted .301 in his rookie campaign with Auburn in 2004, cracking seven homers and driving in 29 runs in 35 games. Thigpen is joined behind the plate by David Corrente and Joey Wolfe. The infield is also made up of top 10 draft selections, including Ryan Klosterman(5th round, 2004), Chip Cannon(8th round, 2004), and Christian Snavely(6th round, 2003). David Hicks and Juan Peralta should also be expected to see playing time in the infield as well for the Lugnuts.
In the outfield, Yuber Rodriguez leads the way. Rodriguez was named MVP of the Pulaski Blue Jays in 2004 after batting .306 with eight homers and 50 RBI. He is joined by Cory Patton, a sixth-round draft pick out Texas A&M who will be making his pro debut in 2005, Eric Nielsen(12th round, 2004) and Luke Hetherington(9th round, 2001)
The first chance for fans to meet the 2005 Lansing Lugnuts and the new coaching staff led by manager Ken Joyce will come on Wednesday, April 6th at the Lugnuts' annual Meet The Team event. The event begins at 6:15 p.m. and will be held at the Holiday Inn South, located at 5820 S.Cedar St. in Lansing. The team will practice both on Tuesday and Wednesday at Oldsmobile Park from 12:00 p.m.-2:00 p.m., contingent on the weather, in preparation for the 2005 season opener that will take place this Thursday at 6:05 p.m. when the Lugnuts play host to the Fort Wayne Wizards. Tickets for Opening Night and all 70 home games during the 2005 season can be purchased online at www.lansinglugnuts.com or by calling the Lugnuts box office at 517.485.4500, ext. 251. Box office hours are 10:00 a.m.-5:30 M-F and 10:00 a.m. until the middle of the sixth inning on game days.
Midwest League Stories from April 4, 2005
- Statement on Suspended Minor League Baseball Players - Cedar Rapids Kernels
- Top Prospects Headline 'Caps Roster - West Michigan Whitecaps
- Kernels Meet the Players Night April 6th - Cedar Rapids Kernels
- Cougars Opening Day Roster Set - Kane County Cougars
- Kernels Announce 2005 Opening Day Roster - Cedar Rapids Kernels
- Jake Miller named as Kernels Strength and Conditioning Coach - Cedar Rapids Kernels
- Silver Hawks Ready To Open Up - South Bend Silver Hawks
- Blue Jays announce Lugnuts opening day roster - Lansing Lugnuts
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.
