Four Sea Dogs Selected to the Eastern League All-Star Game
June 29, 2006 - Eastern League (EL1)
Portland Sea Dogs News Release
Portland, Maine- The Eastern League in conjunction with the Altoona Curve have announced the rosters for the 2006 Eastern League All-Star Game. Four Portland Sea Dogs have been selected to participate in the mid-summer classic; outfielder Tyler Minges, pitcher Chris Smith and infielders Chad Spann and Jeremy West. The All-Star Game will be played on Wednesday, July 12th at Blair County Ballpark in Altoona, Pennsylvania. The Sea Dogs' coaching staff consisting of manager Todd Claus, hitting coach Russ Morman, pitching coach Ace Adams, and trainer Masai Takahashi will coach the Northern Division All-Star squad.
The All-Star Game will feature the Northern Division All-Stars against the Southern Division All-Stars. Each team will consist of 24 players. The All-Star teams were selected through Rite Aid fan balloting along with selections from media personnel, club field personnel, and Eastern League administrators. Each Eastern League team has at least three players, including at least one pitcher and one position player. Chris Smith and Chad Spann were selected by the fans in the Rite Aid fan balloting, while Minges and West were selected by media, league officials, and team personnel.
Outfielder Tyler Minges began the year at Triple-A Pawtucket and joined the Sea Dogs on May 8th. In 42 games with the Sea Dogs, Minges is hitting .303 with three home runs, and 28 RBI's. The Hamilton, Ohio resident has eight outfield assist for the Sea Dogs this season. Minges spent the 2005 season with the St Louis Cardinals organization where he led the Texas League in batting average at .324. He was selected to both the mid-season and post-season Texas League All-Star teams. Minges was signed by the Red Sox as a minor league free agent on February 1, 2006. The 26 year-old was originally drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the sixth round of the June 1998 draft.
Right-handed pitcher Chris Smith currently leads the Eastern League with nine wins and ranks fifth in the league with a 2.27 ERA. Smith has made 15 starts for Portland this season posting a 9-3 record. In 91.1 innings pitched he has struck out 53 batters and walked 17, opponents are hitting .235 against him. The Hesperia, California resident is a perfect 4-0 with a 1.74 ERA in the month of June. This is his third season with Portland and first as an Eastern League All-Star. The 25-year-old was drafted by the Red Sox in the fourth round of the June 2002 draft.
Third baseman Chad Spann has appeared in 69 games for Portland this season and is hitting .289 with six home runs and 34 RBI's. Spann, a resident of Buena Vista, Georgia was named the Eastern League's Player of the Week for the week of May 29th through June 4th. The 22 year-old was drafted by the Red Sox in the fifth round of the June 2002 draft. Spann had one of the biggest hits in Sea Dogs history when he hit a walk-off grand slam in game one of the 2005 Eastern League Northern Division Championship against the Trenton Thunder (Yankees).
First baseman and designated hitter Jeremy West ranks fourth in the Eastern League in hitting at .310. In 67 games this season he has hit 19 doubles, seven home runs, and has driven in 36 runs. The Las Vegas, Nevada native is hitting .372 in the month of June with four home runs and 15 RBI's. The 23-year-old was drafted by the Red Sox in the seventh round of the June 2003 draft.
For more information on the 2006 Eastern League All-Star Game, log on to http://altoonacurve.com/game/.
The Portland Sea Dogs begin a four game weekend series with the Trenton Thunder (Yankees) on Friday night at 7:00 PM. Tickets for most games are available and can be purchased by calling the Sea Dogs Ticket Office at 207-879-9500 or on-line at www.seadogs.com. The July 3rd game is Sold Out.
Eastern League Stories from June 29, 2006
- Spiehs, Defenders walk off with 16 inning comeback victory - Connecticut Defenders
- B-Mets split doubleheader with Reading - Binghamton Rumble Ponies
- Curve drop second in a row at home, fall to Baysox 6-3 - Altoona Curve
- Fisher Cats shut out Thunder, 2-0, Thursday night - New Hampshire Fisher Cats
- Thunder blanked by Fisher Cats, 2-0 - Trenton Thunder
- Baysox donating half of Saturday's ticket proceeds to American Red Cross-Harrisburg - Chesapeake Baysox
- Bob Dylan concert coming to Merchantsauto.com Stadium - New Hampshire Fisher Cats
- Three Baysox named to Eastern League All-Star Game - Chesapeake Baysox
- Sea Dogs complete sweep of Rock Cats, 8-3 - Portland Sea Dogs
- Four B-Mets Selected For Eastern League All-Star Game - Binghamton Rumble Ponies
- Jesse Litsch added to Fisher Cats roster - New Hampshire Fisher Cats
- Curve place league-high six players on All-Star roster - Altoona Curve
- Hughes Leads Thunder Contingent To Eastern League All-Star Game - Trenton Thunder
- Four Fisher Cats named to Eastern League All-Star Team - New Hampshire Fisher Cats
- Four Sea Dogs Selected to the Eastern League All-Star Game - Portland Sea Dogs
- Rosters announced for 2006 Eastern League All-Star Game - EL1
- Baysox host double-header Saturday - Chesapeake Baysox
- Harrisburg Senators game notes - Harrisburg Senators
- Sea Dogs Next Homestand June 30-July 3 - 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.
