Bluefish Sign Five
Published on April 14, 2011 under Atlantic League (AtL)
Bridgeport Bluefish News Release
(Bridgeport, Conn. - April 14, 2011) - The Bridgeport Bluefish today announced the signings of pitcher Antonio Alfonseca, outfielder Steve Moss, and infielders Angel Berroa, Luis Lopez, and Eric Munson. Alfonseca, Lopez, and Moss return to the Park City, while Berroa and Munson will make their Bluefish debuts.
"We're very excited to bring in this group of high impact players as we close in on spring training," says Bluefish manager Willie Upshaw. "Antonio, Luis, and Steve will once again be vital parts of this ballclub, while the additions of Angel and Eric will strengthen our lineup."
Alfonseca returns for his second season with the Bridgeport Bluefish, third in the Atlantic League and 21st of professional baseball. Last season, the righthander appeared in 59 games for the âFish, posting a 4.13 ERA with two victories and 46 strikeouts over 65.1 innings of work. Antonio, also known as El Pulpo ("The Octopus") for having six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, boasts extensive Major League experience. He has seen time at the big league level with the Florida Marlins, Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, Texas Rangers and Philadelphia Phillies over the course of 11 seasons from 1997 to 2007. His most impressive campaign came in 2000 when he led the Major Leagues with 45 saves and posted a 4.24 ERA in 68 appearances as a member of the Florida Marlins. In 592 career Major League contests, the flamethrower has 35 wins with 192 saves and a 4.11 ERA in 613 innings pitched.
Lopez makes his way back for his fourth season with the Bluefish, sixth in the Atlantic League and 16th of professional baseball. In 115 games with Bridgeport last year, he recorded a .281 batting average with 58 RBI and 49 runs scored in 416 at-bats and also reached a career milestone by collecting his 1,000 career RBI. In 2009, the iron-man set a Bluefish single-season record with 136 games played. The former Major Leaguer spent two seasons in the big leagues, his first coming in 2001 with the Toronto Blue Jays. He spent the next two years with Sacramento (AAA, Athletics) of the Pacific Coast League before returning to the Major Leagues with the Montreal Expos in 2004. The infielder's best season came in 1997 with Single-A Hagerstown (South Atlantic) when he paced the league in hits (180) and batting average (.358), while posting career-highs in doubles (47), extra-base hits (63) and RBI (99). In 1,666 career minor league games, the infielder owns a .304 batting average with 1,887 hits, 384 doubles, 139 home runs, 1,017 RBI and 921 runs scored.
Moss returns to the Bluefish for his second year in the Atlantic League and 10th of professional baseball. Last season, the outfielder posted a career-year in the Park City, batting .321 with 22 home runs, 83 RBI, and 88 runs scored, all personal-bests and Bluefish team highs. Steve also had a team-best 16-game hitting streak and a 41-game on base streak (which was the second best stretch in the Atlantic League behind Robinson Cancel who reached base in 47 straight games). He became one of the top sluggers in the Atlantic League, ranking second in home runs, third in extra base hits, seventh batting average, and eighth in RBI. The 27-year-old was named to the Atlantic League All-Star Team and went 2-for-2, including a home run with two runs scored in the mid-summer contest. The California resident was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2002 June entry draft and made his debut with the Brewers' rookie league affiliate later that season. He has reached as high at the Triple-A level with Tacoma of the Seattle Mariners organization in 2009. For his career is a .269 career hitter with 77 home runs, 166 doubles, 402 RBI, and 464 runs scored in 843 contests.
Berroa is entering his 13th season of professional baseball and will be making his Atlantic League debut in 2011. The former Major Leaguer spent last year with Triple-A Fresno of the San Francisco Giants organization. He played 26 games, recording a .205 batting average. The 33-year-old has enjoyed nine seasons in the big leagues, with his first appearance coming in 2001 as a member of the Kansas City Royals. He made a big splash during his first full season in the Majors in 2003, batting .287 with 17 home runs, 28 doubles, 73 RBI, 91 runs scored, and 21 stolen bases to take home the Rookie of the Year award. He would spend the following four seasons in a Royals uniform before being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Juan Rivera in 2008. The next year would be his final stop in the Major Leagues, making appearances with both the New York Mets and New York Yankees. In 746 career Major League games, the infielder has recorded a .258 batting average with 46 home runs, 254 RBI, 329 runs scored and 50 stolen bases over the course of 2,575 at-bats.
Munson enters his first year with the Bluefish, second in the Atlantic League and 13th of professional baseball. The former Major Leaguer began last season with Portland (AAA, Padres) of the Pacific Coast League. Following a brief stint with the Beavers, he made his Atlantic League debut as a member of the Newark Bears. Eric batted .261 with eight home runs and 27 RBI in 45 games. The 33-year-old was originally drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the first round (third overall) of the 1999 amateur draft. After just one season in the minors, he made his Major League debut with the Tigers the following year. The California-native's best season in the big leagues came in 2003 with Detroit when he slugged 18 home runs and scored 28 runs while posting career-bests with a .240 batting average, 75 hits and 50 RBI. Over his nine year Major League career, which also included stints with the Tampa Bay Rays, Houston Astros and Oakland Athletics, he has recorded 226 hits, 49 home runs and 147 RBI in 361 contests.
Atlantic League Stories from April 14, 2011
- Saturday's Open Tryout Cancelled Due to Forecasted Weather Conditions - York Revolution
- Revs Touring Little League Circuit this Saturday and Hosting Open Tryout - York Revolution
- Bluefish Sign Five - Bridgeport Bluefish
- Ducks Sign DiNardo and Buzachero - Long Island Ducks
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.
